Places to Dwell: Marlon Blackwell Architects' Meryati Blackwell on Her Foundation in Malaysia, the Natural Environment, and Beauty
By Patrick Dimond
Meryati Blackwell brings over twenty-five years of experience to her role as Principal at Marlon Blackwell Architects where she also serves as Director of Interiors. Her sensitivity as a designer and knowledge of materials and details enrich every project in the office. Ati has been a guiding force in the growth of MBA, helping to transform the firm from a sole proprietorship to a thriving international practice it is today.
She works alongside Marlon to thoughtfully ground and guide the design ethos as the firm grows; always supporting the creation of award-winning architecture for any place, at any scale, at any price and for anyone. With a degree in Architecture and Planning, Meryati is both a Registered Architect and a Registered Interior Designer as well as a LEED Accredited Professional. In her interview with Patrick Dimond, Meryati talks about working with the natural environment and infusing its influences into architecture and interiors, advising those just starting their careers to think about the future and surround themselves with positive people.
PD: Meryati, it's nice to meet you; I'm so excited to hear your story as a designer and how your designs have been informed as an immigrant. To start, could you tell me about your foundational years? What was it like growing up in Malaysia?
AB: Thank you for having me. I grew up in Malaysia. In Malaysia, the educational system requires children to stay at home until they are 12, and if you excel, they [the government] will place you in what they call a boarding school – this democratizes the system. So, even if your parents are farmers, rubber tappers, or fishermen, you are not having to deal with issues of transportation or having your home affect your studies. People like me, who came from working-class families and attended boarding school, didn't have these pressures. I thought it was the best thing that I got selected to be one of the few that were able to attend.
Then usually, after graduation, the government sends you abroad. Typically one's choice would be in England or Australia, sometimes in Belgium or France, or America. Initially, they prefer to send you to England or Australia because the education system is similar to what they have in Malaysia. But I suppose there's not enough space for all the kids. So, I was placed in America, in Miami, and I went to the University of Miami to study architecture. In terms of choosing architecture, I recall my dad being my biggest cheerleader. My father was artistic, even though his profession as a school principal wasn't.
Also, I was influenced by my mom and grandmother. All the things they did, like hosting, cooking, and gardening, encouraged me. Having grown up in Malaysia, a tropical country, I would put something in the ground, and it just grew. Like New Orleans, I didn't have to tend to it, and it just took care of itself. So all these things influenced my creativity. You know, just things that absorbed you as a kid. So all those things are a part of me and led me to architecture.
Shelby Farms Park Visitors Center by Marlon Blackwell Architects.
I read that your parents were both teachers. Interestingly, you ended up with another teacher. It seems like you're a lifelong learner and attracted to these kinds of academic souls. Did growing up in Malaysia, with its sense of ritual, affect how you work? Does its vernacular influence your work or how you design?
To some extent, it's always been in me. I appreciate tactility and the quality of materials. I began from the architectural side in our studio, and now, I head the interior design department. When creating an architectural scheme, I'm always thinking about the interiors and how we will end up placing furniture, and what kind of material quality we're going to inject into the project. I'm lucky to be able to do that from the architectural side, so crafting the space and making sure the light and all of that are in, that by the time we do the interiors, it can be very minimal.
Also, growing up in a place like Malaysia, you are absorbed in the natural environment. I mean, when it rains, it rains, you know? When things are growing, you can't stop them. It's visceral; the feeling is so over the top. When it's hot, we don't go outside in the middle of the day, and we try to run your errands early in the morning or at four o'clock when the sun becomes less harsh. So, when we design, we try to deal with those types of environmental issues head-on by being able to figure out when you go and do things.
How did you get your start in working in the built environment?
When I graduated from the University of Miami, I would have gone back to Malaysia, but there was no work, and there was a recession happening in Asia. This was the early nineties, and the government could not guarantee employment for me. So, they told me to find a job in the States, and I was lucky to have a friend in architecture school whose father was a developer.
I began working for that developer, and they paid for my visa. I helped them staff their architectural department. I worked as an architect and collaborated with his cousin, who was doing interiors. When things were slow on the architecture side, I would help with interiors. I worked within both departments for about six years, and when the situation in Malaysia became better, I went back home. The funny part was that the government entity who gave me the scholarship, after the fifth year of me working, was basically like, “Okay, we couldn't honor our side of the contract, so consider the loan forgiven — you can do whatever you want. You don't have to come and pay back the loan by working for us here for ten years.”
“Growing up in a place like Malaysia, you are absorbed in the natural environment. I mean, when it rains, it rains, you know? When things are growing, you can’t stop them. It’s visceral...when we design, we try to deal with those types of environmental issues head-on by being able to figure out when you go and do things.”
What was being back in Malaysia like?
When I went back to Malaysia after six years, I felt like a big shot. At the time, the Petronas Twin Towers were being built, and all the other new developments were trying to compete. So, when I went back, I felt like my skills were in high demand, and I found that when I started working, I ended up with teams designing large projects, which I loved but I knew it would be five years before seeing the project built. I realized I could also do interiors and design a new restaurant in six months from design to finish, so having both options open in my work life established my architectural and interiors direction which is what I still do today and where I am happiest.
Also, by this time, I had met Marlon during the tail end of my time in Miami. While I was in Malaysia, we decided we were going to get married after two years. So, he came to Malaysia, and we married there. But then he said, “You know, I don't just want to be an architect. I want to teach and practice on the side. Oh, and by the way, the first position offered to me is as a professor in Arkansas.”
He said there was a long history of modernist architecture there [Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design at the University of Arkansas] and that it would be an excellent place to create a home. So, I was just like, “I guess I'll join you in Arkansas!” It's funny because I thought it would be two or three years, and we are still there. It's been great, actually; it's where we started our family and business.
Vol Walker Hall and the Steven L. Anderson Design Center by Marlon Blackwell Architects.
What you are most excited about now, and what is driving your design force and making you happy.
In terms of work, I feel like we are finally getting there with the projects' caliber, quality, and size. It's almost like we don't even have to search very hard anymore for work. It comes to us, and people have enough confidence to know that we can do it well and for that I am grateful.
We have new project types that we're working on, not only architecture, but clients also ask us for our interior design services. We are doing an office for the Whole Health Institute for Alice Walton, a new initiative for health and wellness in our area with the desire to go national. So, we are doing the headquarters for that. We are doing a factory for Canoo's electric vehicle and the associated buildings they may need in our area. I'm excited about the IDIQ embassy work with the State Department that we are doing. Now that our kids are in college and they're doing their own thing, it affords me more time to be more tuned into the firm, such as work related travels which I couldn’t do as much while they were younger.
“I also try to remind our designers at the studio that the place we dwell in is significant...in the end, where we live and where we work are just as important”
Who are you admiring right now?
I admire people at the top of their profession but who I can also count as friends. I have gotten to know Billie Tsien and Wendy Evans Joseph through the industry. I admire these women not only because they have accomplished the level of design that they have, but they're also genuinely nice people. And, as I begin to get to know them more and more, I appreciate what they have done and what they've been able to accomplish.
I see a lot of similarities between your practice and the practice of Billie Tsien.
I have one last question for you - I love to think about it because when I was growing up, the women in my life were so important, and they valued beauty, but in an entirely pragmatic way. My mom would read a children's book to my siblings and me, and the last line was, "How are you going to make the world a more beautiful place?" So, I want to ask you, is there anything right now that you're working on or that you're working towards to make the world a more beautiful place?
Yes. You know, of course, we do our work, and through the job we do, we are constantly striving to make it fundamentally more beautiful, but on a personal side, I do what I can through my own home or garden. I find beauty in these avenues of my life and quite enjoy them. Every spring, I make sure I get new plants and the garden just right.
But I also try to remind our designers at the studio that the place we dwell in is significant. Occasionally we'll have a glare issue, for example, and the designers are so busy that they might create a quick fix to the problem by putting cardboard on the windows and things like that. I'm like, “We need to figure out a pragmatic solution and an attractive solution.” I'm always trying to inject little anecdotes and remind people that, in the end, where we live and where we work are just as important. So, let's find out a solution.
Meryati and Marlon Blackwell.
That seems to be a running theme throughout the work, which I admire, that there are smart design solutions at every turn. To me, it's like the St. Nicholas Eastern Orthodox Church project with the satellite dish that was salvaged and used as a dome. It's about finding solutions that might not be obvious.
Yes, and trying to make do with what we have, but still, making it aesthetic. In the end, it's not only a pragmatic solution but an aesthetic one.
My last question for you is: what advice do you have for those just starting in our industry? And, would your advice be any different or additional for women?
Start with thinking about the future. If you want to emulate your favorite architect, try to obtain an internship with a rigorous design studio, then go from there. That being said, every job is an opportunity to learn, so don’t beat yourself up if you don’t think the place you’re working at during the beginning of your career is not the best. Keep learning and keep moving forward. Work hard, be nice to everyone, and be available to help beyond the tasks given to you. This way, you’ll get noticed, and you’ll get recommended for better positions.
Also, put forth excellence in anything you do; don’t let your work happen by accident. It’s a lot of years of hard work, so it’s crucial to keep company with people that are positive. People with positive attitudes can lift you, and people with negative attitudes can drag you down, so try to keep company with the right set of people. And oh, be grateful for any leg up given to you, and be sure to express that gratitude to those who helped you. Gratitude is everything.
As for my advice for women, I recommend letting your hard work and positive inner-self be seen and loved. I think a great winning attitude and hard work speak for themselves and you will get recognized and lifted. If you don’t, ask yourself if you’re in a healthy space. If the answer is no, create that freedom where you can be the best contributor to your own fabulous life and to those that you love and the society you cherish. You can do anything if you know your strengths and are not afraid to use them.