Cornell AAP's Maiko Sein on Questioning Everything and Architecture for a Cause

By Julia Gamolina

Maiko Sein is a rising 3rd year at Cornell University, pursuing a Bachelor of Architecture. Her home is Brooklyn, New York. She is a member of her school’s chapter of National Organization of Minority Architecture Students, NOMAS. She loves cooking and drawing. Her favorite artists include Agnes Martin and Isamu Noguchi. Her favorite writers include Maggie Nelson and Jenny Xie. When campus reopens, you can find her early in the morning behind the counter of the Green Dragon cafe, making a cup of hot chocolate, her favorite beverage to make for customers.

JG: Why did you decide to study architecture?

MS: I decided to study architecture because it felt right. I went into architecture school unsure - still unsure - of whether I want to be an architect. Being an immigrant and growing up in New York City, I was interested in learning about what makes a place, a place, and architecture combines the subjects I loved to learn - art, history, math, English, science.

What was the favorite project you worked on in school? Favorite paper you wrote? Favorite extracurricular?

One of my favorite classes I took this year was called Power and Consequence of Protest During the Vietnam War. It was taught by Alex-Thai D. Vo. He was an amazing teacher and out of the many takeaways I took from the class, the biggest one was to question whatever you read, whatever you hear, whatever you see and that history will try its best to tell you the story but it will never really be a whole one. I also took Artist’s Book and Object Multiple which was taught by Professor Gregory Page and Julianne Hunter and I learned how to make books. Making books has now become a pastime of mine during quarantine!

“...question whatever you read, whatever you hear, whatever you see...history will try its best to tell you the story but it will never really be a whole one.”

What are some of the initiatives you’ve focused on in school, and why?

In school, I am the publicity officer for our school chapter of National Organization of Minority Architecture Students, NOMAS. We recently published an open letter that was sent out to our entire school highlighting the importance of the Black Community’s voices, what it means to be an ally and our demands to the university to end institutional racism. You can find the link to the open letter here. I joined NOMAS because the club created an opportunity for me to collaborate with a community that was also interested in how architecture can be used for a cause, something that I felt wasn’t strictly part of my architecture curriculum. I’ve also been pursuing an independent study with my former creative writing teacher, Cristina Correa, on telling a specific story through art and prose.

A perspective collage drawing from Studio Review Fall 2019

When thinking about and searching for internships and jobs, what are you looking for?

When applying and searching for internships and jobs I often ask myself two questions. The first is, what is the focus of the company or firm that I’ll be interning for or working for? The second is, do they want to teach?

What’s important to you? What inspires you?

It’s important that I live life as the best person I can be to myself and others. And my home, the people and places I surround myself with, inspire me.

What do you hope to do in your career?

I’ve never been asked this question. I hope that my career will be able to support myself, my future family, and my parents.

Who do you look up to? Both in terms of women in architecture, and in general.

I would say the women in architecture I look up to most are my classmates. One of the things that’s great about our school is the interaction we are able to have with all of the class years. I’m constantly inspired by my peers. I always tell myself, “If they can do it, I can.”

What advice would you give to those in high school now, choosing their field of study?

To understand the difference between field of study and profession. Most importantly, to give time to understand those things separately. Your field of study is what you want to learn, your profession is your job. What you want to learn informs what your job could be. You can’t figure out what your profession could be if you don’t take the time to explore what your field of study could be.