Today we’d like to introduce you to Maria Gabriela Flores.
Maria Gabriela, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Where should I start my story? Perhaps, it’s best if you get to know me from my beginnings, where I come from and how I was raised: I am from Caracas, Venezuela, and I’m currently 23 years old. I came to the United States at 11 years old, along with my parents. My family is pretty small but, it’s family of very creative people. Both of my parents graduated from Architecture and are professionals in the field. In the beginning, it was hard finding a niche; growing up being the only child is interesting in many ways but it can get quite lonely. Growing up just surrounded by your thoughts can be hard. This made me have a strong connection with both my parents. They are my confidants and the reason for many of my accomplishments in life. They support me in everything I do and they push me to become the best version of myself, both professionally and personally. They made me realize at a very young age the importance of believing in myself and opened up a world of possibilities because to them the sky is limitless and I could accomplish any dream that would come to my mind.
Being raised this way helped me realize from a very young age that I had a lot of dreams. One of them was to become an artist. Art was a constant during my childhood, so it was logical that I would somehow pursue it at a certain point in my life as a career. Nonetheless, I decided to go for Journalism when I applied to Florida International University. Two weeks in the semester and I already felt I was not made for it. I would just sit in class and draw on my notebook. I felt like my creativity needed to be exploited. Since this feeling wouldn’t go, in a single day, I decided to change my major (thanks to my parent’s advice) and was accepted into Architecture right there and then.
After joining Architecture and being in the program for about three years, at the age of 20, I created one of my first passions: The Archiologist. My very first entrepreneur adventure. The Archiologist grew up from my love for Journalism (which I had left behind but always knew I could carry along with me) and Architecture/Art. I realized there was a need for design students to be recognized. I mean, there are so many people that want to be heard, known and acknowledged for their hard work! With The Archiologist, I make that exposure happen. This online platform created a space where students and young professionals could get recognition for their work, ideas, and concepts. The Archiologist creates and promotes design and architecture public engagement around the world. My mission with this platform is to connect design students and young professionals with each other. This platform happens online and in print, through magazines and many articles, I put forth due to my love for writing. Right now, it is at its second issue. The Archiologist gains more and more followers every day. For instance, it appeared on Archdaily among the top 50 platforms for Architecture students (and everybody else) in September 2018. It is a very promising project for me, with the first magazine being shipped to around 30 different countries, and getting submissions from 300+ people in 76 different countries, 135 cities, and counting…
My second passion came in a very different way, it came unexpectedly. In my last year of architecture, I was offered a job as an Undergraduate Architecture Design Professor. I could not believe I was going to follow in the steps of one of my heroes, my father, who used to be an Architecture Professor at Venezuela for many years. I had dreamed about teaching before as something for my future but I didn’t think it would become a reality so soon. Through teaching, I found something I want to keep doing for the rest of my life, I found a purpose: mentoring and inspiring students. Teaching for me is such a beautiful thing. Waking up every day knowing that I am going to go and make a difference beats any type of feeling. I aim to be the difference in the system by caring deeply for my students, not only for the work they put forth but for who they are as a person. I try to not only motivate my present students but also continue to have an impact on my past students whom I still have a close relationship with.
Remember when I said I wanted to dream big? Well at the same time I started teaching, I was on the last semester to finish my Architecture career. I was developing my thesis project: an elevated city for Brickell in the year 2100. This project for me meant a challenge. It meant dreaming big, imagining the future of our beloved Miami. Because of this project, I had a lot of sleepless nights, regrets, tears shed, but it was all worth it. It was because of this project that I re-assured myself that I wanted to make a change. I graduated with a Masters of Architecture in May 2018 and started a post-graduate second Masters a short time after that. I am continuing to research the topic of my thesis project and will soon start to write a book about all my research which I hope to publish in the near future.
My story doesn’t end here though – I am also currently working toward growing and further developing The Collab, a beautiful project I created along with my good friend, Harley Martinez. We started this new project as a way to create a space dedicated to help out architecture and design students. We both realized there was a need that students had, to grow and to keep on learning. At The Collab, we offer workshops on many things such as software, creating graphics. among other things. We also offer one-on-one mentorship services. This is an ongoing project that I am very excited about and eager to see its possibilities in the future!
I’ve done a lot of things that I am very proud of. However, these accomplishments and projects do not make me a successful person. What makes me a successful person is a fact that, from them, I have learned what my purpose is. Because of all these projects, accomplishments, and goals, I have realized what I want my life to be like and where I can go next. I have learned what I’m scared of but also what I’m capable of.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Oh, definitely not. I think that a story worth telling is one that shows the true reality of life, and that includes ups and downs. For any project I have worked on, there have always been many doubts and fears along the way such as “what if it fails?” or “what if I am not good enough?” The crude reality of us as human beings is that we are our worst critics. We often times have very negative self-talk and we have to keep ourselves in check every single time those pessimistic thoughts come up.
This would be a superficial story if I said that I’ve struggled because I wasn’t accepted into that one job, or I didn’t make as much money as I wanted, or how I didn’t have many people’s support. Truth is, one of the hardest struggles I have been through in my life is dealing with anxiety. “Feeling anxious” is a normal reaction of the human body, but once that “feeling anxious” jumps to a debilitating sense of being unable to go outside of your house due to being terribly scared 24/7, is different. Thinking that tomorrow would not come… and that perhaps there was no meaning to my life. This was my state of mind after I graduated from Architecture and it wasn’t until recently that I have learned to be okay with it. Through learning about anxiety and how to control my emotions, I came to realize that feeling anxious does not make me less of a person. In fact, I believe that this mental illness for myself (and for anyone) is a blessing in disguise. This part of my life is something that I am very eager to speak about because I believe that our society shames others for having mental illnesses and for going through hard times. The society also places a stigma on happiness. We often times forget that it’s okay to be weak and it’s okay to be vulnerable, that doesn’t change how “happy” or how “successful” we are. My biggest struggle was pretending I was someone I was not. One of my other struggles was accepting myself for who I was, for realizing that these accomplishments are not to make anyone else proud but I do it all for myself. Struggles aren’t a curse at all, they make us jump back and believe in ourselves even more. They’re the ones that shape us and make us stronger. I am a better person today because I deal with my demons every single day. And I’m okay with that, because in that process… I am becoming myself.
Please tell us about The Archiologist, The Collab.
When it comes to the work I do, I like to keep it simple by saying it’s a combination of all the things I love to do. All of the things that I find interesting in life, such as journalism, art, architecture, writing, etc. Can all be represented in my work, which doesn’t only touch upon architecture per se, but it goes to all different fields as well.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love Miami. I love the fact that everywhere you go (Europe, Asia, South America, etc.) everyone knows about Miami. And their eyes widen when you tell them that you’re from here. Even though I didn’t completely grow up in Miami, I have a deep love for this amazing city. This city grows exponentially, year by year, Miami becomes better. In a short time, Wynwood appeared, Brickell has been growing like crazy, famous architects have started building here as well. In ten years, Miami will be more of an amazing destination it is today. I love Miami because it is real, and to be honest, there is nothing I dislike about this city. Perhaps, the fact that traffic sucks a lot. Haha!
Contact Info:
- Website: My website: mariafloresarch.com / The Archiologist Magazine: thearchiologist.com / Workshops: thecollab.net
- Phone: 9545497471
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: instagram.com/mariaflowers and instagram.com/thearchiologist
Image Credit:
Marianne Neustadtl, Vanessa Estevez
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