INTERNATIONAL

MAGAZINE

OF ARCHITECTURE

AND DESIGN

177

A STORY OF

STRUGGLE & SUCCESS with AR

TAN

PEI ING

GR

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9

OF ARCH SUCCESS VOL. 177

Up Close & Personal Ar Tan Pei Ing

ne of the leading architects of Malaysia

and the proprietor of her own architectural

firm, former president of the Malaysian

Institute of Architects (PAM) – the first female head in 90

years since its inception and elected president of ARCASIA

2013 - 2014, Tan Pei Ing surely has many feathers to her hat.

FIRST IMPRESSION COUNTS but it is also sometimes deceiving. Perhaps such is often the case with Ar Tan Pei Ing, founder of P I Architect, where her tall and graceful physique may lead some to regard her as aloof and inapproachable. If that isn’t intimidating enough, her stature as one of the leading architects in the country would have certainly made it seem so.

A paragon of female architects, Ar Tan Pei Ing shares with BRIDGET TAN about her life, her work and her love for architecture

Driven by Passion

O

Tan finds it all rather amusing, “People nicknamed me the Iron Lady,” she says, “but I perceive myself to be quite feminine." In fact, the affable side of Tan swiftly surfaces during our meeting where she speaks candidly about subjects close to her heart such as architecture.

“No matter where you are and what you do, if you have passion then success will follow,” declares Tan who believes that her enduring passion, coupled with hard work and tenacity, were the key ingredients in building the foundation of her career as an architect.

fascination with the built environment and how it affected people’s lives which planted a seed of

In the male-dominated world of construction, that couldn’t have been a walk in the park. Tan has quite a résumé having handled projects such as IOI Mall, IOI Business Park, and Marriott Hotel Putrajaya, for which her firm won the 2004 FIABCI Award under the hotel category. She has also been roped in for the proposed new IOI City, a sprawling complex in Putrajaya that she says could have over 7,000 parking bays for the first phase of its retail mall alone, in anticipation of superior demand. Her involvement with PAM, a professional association, is also remarkable, starting as a council member in 1989 before working her way up to president. She now serves as past president on the council. In the regional scene, Tan has also scored a coup – she was elected as the first woman president of the Architects Regional Council Asia (ARCAsia) for the 2012-2013 term. ARCAsia is an amalgamation of 18 architect associations in Asia including China, Japan, South Korea, India, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia.

ABOUT

Ar Tan Pei Ing

BORN: March 3, 1960

PERSONAL: Son (17) and

daughter (20)

HIGHEST QUALIFICATION:

BA Architecture,

Melbourne University

CAREER: Architect

NOTEWORTHY: First female

president of Malaysian

Institute of Architects (PAM)

FAVOURITE FOOD: Patchi

chocolates, sashimi

FAVOURITE PLACE: Paris,

Rome

HOBBY: Ballroom dancing,

reading, music

VALUES: Professionalism,

trustworthiness, integrity

INSPIRATION: Passing on

knowledge to the new

generation

The Beginning Born to academic parents, her father was a headmaster and mother was a school teacher – Tan is the eldest of five children in a close-knit family where the virtues of studying and working hard were a vital part of their childhood. Tan excelled in school, especially in Science and Mathematics. “I did not take part in any art subjects in upper secondary school. It’s a misconception that architecture requires mainly a strong art background; I really do not think it is also a scientific-based profession. It’s a combination of art and science.” Raised in a town called Kajang, she was the eldest of five children. To supplement their income, her parents started a business of selling auto spare parts with a relative and began investing in property. The venture, proved fruitful, raising funds for her and her siblings’ tertiary education. She always had an intense interest in architecture. She recalls her childhood days when while her occasional visits from Kajang to Kuala Lumpur, the surrounding space and change in the skyline left her mesmerized. She was drawn into it by the tangibility in the profession and the allure of creating something that would dictate how people used a piece of space. However, her first real exposure to the profession was when one of her friends was pursuing a drafting course at the Malaysian Institute of Architects (PAM). When she

decided to take up architecture, her mother however objected this idea strongly and recommended that Tan pursue accountancy instead, as an architecture degree normally takes six years compared to three years for accountancy, and on top of it, she needed to have outstanding grades to get accepted in colleges. Her parents later relented, and she left for Melbourne University, Australia for her degree in architecture. “It is the toughest course, I think. You virtually get no sleep. But I really enjoyed it,” she says. Tan took up work in her hall of residence like kitchen duty, washing dishes and doing the laundry etc., where she earned extra cash and graduated with honours in the mid 1980’s.

It’s a Man’s World Once she got her degree, she returned to Malaysia and started her career by working in an architectural firm. Eventually, she went on to start her own firm, PI Architect, in 1990 at the age of 29 when she became tired of working for other people. There was this preconceived idea that I wouldn’t be able to handle the rough construction sites as a woman in a man’s world, I was disadvantaged in many ways. Contractors used to bully me, but I showed them I could do what I needed to do, and even climbed the scaffolding. I told myself I would work harder than the men to prove myself. I was willing to learn from all who were willing to teach me; contractors, engineers, architects,” she explains talking about her struggle in the industry.

“I told myself I would work harder than the men to prove myself. I

was willing to learn from all who were

willing to teach me.”

Silver Linings

To this end, she is keen on emulating the model created by Architecture for Humanity, a non-profit design services firm. The chief purpose of Architecture for Humanity is to bring design services to communities in need. The projects the organisation is working on include health centres in Sub-Saharan Africa, community centres in Southeast Asia and low-income housing on the Gulf Coast of the United States. The organisation was founded by architect Cameron Sinclair, whom Tan met at an architecture conference in Kuala Lumpur this year where he spoke about the work they were doing. She approached him after his speech and was unable to hold back tears – so moved was she by his story. Tan’s first big breakthrough was when she was asked to design the IOI mall for the IOI properties, the mega property builders, in early 1990s. This was just a beginning of many major projects ahead. Finally, her persistence paid off. She as since handled numerous significant projects that includes regional townships, commercial centres and also has designed schools for free.

No Slowing Down Green design is also a subject close to Tan. She is a Green Building Index (GBI)-certified green design facilitator, meaning she can consult companies who want to attain green certification for their properties.

“They know I’m strict and mean business, but I’m also fair, so they don’t pull my leg. It took a long time to gain their respect,” she notes. Tan also met some seedy characters on the job, with one daring to proposition her for despicable favours, but she had a lucky escape. Today, she says, the negative perception of women in the industry has lifted somewhat, in step with the larger number of women working in property, architecture and construction, but prejudices remain.

Higher Calling Tan always felt there was more to life than enriching herself monetarily, and that she owed a filial responsibility to give back to the industry that taught her so much. Thus, began her two-decade-long involvement with PAM and various other architecture-related efforts in and out of the country. “As an individual, you have very little power, but being in a group like PAM meant I could help shape the direction of the architecture industry and consult the government on policy-making,” she elaborates. Till this day, she holds the record of being the only female president of PAM. “PAM has given me so much encouragement and I have reaped so many benefits from it that I feel it’s my duty to give back and help in any way I can.” Under her tenure as PAM president between 2001 and 2003, Tan initiated a review of the 1998 contract form and removed problematic areas as well as allocated risks to the party that could best manage it, whether it was the developer or the contractor. She was also instrumental in drafting the Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC) that replaced the Certificate of Fitness for Occupation (CFO).

The GBI rating started in earnest about two years ago, she says, and Malaysia is still at the “very beginning of the journey”. “PAM is going for the buy-in approach and not forcing this down the throat of the industry, unlike in Singapore where it is a top-down instruction. We’re working with all levels – developers, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, the Ministry of Housing and Local Government and the local authorities. In fact, the Petaling Jaya City Council is already imposing a requirement for some approvals given to be GBI- certified to a certain level,” she says. “We’re also working on different sets of tools to use as a resource for builders to rate the sustainability of their properties. So far we have developed a residential and non-residential tool and are looking into creating one for townships and malls as well,” she explains. Tan is also the elected president of ARCAsia, for 2013-2014. In ARCAsia her prime focus was to grow its social responsibility arm. “As Architects, we must not lose sight that the main distinction of our profession is our ability to create and design; with Design being the key differentiators in a progressively creative economy. The momentum of growth is now centring in Asia, therefore, the time is ripe for the design talents of Architects within our region to shine and be given due recognition.

“They know I’m strict

and mean business,

but I’m also fair, so

they don’t pull my

leg. It took a long

time to gain their

respect.”

Projects

OF ARCH SUCCESS VOL. 177

Putrajaya Marriott Hotel

IOI Mall, Puchong IOI Business Park, Puchong

IOI City Mall, Putrajaya

Tan hopes to encourage the architecture industry to make a difference in the world. “As architects, we should go back to our roots and think about how we can give back such as helping to rebuild a community after a natural disaster. However, our efforts alone as architects are not sufficient as we have to work as a team with developers, contractors and other parties to realise our goal.” For Tan, there is no doubt in her mind that only two factors matter in what she does. “I only work with people who work with their hearts and who truly believe in what they do. Do not underestimate the power of passion and belief because without them, nothing happens.” Tan always believed that no matter where you are and what you do, if you have passion, then success will follow. She confesses that she is lousy with finances so that is not what she pursues. She believes in hard work and earned her way to the top.

“Do not underestimate

the power of passion

and belief because

without them, nothing

happens.”

Bridget Victoria Tan

FNBE 022014