Madam President of the National Council of the Order of Architects, dear Catherine Jacquot,
Dear Angela Brady, President of the Royal Institute of British Architects,
Dear Béatrice Auxent, President of the Regional Council of the Ordre des Architectes du Nord-Pas-deCalais,
Dear Alexandre Labasse, Director of the Arsenal Pavilion,
Madam President of ARVHA, dear Hélène Danglard,
Dear Catherine Guyot, Director of ARVHA
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends,

It is a real pleasure for me to be with you this evening at the Arsenal Pavilion, where architecture is seen and understood by as many people as possible. A place of discovery and debate around the issues of architecture of yesterday, today and tomorrow.

We could not imagine a more appropriate environment to distinguish the quality of the works and the exemplary careers of our female architects. To also encourage young female talents and accompany their professional careers.

I am also pleased to share the joy of presenting the Women Architects Awards in the presence of Catherine Jacquot, newly appointed President of the National Council of the Order of Architects. How can you not see it as a strong sign?

Why did you create this award for women architects? Why do you want to reward women in particular?

The goal is not to celebrate a sexual vision of architecture. I don’t think talent has a gender. I don’t think creation does. The objective of this award is to make visible the invisible because by saluting the talented women who make today’s architecture, we are also shedding light on the profound inequalities of a sector that makes France shine around the world.

French architecture is a showcase for the excellence and creativity of our architects, we cannot accept that it reflects the blockages of our society.

What the recent ARVHA study, which I commend for its tremendous work, reveals is that in architecture, occupational equality between women and men is far from being achieved. 

While the number of students in architecture schools exceeds that of students, very few are still enrolled in the college of architects. While they represent 57% of the student body, they are only 22% against 78% of men in the order of architects.

The unequal logic of consideration and remuneration persists, as does the overestimation of male values in certain positions.

It is this unequivocal observation that is at the origin of the creation of this prize.

To make the invisible visible is to denounce an unacceptable situation. It is to build professional equality by increasing the visibility of women in the profession. It also means encouraging and supporting those who work daily for professional equality between men and women architects. The ARVHA is one of them, and I want to thank each of its members for their commitment and commitment to a fairer profession.  

As you know, the place of women in culture is one of my major concerns and one of the government’s priorities. As early as last March, I set up a committee for equality between women and men in culture and communication. I also relied on the observatory of equality in culture and communication, a study that brings together information on appointments, remuneration and programming but also access to the means of production in all fields of culture. To better assess and communicate the reality of the situation.

On the basis of these results, I launched an incentive policy around three priority areas: combating stereotypes, to give place to creators and to promote the place of women in the positions of leadership of my ministry but also of the institutions and cultural institutions for which it is responsible.

Because it makes it possible to increase the visibility of women in a dynamic cultural sector, a factor of attractiveness for our country, This award for women architects is fully in line with the objectives of my Ministry to strengthen professional equality between women and men. I would also like to include data on architects in the equality observatory, and I count on your efforts to contribute to this study.

After presenting the Woman Architect Award, I would like to congratulate the winners of the Young Woman Architect Award for Clicks and Layers and the Original Work Award for Anne Demians. I salute all the nominees in both categories. For the Prix de la femme architecte, I greet the nominees: Cécile Brisac, Marie-Christine Gangneux, Manuel Gautrand, Françoise N'Thepe and Elodie Nourrigat. I congratulate the two special mentions awarded to Behrend Architecture and Françoise Hélène Jourda, as well as the winner, Odile Decq, for this Woman Architect Award that has been awarded to her tonight.

I would like to recall the struggle of these pioneers of architecture, Charlotte Perriand, Eileen Gray and Lilly Reich, but also the women who made the choice to share a life of creation in the shadow of their spouses like Aino Aalto, Ray Eames and Noémie Raymond.

I hope that these awards, which bring us together this evening, will allow us, to say it with the words of Charlotte Perriand about her discovery of architecture, to "cross the wall that obstructed the future".

Thank you.