Uruguay: Julia Guarino Fiechter

Born in 1897 in Eboli, Italy, and raised in Uruguay, Julia Guarino Fiechter is considered the first professional woman architect in Uruguay. She held a diploma in architecture from the University of the Republic Uruguay in Montevideo, Uruguay (1923), becoming the first woman to graduate as an architect from the institution. During her career, she worked for the architecture department of the Ministry of Public Works as a draftsman (c. 1920), then as a technician, and eventually as the deputy director. In addition to practicing architecture, she also worked in academia. She co-founded the Association of Women University Graduates (AMTU) with Dr. Paulina Luisi at the University of the Republic Uruguay (1935). The city of Montevideo honored the legacy of Fiechter with the tribute of a designated street named Architecture Julia Guarino Fiechter in the Atahualpa neighborhood, where there is a concentration of her work. The National Postal Administration of Uruguay also featured her portrait and name on a postage stamp as part of their “Outstanding Women of Uruguay” series (1998). Julia Guarino Fiechter died in 1985 in Montevideo.