Meet Architect – Agata Uminska

Today we’d like to introduce you to Agata Uminska.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I have always been open-minded and interested in art as a kid. It became more and more serious after I got into architecture college back in Warsaw. Then I have been an active architect and designer since the last years of my studies. Past few years, I have been working in a few big architecture offices back in Warsaw, Poland. And that is how I started my retail journey in one of them. I used to work for international clients and my projects have been located around Europe. The idea to try to get experience abroad became more realistic and one day I decided that it is worth it to make it happen. I started to apply for a job as a designer.

In a meantime, I developed my hobby in one of the ceramic studios. It became my big passion and till today, I love working with different materials. I knew wherever I will be I need to continue that path of experience. That wasn’t an easy time. After months of a different interviewing process, I got job offers for an architect position from retail design studios including their offices in NYC, Los Angeles and San Antonio.

I got a proposition from a New York location. I knew it would be a big opportunity but also a love-hate relationship with the city I have been many times as a tourist in the past.

I made my decision to move my whole life there and here I am now on one of the biggest journeys of my creative life.

Alright, 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?
Of course not. Every day it’s a day full of experiences, not always positive one. Despite this, I’m always trying to look forward and don’t give up. As I become more and more successful in the New York City design world, I also promise myself to keep doing my pottery. I do a lot of research to find a place where I can belong and can manage to combine my architect lifestyle and clay lover mind. Some days aren’t easy when I am rushing to be on time in the studio and take a seat behind a pottery wheel.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Now I’m still working as an architect in a retail design studio (Kenneth Park Architects) located in Midtown Manhattan where we are creating a concept for luxurious brands. We specialize in numerous project types that impact the communities and urban environments in which we live, work and shop. Hours of meeting and different changes in so many projects give me a lot of experience as an architect and lead me to take more professional design cases. I really appreciate the place in life where I am now but more than anything, I believe in exploration for both the professional design side and my ceramic nature experience all together. Now I’m working on a very individual project where my handmade design can find a place in my client’s retail space.

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
Is the city who never sleeps and has a lot of open paths for everybody. One of the best things here are people! They are my inspiration for hard work and keep me created.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.behance.net/agatauminska
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/agata-uminska-8075731a6/

Image Credits
Agata Uminska