De Blois, Natalie (1921–)

American architect. Name variations: Natalie De Blois. Born April 2, 1921, in Patterson, New Jersey; dau. of civil engineer; Columbia School of Architecture, BA, 1944; attended École des Beaux-Arts, 1951; children: 4 sons.

Joined fledgling NY architectural firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, which was responsible for pioneering modern glass curtain-wall office building (1944); rose at Skidmore from draftsperson to participating associate; worked alongside star architects of firm, such as William Brown, Louis Skidmore, and Gordon Bunshaft; served as senior designer on buildings generally regarded as among the finest examples of the glass-curtain style; made design associate (1968); left Skidmore after 30 years to pursue writing and teaching (1974); addressed hardships and limitations faced by women in architecture and was an active member of American Institute of Architects Task Force on Women; joined Houston firm of Neuhaus & Taylor, as senior project designer (1975); began teaching design studio at University of Texas (1980) and remained as adjunct professor until 1990. Worked as design co-coordinator and senior designer on many wellknown buildings such as Terrace Plaza Hotel (Cincinnati, 1948), Connecticut General Life Insurance Company Building (Bloomfield, CT, 1957), Pepsi-Cola Building on Park Avenue (originally Olivetti Building, 1959), Union Carbide Building, Emhart Manufacturing Company Building (1962), and Boots Building (Nottingham, England, 1968).

See also Judith Paine, Natalie de Blois: Women in American Architecture: A Historic and Contemporary Perspective (Whitney Library of Design: 1977).