Gender & Equality 2.0: There's no thought on how women use space in architecture!

Just a little warning for those who are about to read this interesting and expressive post. Please prepare yourself for some persuasive opinions to come your way and a lot of indirect questions -- that you honestly don't have to answer if you don't want to -- now let's begin.

Men. How many times does it take for you to understand that even in professions such as architecture, our roles [as women] are equal to that of men?

For years, architecture has been dominated by men, with 71% of the registered architects being male. Only in 1873 was the first female architect, Mary L. Page appointed. Yet, despite this huge step in our industry, the attitudes towards women still remain prejudiced. Even in 1927 comments by famous architects towards women bravely entering and establishing themselves in the architectural field still occurred.

'We don't embroider here'

Derogatory attitudes such as this -- expressed by renowned architect, Le Corbusier towards Charlotte Perriand's request to join his studio -- were still apparent. > Which is crazy and so unnecessary to me but just shows the political status of women in the architectural field.

Let's talk about the kitchen for example, for a long, long time the kitchen has been defined as a space for a woman.

*1940s WW2 Housewives Propaganda. [Poster]

Hopefully, this is not the case in this current day and age but still, there is a strong prejudice against women remaining in home environments.

Even today, as seen in the screenshot above, a simple request to find a 'modern kitchen advertisement' leads me to women in this one space plastered all over the internet. Us women acknowledge your [society] efforts in trying to keep us there, making the home so inviting with just the right amount of pink. But today? In the 21st century?

If we're all being honest here -- as we always are in my blog-- It's fair to say that inclusion in a broad sense, whether gender, identity or race hasn't quite been fully accepted in the architectural field. To be exact, from the research of ARB(2020). The number of Registered architects in 2019 added up to 42,547 in total, whilst only 29% were female architects. IN 2019!! Think about that! Yes, there is a lot of catching up to do! One of the reasons lies in the fact that some people have begun to believe that space has become very political nowadays.

Mundane things like navigating space between people or locations have become very political. Who can get the biggest house and how high should my building be to overpower the other building to reach my satisfaction? Just look at the image below.

*Donald Trump's 'Trump Tower

Donald Trumps Tower has been scrutinised for its irresponsible use of space and interaction with the people.

Realistically speaking this building as dominant as it is in this century could only have existed through the work of a man - not to be prejudiced, just an unfortunate reality in this current time. It not only shows that high social status as a celebrity gets you a better standing in life. But also shows that a large political status allows you to dominate a specific area. That means that anyone who does not fit within these standards was in different ways excluded from ideas and plans, such as these.

But that's not to say, there aren't any female roles in the architectural field. Alice Constance is a prime example of a woman finding her space in architecture. Being promoted within her design for utopian communities allowed a different world to exist. And if you take a look at my previous blog on Gender and Equality 1.0 you'll find a significant number of successful women who in spite of challenges and opponents have established themselves in their passion for architecture.

References

Benge, V. A. (2021, November 20). The First Architect in History. The Classroom | Empowering Students in Their College Journey. Retrieved April 25, 2022, from https://www.theclassroom.com/the-first-architect-in-history-13654587.html

Charlotte Perriand and Le Corbusier’s Chaise. (2020, July 29). Optima. Retrieved April 25, 2022, from https://optima.optimalakeview.biz/charlotte-perriand-and-le-corbusiers-chaise/

ARB. (2020, July 16). ARB publishes its latest annual report. Architects Registration Board. Retrieved April 25, 2022, from https://arb.org.uk/arb-publishes-its-latest-annual-report-nr20/

1940s WW2 Housewives Propaganda. (n.d.). [Poster]. Pinterest. https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/56/a1/8a/56a18a1d14321b659179ea46e0971e07.jpg

Dwyer, B. (2018, August 20). Trump Tower [Photograph]. Trump Tower. https://th.bing.com/th/id/OIP.yudFt5-OfUpDLGIF-rCFDQHaJ4?pid=ImgDet&rs=1

University of Portsmouth. (2022). Empiricism Gender and Identity [Slides]. Panopto. https://port.cloud.panopto.eu/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=38f59e21-1516-4be7-8206-ae5500ee6541&start=0