Is there such a thing as feminine architecture? Or architectural gender at all?
For 99% of our history buildings have been designed and built by men. Only very recently, relatively speaking, have women been able to enter the fray. It’s perhaps natural that in the beginning they had to emulate men in order to gain the first tentative position of equal standing. The unfortunate thing is that, with that approach, you get yet more men, they just happen to be women. There is a famous picture of Denise Scott Brown, standing on an empty lot with her own critical project, Las Vegas, stretching out behind her. Her pose, hands on hips, legs shoulder width apart, feels rather forced. This squaring off of the human body presents the straight lines and sharp angles of the masculine form. No doubt in 70’s America, despite her skills and intelligence, Brown would have to have been forceful in life to hold her ground but it begs the question, does this approach still deny feminism access to the industry. Onwards to 1980’s Britain and Margaret Thatcher is prime minister, what an achievement, but is there something missing? Has something been sacrificed in order to play the part? Zaha Hadid is one of the most famous architects in the world and although it’s a stock topic for most interviewers, do we really regard her a women? Naturally, this is not to criticise the women who forged the way, it is merely a retrospective observation concerning how those first steps may have influenced where we now stand.
Denise Scott Brown
I’m interested to know how this translates into architecture. I feel that any review mentioning ‘soft lines’ is probably too literal and missing the point. The first image that google has to offer on the subject is of Jeanne Gang’s Aqua Tower in Chicago, presumably because it was both designed by a women and features ‘soft lines’, perhaps it is a case of literal physical interpretation. It’s possible of course that feminine/masculine architecture is independent of the architect’s gender. It may be that the whole concept simply doesn’t exist, I can see Zaha’s spectacular style falling in to support of this argument. But is it possible that we haven’t seen a true example of feminine architecture yet, or that we have but we are unable to recognise it?
Occasionally Architectural 
dawnpiper
November 24, 2010
Interesting topic that should ruffle a few feathers. In regard to women in the profession, or rather the lack of them, perhaps (most) women are simply not interested in expressing themselves in brash concrete over-statements that dominate both landscape and people and worship the phallus. Feminine architecture, perhaps, should be sought in the self-build refugee camps and shanty towns where it is they (generally) who create homes and useful spaces out of scrap-heap materials and genuine needs. Or am I being simply too simple and sexist? No, not at all. Not simple or sexist enough. Let’s not beat about the bush any more, let’s face it – men build and women decorate….
Layla
November 25, 2010
Oh dear. Oh dear oh dear. You comments are so, well, so extremely stereotypical and sexist. Presumably written with the intention of ‘ruffling a few feathers’ so I shall not bite. In fact, I will get back to decorating (after I’ve cooked a meal for the BF of course). And mustn’t forget the ironing…
Trevor Taw
November 25, 2010
Interesting. It’s a difficult topic to approach, and I should have stated that I made the decision to concentrate on mainstream western architecture as a starting point, internationally there are of course examples of the role being traditionally female such as the Maasai in Africa.
It’s true, that emergency architecture is popular with women (sounds like a generalisation but that’s how the land lies), as are most of the units I personally take at school. In that case, could it be that I will become a feminine architect myself?! I’ve actually heard of someone taking the ‘development and emergency practice’ specialisation at uni to “find a girlfriend”! In general though I love to celebrate the differences between men and women and think we can do that now. Equality doesn’t mean replication.
Layla
November 25, 2010
Interesting reading Trevor. I found an interesting article on women architects here:
http://feministing.com/2010/11/23/women-architects-say-here-we-are/
and here:
http://womenarchitects.wordpress.com/
Trevor Taw
November 26, 2010
I was trying to avoid this sliding into a discussion about sexism as it steers away from the point, but I suppose it must be a consideration. Thanks for the links Layla. It’s interesting that a group like this still exist, I suspect it is more of a problem in America than it is here. I believe that any major unbalance we have in the profession is merely the remnants of another time, throughout my education the split has been pretty even and at least half of the young architects I meet are women, the current president of the RIBA and her successor are both women….
NourishU
January 14, 2011
What an interesting and brave subject for you to undertake.
I have often thought/wondered the same thing. When I see the architecture of Rudolf Steiner I feel much more at home with its “soft lines”, as you put it. I am also attracted to the round homes with round windows of The Shire in the LOTR movies. (Hobbits being more homebody sorts, which is typically associated with female tendencies.) The Taj Mahal, being built for a woman, looks more feminine, to me, and I wonder how much input was female?
I don’t see a problem with the idea of soft lines representing women. The controversial Pharaoh of Egypt, Akhenaten, (Queen Nefertiti’s husband) has been attributed with female artistic form and completely deviated from the Egyptian architectural style, forming a more open model of community with artwork that depicted depicted soft, rounded forms.
I enjoyed this piece – your take. Bold of you to be honest, thanks. 🙂
Trevor Taw
January 21, 2011
Thanks very much NU.
Glad to get another women’s contribution. I wonder if you’re party draw to soft-lines more by your love of nature than by being female? Maybe the two are linked. Is nature feminine? Mother nature would lead us to believe so. But then most objects of beauty are considered female….
Aisyah Andamari
February 1, 2011
I think to analyze whether a form of architecture is masculine or feminine, we need to study it thru psychoanalytic point of view, such as how color and geometric shape (including that soft lines etc) can be associated to certain gender (feminine/masculine), this has been proven in a study that is visual communication design related . Different kind of color and geometric shape that is applied on graphic design material has certain effect to our visual perception which drive us to has the sense of differentiation between those genders – in this case, the graphic design material would be architectural elements. this kind of thinking process also has something to do with how socially and culturally we borrow the signs of feminine and masculine figure and put the concept on other objects surround us, including architecture.
that just what I’ve found by been trying to figure out the same question, if not mistaken or not doing premature analysis. I’m actually in the beginning of composing my paper about how to identify the gender of a building thru it’s architectural elements and what can be captured visually. well, pardon the grammar thou, english is not my first language.