Architecture and Feminism?
Housing by Högna Sigurðardóttir and Sigvaldi Thordarson rediscovered through feminist theory
Ásta María Þorsteinsdóttir (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
Birgitte Hansen – Mentor (TU Delft - Teachers of Practice / A)
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Abstract
For centuries, women have been underrepresented in society and this has affected the built environment, where prevailing gender ideologies are translated into architecture. In the light of changing social patterns and developments in feminist debate, it’s important to understand and contextualize architecture in relation to gender. This paper aims to rediscover housing by two Icelandic architects, Högna Sigurðardóttir and Sigvaldi Thordarson, through the scope of feminist theory. Both architects were influenced by modernist principles, yet they had very different approaches to housing design. The goal is to explore how gender roles are represented within their residential buildings, and which factors may have influenced their design choices. Architecture is not merely a spatial science but includes social, political, economic, and cultural aspects. This understanding of architecture as a reflection of its environment leads us to examine the Icelandic context through the lens of feminist theory, in an attempt to expose the means of the architects.