Sexuality and Space - Essay Example

Affiliation Sexuality and Space The roles of the household are no longer defined in home interiors in the contemporary age, compared with the Moller house, and others like it from the same period. Usually, the environments of interested include those of the early modernist movement. The Moller house in Vienna is an interesting case study, and is an early modernist work, in the style known as Vienna Secession. The house is designed with the masculine or famine intent for every room according Adolf loos’s theory of sexuality and space. Specifically the paper would like to focus on exploring the perceived view of the position of the woman in domestic life. The house has a floor system and arrangement that creates an offsetting of floor plates. The design was biased on perceived roles of the people living in the space. Rooms for more domestic situations are open, in the fount of the house and oversee activities in other rooms. Rooms meant for males are at the back of the house, and more private then the rooms meant for females. The paper therefore aims to expose the roles as seen by the architect, and explore the meaning of his moves. Subsequently the paper will also compare this to the contemporary ideas on how feminine and masculine roles are played in today’s architecture. Adolf Loos suggests that space is an essential element in domestic environments that people live in. In his view, privacy and publicity brings about considerations between the male and female sexes. The private rooms are usually more feminine. For example, the bedroom usually has private reserved spaces for the females to dress. Additionally, the kitchen is usually more feminine because it’s the women that use the most. On the other hand, men spaces are usually more open. This leaves their rooms more free and allows viewing easily. Loos also differentiates these spaces by creating differences in the entrances and height levels of servants or masters. A good example is the way Muller’s house is constructed in Adolf’s view as discussed below. The main aim of the paper is to explore the relationship of created spaces, and the people who live in these designed environments. What the paper aims to bring out is the role of the woman and her position in the society based on the architecture of the earlier days and how this defined the regard and position of the woman in the present day society. As such the paper will analyze the previous paper with major focus on the architectural reflection of the image of the woman and the position the same architectural designs placed the men. Additionally, the research paper will be to critically evaluate the effects of the earlier architectural models and reflections on the position and perception of the woman in the society. The following are the research objectives: Firstly, to investigate the effects of the earlier architectural models and reflections on the position and perception of the woman in the earlier society. It will also investigate the effects of the earlier architectural models and reflections on the position and perception of the woman in the society of today. Thirdly, to investigate how the architectural models and reflections can be used to change the position and perception of the woman in the society of today The role of the woman in society is no doubt very important and critical to the well being of the society. What has been affecting and hindering the recognition of this is the tarnished image which is associated with the woman in the society. As such this paper aims to point out the origin and the vices which are promoting the compromised image which is associated with the woman with the aim of finding ways of averting the same. This paper therefore aims to come up with the best possible solutions that will enable this images and perceptions to be changed. Since the paper is developed with focus on architecture, all the literature review that will be done and subsequent development of the paper will be done with special focus of the field of architecture. At the end of the paper there will be a clear direction and guidelines that will be proposed to help avert the trend and if possible empower the woman of the society of today In the Moller house there is a clear depiction of how one part of the house is raised and specially designed but designated for a specific member of the household is the first depiction of how the traditional architecture was tailored to work to the advantage of one group which was the men while disadvantaging the men (Fares 41). There is more that suggest there is an extra niche and touch of architecture in coming up with this section of the house according to Adolf’s perceptions. For instance the elements such as the sufficiency of the amount of light that comes through the window into the area as well as the nice collection and arrangement of books is suggestive of the care and particular emphasis in the development of this section of the house (Agrest, 541). This creates more than just a physical picture but also enhances a psychological perception of the occupant of the chambers so vividly described in the book (Colomina 74). It is further said that any visitor making entry into the house first accesses the living room and even there cannot exactly see who is in the chambers and recognize the person unless one moves more closely (Colomina 75). However the person who is sitting in this chamber is outright immediately able to recognize any person making entry into the house something that indicates this chamber is made to the advantage of the occupant. This is why the chamber is described as a theater box that gives the occupant special privilege to be able to see not just beyond the ordinary field of view that any other person in any other place of the house is able to see. It is with this in mind that the chambers are interpreted as physiological something that is also imagery reflecting the differences in the power regimes in the household (Agrest 547). This is a clear indication of the separation of power between the head of the house and the other members of the household. Hence this picture painted is a depiction of the separation of the powers and the disparity in terms of the members of the household who have control and to what limit their powers extend. These levels of powers can only be used to reflect on the privileges and the level of responsibilities the different members of the household get to enjoy and undertake respectively as a result. (Colomina76). It should be noted that the paper is developed from analysis of the previous papers which consist of the literature on the earlier recordings of the architectural designs. Although there is a paper which forms the main focus, other papers will also be analyzed in coming up with a conclusive and substantive argument. The design and the sequencing of the spaces in the household of Moller’s house is a form of imagery that is depictive when analyzed more critically and clearly. For instance the house is designed progressively from the dining room which gives way to the study and subsequently the lady’s room something that highlights the priority in terms of the need to introduce the element of privacy in the household (Agrest 549). The sitting areas is the most special and unique are of the house clearly depicted by the fact that it is raised and uniquely stands out from the rest of the house (Lewis, 64). This fact is further reinforced by the fact that it is raised above all the other areas of the house and the rooms in the household. This room is specially regarded and it is raised so that the occupant is able to see those who are making their way into the house although the visitors are unable to see the occupant of this section of the household (Colomina, 78). What comes out clearly from the positioning of this part of the house is the fact that it is highly held by the members of the household, like considered sacred by the members of the house and therefore it also represent the central point of the house from which the control powers are exercised and orders are given. On the other hand the other attribute of the household that comes out is the comfort that is contained in this part of the house (Agrest 552). One could easily interpret or mistake this part of the room as the king’s chamber considering the careful way with which the room has been designed and the comfort level of each and every aspect of this part of the house. This is something which clearly separates the powers and privileges of the persons with access to this part of the house from the others (Colomina 79). The further analysis into the design of the household brings in a completely different perspective with aspects such as the separation of the public and the private elements of the household imminently well depicted (Thorbek, 81). For instance there is a lot of description and time taken by the author in highlighting the differences and the distinct elements of the interior and the exterior parts of the household something that forms one of the key aspects in noticing the power disparity in the owners of the household (Colomina 77). On the other hand when the differences such as the object and the subject are considered there is a clear difference so that the role of one member of the household is held at a much more superior position compared to that of the other members of the household (Rendell et al. 69). It is almost certain that in this household there are those that enjoy exclusive privileges something that is attributed to the power that they hold compared to the other persons in the house (Ulla 18). At the end of the day the man of the house is so highly regarded something that explains why the areas that are associated with his presence are so exclusively build and designed compared to those that are associated with the other members of the household. In looking at the designs of the Muller house and comparing the same to the Moller’s house it is almost certain that the male members of the household are the ultimate in terms of the power and control of the household (Colomina 80). The designing and the aspects of the house such as the furniture of the house indicate that the male members of the house are highly regarded and enjoy a lot more privileges compared to the women and the children of the house (McDowell 54). Household elements such as the furniture of the house and the design of the living room point out to a male dominance in the household while the description of the lady’s room being located at the furthest end of the room points to the low regard with which the woman is held in the house (Rendell et al, 72). The silence which is a characteristic of the living room and the array of books neatly arranged and displayed are something that indicate the high regard in which the man of the household is held. It also points out at the powers and the element of fear that the man has instilled in the household hence the carefully and thorough work done on the particular section of the household as a result which all consider as the man’s room (Colomina 81). With the description on the raised position of the living room and the comfort of the chair of the man the other element that comes out is that the man is the dominant person in the house and is keen on the activities of the woman (Rendell et al. 75). That is why the man is able to observe the door and notice when the woman is leaving the household or whatever the woman is doing in the house. This point out to the fact that the woman in the earlier society was supposed to be submissive and whatever the woman was involved in required the blessing of the man of the house. In indicating the limited light in the living room and the fact that the person could not see the person in the living room or what the person is doing the author bring to our attention the fact that the woman was not privy to the activities of the man (McDowell 61). It means that the man was in the limelight and highly regarded and whatever they did was not supposed to be questioned since it was supposed to be a secret which the woman was not supposed to know or talk about (Colomina 82). In conclusion, the woman’s role is also lowly regarded in the designing of this house something which is reflected in the hidden imagery of the fact that the living room which is the centre of the house is raised while the lady’s room and the other rooms in the house are lower and hidden. The lady’s room is not only located at a lower position but also at the furthest end of the house which indicates not only the lowly position of the woman in the house but the disregard of some of the elements of the house associated with the woman such as the sexuality. This is something that indicates that the woman in the society is charged with the responsibility of protecting the secrets of the society such as sexuality while the man enjoys the best of the social ranking and positioning reflected in the positioning of their place in the household. Men’s social ranking and regard is reflected in the raised position of the living room which is meant to elevate them above the woman whose position is not only low but also relatively hidden. The men are positioned in positions that put them in the limelight and positions where they are noticed in household while the women in the house are meant to position themselves in the background. Women are relegated to the role of lifting the men to the higher positions in the society where they are able to access special privileges and enjoy unlimited access to the goodies of the society (Colomina 83). Works Cited Agrest, D. “Architecture from Without: Body, Logic, and Sex.” Theorizing a New Agenda for Architecture: Architecture Theory, 1965-1995. Ed. KateNesbitt. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1996. 541-53. Colomina B. et. al, Sexuality and Space. Princeton Papers on Architecture. Fares D. The Josephine Baker House: For Loos’s Pleasure, 1995. Pp 41 – 43 Lewis J: Gender, Family and the Study of Welfare Regimes, 1995. McDowell L. Gender, identity and place: Understanding feminist geographies 1999. Pp.54- 61. Rendell, J. Penner B. & Borden I. Gender space architecture: An interdisciplinary introduction, 2000.pp 67 – 99. Thorbek S: Urbanization, Slum Culture, Gender Struggle and Womens Identity, 1993. Ulla K: A Feminist Political Economics of Integration in the European Community - an outline, 1993. Read More