Living under a Masc: Queering Hegemonic Architecture

Abstract

This thesis questions the relationship between space, architecture and social politics. It engages the idea of binarism, which limits expressive diversity of people and architecture. Primary schools reinforce the current social and cultural rules of any society, and while this is mainly a positive aspect of communal schooling, some socialisation can support stereotypes around gender and identity. Such separation of gender at primary school age has an impact on future social norms and behaviours. There exists a social dominance of ‘masculinity’ in most social and public spaces, due to the historical dominance of public space by the male and the domestic space by the female. This thesis looks at how masculinity has impacted on the design of primary schools in New Zealand, and explores whether architecture can be a catalyst for change, moving towards space which is not dominated by a binary male/female condition. This thesis is a search for ‘queer space’, where such a spatial condition means comfort to those who experience discomfort in many typically segregated spaces in primary school. The thesis follows a drawing and modelling design process and applies ‘experimental insertions’ to a primary school in West Auckland.