EKC2023

Housing for women - based on the example of IBA 87

Aug 17, 2023, 3:50 PM

20m

Orion 1

Built Environment and Engineering Design [BE7] Housing - academic and industrial collaboration for humans

Speaker

Nammyoung Hong (Master Student Historische Urbanistik, Technische Universität Berlin Master Student Historische Bauforschung und Denkmalpflege, Technische Universität Berlin)

Description

Housing for women - the case of IBA 87

In patriarchal societies, it is common for men to be primarily active outside and women inside the home. However, even housing was often not a space for women: ordinary apartments were designed by architects without knowledge of women's living conditions, and women often felt uncomfortable in their apartments. In Berlin, people recognized these problems and began experimenting with architecture to solve the problem of women's housing.

Today, IBA 87 is discussed as one of the most pioneering examples of urban planning. Of the 300 professionals who gathered for the first presentation of IBA 87 in 1981, there was not a single woman. The 70 women not invited to the presentation voiced their criticism and founded the FOPA (Feministische Organisation von Planerinnen und Architektinnen), an organization of female urban planners and architects. They planned a "women's block" at the Berlin IBA to build exemplary housing for women.

What problems did they analyze that women face in housing, and what design approaches could solve these problems? How can housing be created that allows women to live a healthy and comfortable life, and are these discussions still valid today? This presentation aims to understand women's housing problems and analyze historical examples of design approaches that can solve these problems.

References

Becker, R. Frauenwohnprojekte - keine Utopie!: ein Leitfaden zur Entwicklung autonomer Frauen(wohn)räume mit einer Dokumentation realisierter Projekte in Deutschland. Studien. Koordinationsstelle Netzwerk Frauenforschung NRW, 2009.