Please join us for this AIASF and OWA Joint Event hosted at MKTHINK.
(By Jean Nilsson from Nov/Dec OWA Newsletter)
February 11, 2015, the OWA Book Circle along with members of the AIASF EQxD: The Missing 32% Project invite you to a round-table discussion with excerpts of the video of Torre's address that is available on The Architectural League of New York's website. We ask you to view the video beforehand because it is so full of ideas, or you can read the lecture, which is published on Parlour's website in three parts: Feminism in Architecture, Tokenism, and Where to Next?
Torre reflects on the influence that feminism has had on the architecture profession, discusses six significant ways that feminist ideas have contributed to changing architecture and planning (see article in our last issue) and outlines her ideas on how to move forward. What are new agendas for feminism and architecture?
"Today, when we talk about 'women in architecture' we usually focus not on discourse, but on the unfulfilled agendas of salary parity and equal access to opportunities for retention or promotion, or on the difficulty of reconciling the demands of a very exacting profession with those (no less time-consuming) of child-rearing and the production of domestic life, as most women still bear the greater responsibility for both."
Torre gives several suggestions: She reminds us that "the creation of discourse is fundamental for changing a discipline." She urges institutions such as AIA to "lead in the effort to retain and promote the advancement of women in the profession" (as the AIASF Missing 32% committee has done, article above). She urges scholars to continue "redefining the criteria for inscribing the work of women into history, challenging the criteria approved by the male critical establishment" (as OWA members Inge Horton and Sandhya Sood do; see articles below). Torre mentions ArchiteXX.org, a group in New York, but doesn’t say what we in a group like OWA might do. When OWA Book Circle member Inge Horton wrote to Susana Torre about our group's interest in her lecture, she responded right away that she would be interested in continuing a discourse on this important part of architecture with us.
We will view parts and discuss the video about Feminism and Architecture by Susana Torre Please look at the VIDEO and the recommended readings below before this event for a good discussion.
Further Recommended Readings for Discussion:
A Conversation with Susana Torre
Susana Torre Blog
Location: Office of MK Think
1500 Sansome Street, San Francisco
RSVP and Questions call Wendy Bertrand 415-648-2713