Included are proposals for thatched cottages, suburban semi-Ds, one-off bungalows, blocks of flats, nation homes of various sizes, and even a maison de plaisance. Reflecting the chronological unfold of the Archive’s holdings, the works range in date from the mid-eighteenth century to the late twentieth. Of those that were built, some are extraordinarily modest, others extremely bold, even adventurous. Of the unbuilt, some are generic archetypes, others unrealisable fantasy.
In documenting the everyday labours involved in making a home, feminist scholars have additionally called for extra cautious attention to tensions between exploitation and belonging, and between social change and social replica. For example, Lila Abu-Lughod, studying Awlad ‘Ali Bedouin girls in Egypt (1990; 1986) traces how ostensibly oppressive norms of public male honour and private female modesty are creatively taken up by women to assert power for themselves. By echoing men’s insistence over strict separations between men and women throughout … Read More
