Malpani, Czaee.

The plan is the discriminator : masculinity and modernist architectural drawings / by Czaee Malpani.

Ann Arbor, Mich. : UMI Dissertation Publishing, ©2011.

x, 128 pages : illustrations (some color), facsimiles, portrait ; 22 cm

This thesis investigates the interrelationships between gender and Modernist Architectural Representation. Contrary to the overwhelming scholarship that has tended to see architectural representation as "mere" (read: neutral) media for the translation and representation of the "intention" of the architect, this thesis argues that inherent to Modernist Architectural Representation is the production of the subjectivity of the architect, as well as the identity of architectural discipline at large, as gendered masculine. Yet, at the same time, this thesis also claims that such productions of gender are not completely bereft of contradictions and always involve (re)negotiations with the normative (masculine) ideal of the architect contained within architectural representation. This work develops its arguments through an intimate reading of drawings made by two Modernist Architects for projects within the South Asian subcontinent. The first are the collected works of Minnette De Silva, one of the first formally trained women architect in Sri Lanka and a prominent participant as well as ideologue of Modernism in Asia. The second is the set of drawings produced for the Villa Sarabhai, Ahmedabad, India by the Architect Le Corbusier who was a mentor of Minnette and who remains, arguably, the foremost emblem of Architectural Modernism. Analyzing the line work, the usage of scale, as well as the textual annotations that dot their drawings, this work shows how these (re)presentations i.e. the plan, section, and elevation, due to their projected ideals of veracity, objectivity and universality not only render themselves, but also "their author(s)" masculine. The work also, however, underscores the subtle yet important differences that characterize the drawings of Minnette vis-à-vis Corbusier to unpack the contested nature of the identity of a woman architect from South Asia.

De Silva, Minnette.
Le Corbusier, 1887-1965.
Modern movement (Architecture)
Architecture South Asia Designs and plans.
Architectural drawing.
Masculinity.
Mouvement moderne (Architecture)
Architecture Asie méridionale Dessins et plans.
Masculinité.
Architecture.
South Asia.

Theses.
Architectural drawings.

Location: Library main 284315
Call No.: BIB 223057
Status: Available