Semester 2 outline: „a Queer club house“

SEMESTER 2 QUEER CLUB HAUS

PROJECT OUTLINE

In the second semester of 2021 we challenged the Bachelor of Architecture Year 2 students to explore the city of Johannesburg, Braamfontein through the lens of queer territory. Using a series of interdisciplinary short charrettes and design briefs as prompts to not only deepen the understanding of queer experience of the city, but to also propose possible responses in a non-linear and cyclic process. The Project is inspired by narratives from Ahmad’s 2021 book “Hopes and dreams that sound like yours: stories of queer activism in Sub-Saharan Africa.”

As a major project of integration, the project explicitly challenged students to collaborate amongst each other and make connections to the various modules within the semester which include Architectural Design II, Technology and Detailing II, Interdisciplinary Design II, Sustainable Design II and Design Studies II. At every moment they were expected to draw, perform and make to represent and present their process.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a Club as: 3a: an association of persons for some common object usually jointly supported and meeting periodically also : a group identified by some common characteristic

house as: 1: a building that serves as living quarters for one or a few families (by extension families can also be chosen, as is sometimes the case in the LGBTQI communities)

clubhouse as: 1: a house occupied by a club or used for club activities 2: locker rooms used by an athletic team 3: a building at a golf course typically housing a locker room, pro shop, and restaurant

Objective of project: to introduce students to critical theories and to spatial design for people that are often marginalised from public participation. To speculate on new building typologies within the city of Johannesburg that respond to the diversity of the youth population in the city. Moreover, students will be exposed to various approaches to the design of mixed use (medium scale, complex) framed buildings.

Methodology: through multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches borrowing from critical space theories from the humanities, film, the arts, and human geography to frame the socio-political importance of the project. Critical Mapping techniques from urban design will assist with framing the socio-spatial context of the project. Fashion, interior design, and industrial design disciplines will be influential in bringing together the materiality of the project through its critical interrogation and application as it relates to queerness. Secondary data and narratives sourced through journal articles will be used as base information from which to unpack narratives about queer experiences. Individual and group design charrettes/ workshops will be carried in studio each week, exploring different aspects of the project in a

nonlinear format. These are seen as tiggers to deepen the inquiries and support the project. Speculative design based on the discoveries from the various material and data will be carried out cyclically throughout the project with the aim of culminating in an architectural design proposal/proposition that presents what a queer clubhouse in Johannesburg could be.

References and resources for the project (more to be added on each brief/charrette): Readings Ahmad, D. et al. (2021) Hopes and dreams that sound like yours: stories of queer activism in Sub-Saharan Africa. Bell, D. and Binnie, J. (2004) ‘Authenticating Queer Space: Citizenship, Urbanism and Governance’, Urban Studies, 41(9), pp. 1807–1820. doi: 10.1080/0042098042000243165. Butler, J. (2011) Bodies That Matter: On the Discursive Limits of Sex. 0 edn. Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9780203828274. Canham, H. (2017) ‘Mapping the black queer geography of Johannesburg’s lesbian women through narrative’, Psychology in Society, (55). doi: 10.17159/2309-8708/2017/n55a6. Oswin, N. (2008) ‘Critical geographies and the uses of sexuality: deconstructing queer space’, Progress in Human Geography, 32(1), pp. 89–103. doi: 10.1177/0309132507085213. Reed, C. 1996. Immanent Domain: Queer Space in the Built Environment. Art Journal, Vol. 55, No. 4. Pp. 65-70.

Films Hermanus, O. (2020) Moffie. Portobello Productions, Department of Trade, and Industry of South Africa. Livingston, J. (1990) Paris Is Burning. Art Matters Inc., BBC Television, Edelman Family Fund. Trengove, J. (2017) Inxeba. Urucu Media, Riva Filmproduktion, Das Kleine Fernsehspiel (ZDF).

Documentaries Bolan, C. (2020) A Secret Love. Beech Hill Films, Blumhouse Productions. i-D (2017) Exploring Queer Identity with South Africa’s Born-Free Generation and LGBTQI Activists - Episode 1. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0Uk6L7kkdw (Accessed: 16 June 2021). Architectural theses: https://www.artconnect.com/projects/the-baths-for-queer-defense-and-de-liberation https://www.studentawards.corobrik.co.za/ian-mcbride https://219055409.wixsite.com/ndebelet/dressing-undressing-readdressing

THE WORLD’S OLDEST PARTY INVITATION WAS DISCOVERED IN 1973 AT AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE IN VINDOLANDA

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