The Intersection of Lines and Spaces: Tracing The Soft Curve of Femininity
A dialogue between Western feminine architectural theory and Eastern philosophy.
"I am not attracted to straight angles or to the straight line, hard and inflexible, created by man. I am attracted to free-flowing, sensual curves. The curves that I find in the mountains of my country, in the sinuousness of its rivers, in the waves of the ocean, and on the body of the beloved woman. Curves make up the entire universe, the curved universe of Einstein." - Oscar Niemeyer, The Curves of Time: The Memoirs of Oscar Niemeyer, 1998
Niemeyer’s The Niterói Contemporary Art Museum showcases his artistry with curves that transcends conventional architecture. The building boasts of a large, saucer-shaped structure, which elegantly slopes down to the ground at an angle of around 45 degrees. The entrance, located at the top of a stunning curved ramp, delicately wraps around the edifice, creating a sense of continuity and free-flowing space between the building and its environment. The interior of the building features a series of curved walls and ramps that emit fluidity. The incorporation of curves in the design of the Niterói Contemporary Art Museum results in a harmonious and unified relationship with the landscape, enabling the solid structure to merge seamlessly with the lush, natural hillside.
Regardless of the context or interpretation, curves inherently carry connotations. In her 1996 book The Sex of Architecture, Diana Agrest notes, "The straight line is considered masculine and the curve is considered feminine. This is a cultural and social definition, and it is not inherent in the lines themselves." Hence, the demarcation of lines and the spatial divisions they generate establish gender-specific roles.
Space as Location
Art historian Griselda Pollock's Vision and Difference: Femininity, Feminism and Histories of Art explores space as a matrix to understand how social orders of sexual difference structure the lives of Mary Cassatt and Berthe Morisot, examining the representation of different spaces, including private areas, public spaces of bourgeois recreation, and spaces of labor in their paintings. While women were able to legitimize domestic social life as a central topic for painting practices through engagement with the impressionist group, they were limited in representing certain places and subjects that were open to their male counterparts. Space, as a literal geographical location, becomes a physical constraint of the feminine.
“ What spaces are represented in the paintings made by Berthe Morisot and Mary Cassatt? And what are not? A quick list includes: dining-rooms, drawing-rooms, bedrooms, balconies/verandas, private gardens.” - Pollock, 1992
Beatriz Colomina's essay "The Split Wall: Domestic Voyeurism" explores the concept of the split wall, an architectural device developed by Adolf Loos in the early 1900s to control visibility and regulate the gaze, revealing similar manipulations of space. Colomina examines how the split wall was utilized in Villa Müller and Villa Moller to create a novel form of domesticity that catered to both voyeurism and exhibitionism. By employing this device, Loos was able to craft spaces that were simultaneously private and public, intimate and theatrical. Additionally, Loos utilizes the theater box as a spatial-psychological mechanism for achieving intimacy and control. This feature is evident in the Müller house, where a sequence of spaces revolving around the staircase leads to the 'lady's room,' complete with a raised sitting area at its center. In these spaces, the occupants serve as both performers and observers of the family scene, engrossed in their own sphere yet detached from it. This highlights how the conventional separation between interior and exterior, private and public, object and subject becomes convoluted. Colomina writes: “At the intersection of the visible and the invisible, women are placed as the guardians of the unspeakable.”
“Architecture is not simply a platform that accommodates the viewing subject. It is a viewing mechanism that produces the subject. It precedes and frames its occupant.” - Colomina, 1992
Space as Order
Pollock's discussion of space delves into a second meaning she coins as "spatial order", which is particularly relevant in the context of paintings. She analyzes the spatial arrangements utilized in paintings by Morisot and Cassatt, and how their approaches differ from early modernist painting in Paris. Morisot skillfully juxtaposes two distinct spatial systems onto a single canvas, typically designated by a structural element such as a balcony or embankment. She cleverly uses balustrades to denote the division between masculinity and femininity, rather than simply separating public and private spaces. Moreover, Morisot incorporates the painter's vantage point into the scene itself, lending a sense of immediacy and compression to the foreground spaces. On the other hand, Cassatt's paintings utilize a shallow pictorial space that emphasizes the dominance of the painted figure (often depicted with an averted head), while departing from the traditional geometric perspective common in European painting since the fifteenth century — This creates a disconnection between the figure's space and the world beyond its boundaries. Ultimately, Pollock posits that the utilization of these spatial techniques by Morisot and Cassatt reflects the societal pressures that instigated the proclivity to investigate spatial ambiguities and metaphors in their work. Consequently, the concept of space, including the act of "taking up space," can be viewed as intrinsically masculine.
Linearity and Formality
Catherine Ingraham's Architecture and the Burdens of Linearity delves into the interplay between propriety and linearity in architecture, tracing its historical evolution through the dominant cultural and social forces of each era. Ingraham highlights the association of traditional femininity with delicacy and ornamentation, contrasting it with the perceived strength and simplicity associated with masculinity. She asserts that these gendered ideals of propriety have heavily influenced architectural styles, with traditional architecture tending to incorporate more decorative elements associated with femininity. In addition, functionality in the modernist context is also discussed through a masculine lens.
Perhaps what is “proper” can be interpreted in two different ways. The first interpretation suggests that linearity and propriety are inherently linked, with linear designs being seen as efficient and functional, and therefore proper. This understanding is rooted in the idea that what is proper is default, thus, what is default is masculine. The second interpretation, on the other hand, suggests that propriety necessitates ornamentation, and is therefore associated with femininity. In this gendered notion, being decorated, beautiful, and elegant is what it means to be proper. However, while there can be masculine and feminine interpretations of what is proper, Ingraham argues that there is only one type of linearity, which is inherently masculine, associated with control, which can only be achieved through straight lines and not curves.
Furthermore, Ingraham's introduction of the concept of "donkey urbanism" offers a departure from the linear and rigid designs that have long dominated traditional urban landscapes. Donkey urbanism advocates for a more fluid approach to linearity in urban design, better suited to addressing the diverse complexities and sensitivities of the urban environment and their communities. In emphasizing adaptability, sustainability, and inclusivity as crucial design considerations, non-linear donkey urbanism prioritizes values that are often associated with a more feminine method of design.
"In architecture, the curve has traditionally been associated with the feminine, and has been used to define the soft, the malleable, and the yielding." - Alice Friedman, Women and the Making of the Modern House: A Social and Architectural History, 1998
"Curves are indeed a kind of implicit and intuitive shorthand for tenderness, a visual language for the gently expressive." - Alain de Botton, The Architecture of Happiness, 2006
The Soft Curve
The gendered meanings that the visual line and the spaces between them convey create a visual association of forms, which is informed by non-visual connotations. Through this synergy between different mediums, imagery and structures are produced that communicate biases. When the curve is perceived as soft, fluid, and feminine, it raises questions about the meanings of softness and femininity.
In many eastern philosophies, particularly in Taoism, the idea of softness and gentleness is a guiding principle for living a fulfilling life. This concept aligns with the notion of fluid architecture and urban design, which emphasizes being adaptive and yielding to the environment. The metaphor of water, which is infamous in Taoism, is used to illustrate the concept of wu wei, often translated as "non-action" or "effortless action." Water emphasizes the importance of being flexible, adaptable, and patient to achieve harmony and balance in life, which in part aligns with the cultural sentiment of passivity in East Asian culture. This sentiment is characterized by a societal priority for harmony, a level of obedience among the population, and a general fear of social chaos.
Despite the prevalence of the concepts of “bending and yielding” in the broad demographic of these cultural contexts, they are still inevitably associated with femininity. However, traditional philosophies have been subject to criticism for promoting patriarchy and gender inequality. Confucianism, for example, suggests that a woman's primary role is to serve her family, and girls are often taught to prioritize being soft, gentle, and accommodating to the male figures and situations in their lives. In East Asian cultures, where family is highly valued, women have historically sacrificed themselves, whether willingly or unwillingly, for the supposed greater good of their families. (This can take form in foregoing education to give opportunities to their brothers or giving up their jobs to take care of children).
Although gender imbalance often has micro-interpersonal and familial effects, it can also have broader implications. While this is an international phenomenon, the valorization of softness is particularly engrained in the eastern context. It is further compounded when the West appropriates this attribute of “softness”. Frequently noted as a prime example of problematic racial fetishization, it reduces women to mere objects of desire based solely on their ethnicity, while simultaneously reinforcing harmful typification. As a result, there is a prevailing feeling of avoiding conventional softness in modern society, as it may contribute to perpetuating systemic issues —racial and non-racial— that affect all women.
But is it truly problematic to associate softness and yielding with femininity? What does femininity signify if not softness? Can femininity be visualized without curves, which are emblematic of the woman's body?
This dilemma has given rise to a situation where legitimate criticism aimed at challenging conventional perceptions of softness and femininity in various domains (including design), have become so prevalent that, perhaps, they have become the new norm. Consequently, in the current zeitgeist, individuals who exhibit stereotypical feminine traits are often frowned upon and accused of playing into the "male gaze". This is especially counterproductive. A more suitable approach may be to recognize the biological and psychological differences between the sexes and the inevitable societal extrapolations of these phenomena. With respect to softness and femininity, people should not feel compelled to perform gendered roles, nor should they feel self-reproach if their inclinations align with gender expectations. Nevertheless, one should not deny their femininity, whether it manifests in the form of softness or not, and particularly essential if it happens to be softness. Because, the persistent repression of softness may potentially lead to other problems, including violence.