Search results

Architectural theory as we know it today is informed by Western, neo-Marxist theories. But throughout history Marxism has influenced architectural thinking in many more ways than just through this well-known intellectual trajectory. Distinct forms of Marxist architectural theory have been articulated in countries where orthodox Marxism was the foundation of political theory or where Marxism inspired revolutionary or postcolonial struggles. This Special Collection of Architectural Histories examines architectural theory and its Marxist imprint in the Second and Third World from the 1950s to the 1980s, the interconnections between these different countries and traditions and the entanglements with postcolonial or anti-imperialist theories. It offers a preliminary inventory of what was going on where, and who were some of the key figures. It provides the groundwork for a more precise mapping of the worldwide impact of Marxist thinking on architectural discourse.

This paper contrasts the objectives that underlie the development of government-funded holiday camps for family vacations in Belgium with the socio-spatial practices of their initial users. Drawing on oral history, archival material, photographs and site plans, we argue that holidaymakers did not just experience the holiday camp as an environment where they could reconnect with their family and pursue authentic experiences in close contact with nature – as their initiators had intended – but that they also embraced these sites as places where they could recreate a romanticised version of "traditional" community life and experiment with facets of a middle-class, modern suburban ideal. To substantiate our narrative, we focus on two holiday camps in the Campine Region: Zilvermeer and Hengelhoef.

'Making Home(s) in Displacement' critically rethinks the relationship between home and displacement from a spatial, material, and architectural perspective. Recent scholarship in the social sciences has investigated how migrants and refugees create and reproduce home under new conditions, thereby unpacking the seemingly contradictory positions of making a home and overcoming its loss. Yet, making home(s) in displacement is also a spatial practice, one which intrinsically relates to the fabrication of the built environment worldwide.

Conceptually the book is divided along four spatial sites, referred to as camp, shelter, city, and house, which are approached with a multitude of perspectives ranging from urban planning and architecture to anthropology, geography, philosophy, gender studies, and urban history, all with a common focus on space and spatiality. By articulating everyday homemaking experiences of migrants and refugees as spatial practices in a variety of geopolitical and historical contexts, this edited volume adds a novel perspective to the existing interdisciplinary scholarship at the intersection of home and displacement. It equally intends to broaden the canon of architectural histories and theories by including migrants' and refugees' spatial agencies and place-making practices to its annals. By highlighting the political in the spatial, and vice versa, this volume sets out to decentralise and decolonise current definitions of home and displacement, striving for a more pluralistic outlook on the idea of home.

Public health and care policies across OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries increasingly encourage aging in place, enabled by both formal care networks, and informal (family) care and social solidarity in the neighborhood. However, little is known about how a person's neighborhood might affect their aging in place. The COVID-19 crisis unintendedly offered a good opportunity to observe the neighborhood's role in the provision of care. Since formal care services were often limited during the lockdown, informal caregiving may have increased. However, intergenerational contacts in and outside of the household were strongly discouraged by governments worldwide, adding another layer of complexity to caregiving. The aim of this qualitative study was to assess how informal caregivers in Flanders managed to provide care to their care receivers, and what role the neighborhood played in this provision of care. Sixteen qualitative Skype and telephone interviews with informal caregivers were conducted between June and December 2020 to understand their experiences and coping strategies. Overall, most respondents increased their frequency of caregiving during the first lockdown. They took on the extra care needs during the lockdown themselves, and did not actively invoke any kind of neighborhood support. The significance of the neighborhood seemingly remained limited. This was often not because no help was offered, but rather due to a sense of pride or the fear of infection, and an increased effort by family caregivers.

'Women in Architecture' sheds light on how women in all their different roles contribute to architecture, from the past to the present. Despite the essential and varied contributions of women, the narrative surrounding architecture remains deeply rooted in masculinity. Nonetheless, women have played crucial roles throughout architectural history. This publication sheds light on the reasons behind the absence of women in archives and publications, and how that exclusion continues to perpetuate the invisibility of women in architecture today. By bringing together these stories, the publication adds a crucial chapter to the history of architecture in the Netherlands and advocates for greater diversity in the current architectural discourse