May 8, 2025 | 1920s, 2010s, publication date, reaction paper, Week 6
Takeaway
In the article “Hollywood Architects” by Despina Stratigakos, the main takeaway I had is how the architect role in Hollywood movies reflects the years of the profession being dominated by one specific group. As these movie roles are based on our formed perceptions of these careers, having a large majority of movie architects be white males shows a major imbalance in the actual profession it portrays. Additionally, whenever these roles do deviate from this formula, such as when they are played by a women or person of color, the role end up feeling contradictory.
The first example that supports the authors claim is how Hollywood movies only had female architect roles sparingly, with lots of space between them. This is shown in the example given by the author of the decade that passes between the film Woman Chases Man and the next female architect role. The second example given by the author is how even when women and people of color did play architects, they had to be misplaced or oddball characters. This shows the continued use and reinforcement of stereotypes, leading to inequality in both the architecture and acting profession.
Application
Past Case
Figure #1: A House Beautiful article discussing noteworthy architecture of the time
House Beautiful 1920, p. 169
Noteworthy Houses by Well-Known Architects-VI
Figure #2: A article from House Beautiful discussing a small house from the time
House Beautiful 1920, p. 174
A Small House of English Type
A past example that I found from the House Beautiful is two articles taking about outstanding residential architecture of the time. Both of these articles seem to be putting the architects in a positive light, talking about the innovations and new ideas presented in each. However, one thing that caught my eye is the main person these articles are focused on, which is the architects. Both of these architects are men, showing similarities between the present stereotypical role of the profession. This example shows that even in these articles form the 1920s, the architects who are celebrated for their innovation are mostly men, further reinforcing the stereotype.
Current Case
Figure #3: A scene from the 2016 movie “The Architect”
Picture from Architizer.com
The current example I have chosen that supports the author’s argument is from a somewhat recent movie called The Architect. This movie, which was released in 2016, continues to show the reinforcement of the stereotypes discussed in the article. This includes the main character, who is in the architect profession, being a white male. This shows that rather than seeing a change in these Hollywood movie perceptions, they have stayed mostly the same over the years.
May 8, 2025 | 1930s, 2010s, 2020s, Week 6
The in article, Hollywood Architects, Despina Stratigakos discovers just how limited the demographics of architects are in Hollywood films. Not only are these on screen representations limited, but much of the time, the characters fit into a type of individual who has qualities we are conditioned to accept that an architect would have; Rational in their thoughts, but in touch with their emotional intelligence. Much of the time, Hollywood represents architects as young white men on the path of climbing the corporate ladder, but when the character playing the architect is a person of color or a woman, their occupation is usually leveraged as a position of adversity, one in which the character must overcome to succeed in the film. When the role of the architect is filled by an actress, often they are seen as cold and calculated, or utilize their feminine side to their advantage over the men that surround them in their occupation.
I agree with the argument Statigakos is making. The impression of the Hollywood architect leaves on people in the theaters, often perpetuates this long outdated representation of what type of person an architect is, a rational, but emotional, young white man who has a passion to create his perfect tomorrow in the form of the next great skyscraper that will propel his career onward and upward, when that is far from the only “type” of person in the real world perusing a career in architecture. The Hollywood representation of the architect is continued to this day, the most recent example that comes to mind is from the film The Brutalist. Though he is represented to be in his 40’s, the stereotypes are just as stark as they were in 2015 when the initial article was written. Adrian Brody’s character is a European man in America, perusing his passion for his view of a beautiful tomorrow through architecture with the aid of a wealthy industrialist. On the bright side, in the real world of architecture, the profession is becoming significantly more diverse over the years. Media’s representation of the profession continues to perpetuate stereotypes which are not nearly as common as they once were.
Figure 1. Jason Alexander’s character in Seinfeld, pretending to be his alter ego of “Art Vandelay,” respected architect.
Screen capture of a YouTube video compiling the lies of George Costanza’s architectural career; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DUPfQCvHXw
When reading though this article, my mind immediately went to the representations of architects I have seen on screen over the years, one example being George Costanza alter ego “Art Vandelay” in the hit sitcom Seinfeld, played by Jason Alexander. Alexander’s character often pretends to be an architect as a running joke throughout the series as a way to appear of higher status, and more educated than he really is. The insecure character uses his alter ego of Art Vandelay as a way to appear as a better version of himself, often to take advantage of the preconceived notions of what people believe the characteristics an architect holds. When playing this pretend character, Costanza is much more confident in his words and actions, often impressing the individual he is currently outright lying to. Many times throughout the show he uses this title to lie to impress women specifically, as he believes he will his proposed status will let their minds complete the picture of the kind of man George Costanza is, juxtaposed character he really posses, an insecure, weasel of a man.
Figure 2. Referencing the home of distinction being one that is well designed.
HouseBeautiful 1929: Vol 66, Iss 6, p. 46
Caption: “For homes of distinction where Quality is the first Consideration”
This advertisement for Kellogg Screen-Grid Radio captioned “For homes of distinction where Quality is the first Consideration” insinuates that a home (and the people who are represented by the home) is only considered distinguished when it hosts quality products. Associating quality design with distinguished occupants, insinuating individuals who are design conscious hold themselves to a higher standard of success and affluence in their daily lives.
May 8, 2025 | reaction paper, Week 6
“Hollywood Architects” seeks to point out the cultural dilemma of sexist representation of architects in western media. Stratigakos does so by first calling attention to the male architects of past films. These men have been painted as the sensitive, yet sensible, creative man with a real job. These films often portray the architect as an introspective man on a journey of self-discovery, or as the male counterpart of a heterosexual romantic comedy. In stark contrast to this, female architects are very rarely ever represented in films. When they are, they are never given the same stoic, dignified treatment that the male architects are given. Even in more recent years, western media frequently depicts female architects as posing as architects, as in they are never shown actually working. Even when they are shown working, this is often because they are trying to showcase the character’s internal struggle or her ineptitude. Male architects are never given this treatment in western media. These types of depictions are very detrimental to the architectural profession as a whole. It tends to place female architects in a position where they must defend their roles and assert the fact that they are an architect. The male depiction tends to give male architects the inflated ego.
Stratigakos makes some incredibly valid points throughout the article. However, it does feel like a call to action directed at the wrong group of people. Especially when pointing out the fact that even after heavy backlash about the lack of nominees of color, the Oscars were once again nearly all white nominees just a few years later. Aside from this, I agree with the author. Honestly, I felt like I could relate to the reading a bit as an interior architecture student. My department is often scrutinized and treated as less than the architects. We tend to be viewed as just decorators or interior designers with no understanding of anything aside from aesthetics. This is particularly relevant considering my department is largely composed of female students. Whether or not this scrutiny is based in sexism, I cannot say. But it is demeaning to constantly have to defend one’s profession.
House Beautiful is guilty of the same presumptions that the films mentioned in the article are guilty of. Many of the advertisements in House Beautiful try to appeal to the women by mentioning the aesthetics of the product, but attempt to appeal to men by praising the structural integrity or durability of the product. They often assume that only the men can understand how things are built, and that women can only understand how to make things look nice. This has changed in recent years for the most part. Generally speaking, a majority of architectural products are marketed without a gendered target audience. However, construction products and tools still tend to market mostly to men. Hopefully, the depiction of female architects in films will follow the trajectory of the architectural product advertisements, and not that of the tools market.
May 7, 2025 | 1960s, 2000s, publication date, reaction paper, Week 6
Summary: Hollywood rarely depicts a working woman in movies. Architects in films are commonly white males and often resemble successful tortured souls. What is ironic about the industry’s lack of female representation in high-level professional settings is that the male architect is commonly depicted as in touch with his feminine side. Author Despina Stratigakos explains that architects on the silver screen are often sensitive, creative, and dreamers; thus, they are “assumed to personify the perfect romantic lead.” All of these traits are often attributed to women. However, instead of making women more alluring or becoming powerful, they are perceived as traits that make them dramatic, aloof, or ungrounded in reality. Hollywood wants to co-opt the traits that society has branded as “feminine” and repackage them into a white male. There is nothing wrong with men expressing ‘feminine’ qualities, however, Hollywood makes it apparent that feminine qualities are only acceptable when performed by a man. Even when women are presented as professionals or architects, they must fit into an exclusive mold to be accepted by their male counterparts. Working women must be young, thin, childless, and most definitely white. They must value their work, but only until they have children, and in films, like the Father of the Bride, Annie’s career is a background detail that rarely affects the main plot or driving story. Women who take their jobs to seriously are portrayed as a ‘bitch’ and are meant to go through an evolution through the film where by the end the learn to love and live outside of work.
Figure 1, Spread of advertisements of ‘glamorously’ dressed women showing off cocktail tables, thermostats, tiling, and washer-dryers.
House Beautiful, April 1960, pgs. 112-113
The spread in Figure 1, from the April issue of House Beautiful from 1960, is a collection of ads that show the expectation of women to be ‘put together.’ In the bottom left, the advertisement reads “The Lady Knows What She Wants…” with a photograph of a woman leaning against a cocktail table dressed in a tailored suit and a pencil skirt, gloves, and a brimmed hat. Her glamorous style is also replicated in the upper left ad for “decorator thermostat.” These portrayals of feminine clothing are intentionally placed to show that these women fit the mold of what a ‘professional’ woman might approve of. A magazine primarily geared towards a female audience, like House Beautiful, can capitalize on what society and films have designated as the model of feminine success. The advertisement for the cocktail table establishes the woman in the ad as successful through her attire and her appearance. She is thin and young and white; these visual qualities are meant to tell readers that she is credible, and that if she desires this product, then so should you.
Figure 2, The Devil Wears Prada Movie Poster with characters Miranda (Meryl Streep) and Andy (Anne Hathaway
The Devil Wears Prada, 2006, 20th Century Fox
The 2006 film The Devil Wears Prada is an example of how successful women in design are portrayed in film. While Miranda Priestly, played by Meryl Streep, is not an architect, she is a designer. In order for Miranda to be successful as a designer, she has to be “the Devil” throughout the film. She is demanding and rude, while her right-hand man, Nigel, played by Stanley Tucci, is a sympathetic character. Viewers are meant to feel bad when he is not promoted, and Nigel is the one to encourage and provide emotional support to their employees, while Miranda is ruthless. Even though Miranda is not the main character, she is a warning to women about what not to be, even though her ruthlessness and talent have also what has contributed to her success. The dichotomy of the portrayal of successful men who are designers compared to successful women is striking. Viewers are not meant to strive to be Miranda; she may be talented as a designer, but ultimately, she is unhappy in her personal life. While Nigel, on the other hand, needs to stand up for himself and against the ‘overbearing woman.’
May 5, 2025 | 1970s, 2000s, reaction paper, Week 6
In the article, “Hollywood Architects” by Despina Stratigakos, the author provides an analysis of how architects have been depicted in cinema and includes a call to action for the accurate represention of female architects in modern media. Stratigakos writes that “the gorgeously produced worlds in Hollywood filsm influence how we view our personal and professional lives”. Hollywood has primarily popularized (and romanticized) architecture as a male-dominated profession, and this depiction has had an effect on how architects are viewed in real life. Stratigakos examines a few examples of movies with architectural leads, including The Towering Inferno, Indecent Proposal, Jungle Fever, and Inception. In the older movies, architects (who are almost always white men) are seen as as “sensitive but not girly”. If women are depicted, they are shown with more masculine qualities. However, in the more recent Inception, a female architect is almost seen as a superhuman, which shows progress in how women have beome more prominent figures in architecture on equal standing as men.
Figure 1. A magazine spread of an architect’s house that has been remodeled, specifying that a man did the design.
House Beautiful, September 1971, Vol 113 pt. 2, p 54.
The Well-Built House.
Figure 2. A screenshot of Zaha Hadid’s Argos Residences. There is no mention of a man or woman designing the building. zaha-hadid.com.
Both of these images show successful renovations done by established architects. However, the spread in Figure 1 emphasizes that a “well-built” house was done by a man. The masculine properties of architecture are shown in the image, with strict lines being celebrated. In Zaha Hadid’s work, the building incorporates a curvilinear facade and organic overall form. Although this would have been looked down upon in the past for being too feminine, Hadid’s work is now celebrated as one of the most impressive styles of architecture in the modern era. With a woman as a frontliner for such a successful project, it is clear that the view of women in architecture has shifted from how the media used to portray architects. The difference between the two photos is a testament to how women have come into architecture as a profession and redefines what constitutes good architecture.
