“Architectural Elements in Spaces of Power” | Located in the Armstrong Gallery

Jenny Meakins - Schidlowski Emerging Faculty Fellow at Kent State University

Architecture is not neutral. While the built environment is often considered an invisible backdrop to our everyday lives, in reality it has a profound impact on our cultural, economic, political, and social conditions. From the single-family house to sprawling institutional campuses, each is a product of the architectural discipline, and by extension, architects. 

 The research presented here utilizes seven common building elements to evaluate Architecture’s role in the physical and psychological forces of human behavior, through the lens of power, privilege, and oppression. The deliberate use of the language of architecture, the drawing, communicates an immediate imperative to address Architecture’s biases, blind spots, and harm through the role of elements in our everyday lives.