Discuss About The Modernism Domesticity Shape Melbourne Home?

In the two readings provided and referenced below, architecture comes out as a field that has been evolving for the past few generations. It is with this in mind that the architects from Small Homes Service put a lot of effort into helping those unable to afford actualize their dream homes. Writers Dingle & O’hanlon, and Jarzombek have all noted in their respective articles that architecture is a form of self-expression and that the shape of the house should be more than just a conventional design. Both articles confirm that society can tend to conform to a pattern when it comes to architectural design. To support this claim, Jarzombek states, “To reveal society as manipulative and calculating, architects have to contrive counter manipulations and miscalculations” (Jarzombek 1990, 76-93).

That said, it is the job of an architect to strive for originality and creativity. When Small Homes Answer:Service was initiated, it went on to appeal not just the blue collar masses unable to afford but also the able and adventurous. Clerehan, one of the architects, when talking about their clientele said that, “It wasn’t money that made you come to us, it was just something that they wanted to do” (Dingle & O’hanlon 1997, 34-48).

However, the revolutionary designs all had their fair share of backlash from a society that had prided itself in domesticity, which was almost synonymous to family homes. As such, even the initiators of Small House Service had to speak up. The service survived for 35 years and still remains an inspiration to architects who have expressed their interest in providing their designs for just £5 (Panfilo).

References

Dingle, Tony, and Seamus O’hanlon. “Modernism versus domesticity: The contest to shape Melbourne’s homes, 1945–1960.” Australian Historical Studies 27, no. 109 (1997): 33-48.

Jarzombek, Mark. “‘Good-Life Modernism’and Beyond: The American House in the 1950s and 1960s: A Commentary.” Cornell Journal of Architecture 4 (1990): 76-93.

Panfilo. https://panfilo.co/2011/12/12/the-small-homes-service/