Out of Site: A Social Criticism of Architecture [Paperback]

Diane Ghirardo (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1991

Nonfiction. "HOW DO I LOOK? is an articulation of that dream in the dark we've all had-gazing at those flickering images, searching for ourselves and too often settling for less. This collection begins to ask the provocative questions we dared not ask aloud. As lesbians and gays, as people of color, whose vision will we accept? The questions here are full of pain and clarity"-Jewelle Gomez.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In her introduction Ghirardo ponders whether architecture can be "conceived as an autonomous entity with no necessary or important connection to any other issues related to building." In the essays that follow, she and fellow scholars examine the questions surrounding this polemic using both theoretical analyses and case studies. Kenneth Frampton thoughtfully probes architecture's "emergence . . . as a self-conscious individual practice." Vincent P. Pecora's more complex piece begins with a modernist reading of architecture and goes on to review several issues of the journal Oppositions ; in particular, he scrutinizes the belief of one of the journal's cofounders, Peter Eisenman, in the "autonomous profundity of architecture alone against an unfeeling world." In a fascinating essay on the relationship betwen public art and urbanism in New York City, Rosalyn Deutsche discusses a utilitarian artwork called the Homeless Vehicle Project, a mobile cart that provides facilities for eating and sleeping. Although recondite at times, this volume offers a thorough, evenhanded overview of the social relevance of architecture today.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This diverse collection of essays by American-based architectural educators attempts to address some of the most important issues facing architecture today, namely, its relationship to art and its ability or inability to meet the fundamental needs of society. The first section of the book, which tackles "the predilection for conceiving of architecture as an autonomous entity," is somewhat murky and dry, difficult to read and even more difficult to digest. Of broader interest, however, are discussions that follow on the redevelopment of downtown Los Angeles, low-cost housing in Rome, and public art in New York City. This is a serious book for the architectural cognoscenti; all others take heed!-- H. Ward Jandl, National Park Svce., Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 251 pages
• Publisher: Bay Pr (May 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0941920194
• ISBN-13: 978-0941920193
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,753,447 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars theory heads from outer-space, September 26, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: How Do I Look? Queer Film and Video (Paperback)

Okay, I admit: the title sounds like a cosmetics manual. But it's really a collection of essays from a NYC conference about 10 years ago. For some reason, the men (Kobena Mercer, Richard Fung) are much better. They seem to know more about work being made. The women (DeLauretis, Judith Mayne) are interesting, but maybe too academic: too much theorizing based on too little material, focus on not-so-good historical (Dorothy Arzner) and more recent (Sheila McLaughlin) filmmakers makes it seem out of touch. Totally misses any of the more recent queer/grrl media, which had begun to surface by that time.

Some of the discussions add a bit of "grit" otherwise missing from the all-too-polished talks.

You'd never guess, from the volume, much of anything about the queer media explosion about to happen.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Can we say Gay Studies Bible????, January 16, 2002

By 

Jeffery Mingo (Homewood, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How Do I Look? Queer Film and Video (Paperback)

For too long, straight men have controlled how we watch and analyze film and video. Then, Laura Mulvey gave us an idea how women view things/use their gaze. Finally, a group of academics are theorizing how gays and lesbians "ga(y)ze". This book has great representation from men of color and women. At the end of every essay, experts debate articles with the authors, so you get an even broader discussion of the work. When I was in college, professors had this book on their reading lists all the time. I found myself being able to quote from this book all the time. Even activists and other academics quote from this book all the time. And I love the title with its campiness and double entendre. The name of the editors is equally clever. Anybody who is truly interested in gay and lesbians studies must buy and read this anthology!