Domesticity Under Siege
International Architectural Conference
Hosted by the BA(Hons) Interior Architecture course at the School of Architecture Technology and Engineering, University of Brighton
2-4 April 2025
About
At a recent launch of the book ‘Domesticity Under Siege’, Georgina Downey, one of the editors explained:
“I guess we were tired of how the last vestiges of ‘home as haven’ seem to still cling, unquestioned, behind a lot of even recent writing on modern domesticity. They seem to cling in ways that don’t reflect the current fragile state of interiors, and the homes that envelope them, in these troubled global times.”
The words ‘Domesticity’ and ‘Interior’ welded together summon thoughts and ideas about domestic space, including boundaries, enclosure and control. Collectively they generated the material for the book. However, as Downey also cautioned:
“Domesticity is not home, home is not a house, and the house is not interior and domesticity is none of them!”
The opportunity to expand and advance the book’s subject provides the impetus for this International Architectural Conference at the University of Brighton, April 2 – 4, 2025.
We are living through global events; migration, poverty, expulsion, displacement, and resettlement. We are seeing systematic and extremely violent wars against the houses and homes in cities forcing refugees to remake homes in other places, other countries, and other continents. For displaced people, notions of home, security, stability, and safety can be difficult to realise. Impacts of climate change with regular droughts, floods, earthquakes, and cyclones affecting homes as they are erased, suffer long-term damage and short-term disruption. New technologies and ubiquitous computing challenge notions of the home as a stable entity since traditional patterns of occupation and activity now revolve around screens, voice activation systems and robotics. The threat of home invasions necessitates security systems with cameras both inside and outside the home offering a degree of protection but inadvertently suggesting the home is now a streaming platform to be viewed remotely.
The International Architectural Conference April 2025 looks to extend the four core themes presented by the book, as outlined in the conference call, and to gather material for a further publication that will deepen the exploration of these themes through new research, critical discussions, and diverse perspectives from the field.
People
The Domesticity Under Siege architectural conference convenors are: Dr Georgina Downey, Visiting Research Fellow in Art History at the University of Adelaide; Terry Meade, Principal Lecturer in Interior Architecture at the University of Brighton in the School of Architecture, Technology and Engineering and Judit Pusztaszeri a Senior Lecturer in Interior Architecture at the University of Brighton in the School of Architecture, Technology and Engineering.
While we were planning this architectural conference, we received the sad news that Professor Mark Taylor one of the editors of the book Domesticity Under Siege, had died. The conference will be a tribute to Mark’s work.
In the planning of this architectural conference, we enjoy the support of our colleagues in the School of Architecture, Technology and Engineering at Brighton University and specifically the BA(Hons) Interior Architecture course: Dr Elisa Lega, Dr Tanya Southcott, Dr Zakkiya Khan, Dr Rafaella Siagkri and Dr Peter Marsh.
We are grateful for the support of the Centre for Design History at the University of Brighton, particularly from Dr Claire Wintle and Dr Megha Rajguru.
We also deeply appreciate the invaluable insights from our keynote speakers and critical friends: Professor Barbara Penner, Professor Anooradha Iyer Siddiqi, and Professor Suzie Attiwill.
Key dates
16 September 2024 // Call for Abstracts
31 October 2024 // Original Abstract deadline
22 November 2024 // Extended Abstract deadline
05 December 2024 // Notification of acceptance
05 December 2024 // Early bird registration opens
11 December 2024 // Speakers reply to confirm participation
17 January 2025 // Early bird registration closes
18 January 2025 // Standard registration opens
19 January 2025 // Speakers submit complete draft of paper (2000 words max) and revised abstract (350 words) to conference committee
23 February 2025 // Peer reviewer’s comments returned to speakers
16 March 2025 // Conference programme announced
23 March 2025 // Copies of papers distributed by speakers to all participants in their session
25 March 2025 // Standard registration closes
2 – 4 April 2025 // Domesticity Under Siege Conference