Second Sex in the Second World

The architecture of the countries of the so-called second (state-socialist) world remains scarcely known: according to the still-prevailing stereotype, there could be no architecture without the individual agency of the architect. Even lesser known remains the work of socialist women architects, frequently remaining in the shadow of their male colleagues, who occupied leadership positions in state-run institutions and thus received the credit for collaborative work. The work of women-architects in state-socialist countries – second sex in the second world – in other words, has been subjected to double historiographic “seconding”– a predicament that this projects aims to challenge. We collect information, primary and secondary materials that highlight the work of women architects in modern state-socialist countries within and beyond the Warsaw Pact states. We actively encourage contributions from anyone interested in the topic or willing to share information, material, or references in any language.