This course introduces students to key concepts, theories, and histories of queer urban spaces and spatial processes. It situates the formation of sexual identities alongside the formation of the modern city, paying close attention to structures of spatial marginalization as well as forms of resistance, care, and community. Central to the course is a critical examination of the ways sexual space is entangled with gender, race, class, disability, and citizenship as constitutive dimensions of urban life. Students will consider how practices of planning and design shape, reinforce, and sometimes subvert these spatial and social relations.
This course is a graduate-level seminar, structured primarily around reading and discussion of entire texts, both old and new. It will integrate reading and discussion with short, situated lectures, and student-led group case studies. The course is designed to provide students with a foundation for understanding the historical and theoretical interrelations between sexuality and space. It also equips students with the conceptual tools to develop their own approaches and frameworks for research and practice in architecture, urban planning, and urban design.
*Meets with URP 610-002
