Penumbra of taste: Uncovering the meaning of kitsch in architectural representation
Date
2021-08
Authors
Aversing, Anna Marie
Major Professor
Advisor
Leslie, Thomas
Kulić, Vladimir
Cagley, Lee
Committee Member
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Abstract
The role of kitsch in architecture serves an important purpose as an arbiter of taste and cultural shapeshifter. This research explores the concept of kitsch through a series of essays that reinterpret its historical meaning, examine its significance in architecture and architectural representation, and question the motivation behind its omission from design discourse. Kitsch is not merely an aesthetical phenomenon; it has philosophical, psychological, and sociological implications. Because it manipulates perceptions of the world by eliciting emotional reactions and reaffirming sentiments, kitsch has the power to influence everything from architectural trends to public policy.
Kitsch is generally used as a pejorative term to describe cheap, mass-produced versions of what is perceived as high art for entertainment and nostalgic purposes. Although it appears conservative in function and superficial in meaning at surface level, kitsch proves remarkably versatile. Its paradoxical nature is ever-changing; as society’s frame of reference shifts and designers’ tools evolve, esteemed objects and images gradually become clichés and lend themselves to commercial exploitation. A closer examination of historical and contemporary interpretations of kitsch reveals new meanings and a renewed sense of value.
Kitsch survives by reinventing itself from one era to the next and operates as a double-edged sword: it can act as a tool of resistance against hegemonic forces as much as it can facilitate propagandist control over the masses. The concept of kitsch is inextricably linked with socioeconomic conditions; its political, religious, and cultural influence cannot be analyzed separately. Despite the design industry’s continued evasion of the term, the re-emergence of kitsch phenomena in architectural imagery demonstrates its ability to continually reinvent itself as an integral part of the human condition.
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