Spaces of Reproduction

In the latest installment of the CCA’s year-long investigation “Catching Up With Life,” Frida Escobedo explored domestic workers’ living quarters and the role of architecture in structuring private life. The points of departure for Escobedo were two events in 2018: the release of the film Roma by Alfonso Cuarón that tracks the days of a live-in domestic worker in the neighborhood of the same name in Mexico City, and the Mexican Supreme Court’s decision to recognize domestic workers’ rights and social security. Through testimonials from domestic caregivers and floor plans of the Roma house drawn by Floor Plan Croissant and Casa Estudio designed by Luis Barragán and redrawn from her GSD studio Domestic Orbits, Escobedo questioned the invisibility of reproductive labor—most frequently performed by women—and their mirrored hiddenness in residential design. The small antechambers in Casa Estudio that allow movement among rooms without being seen were highlighted in neon green, revealing layers of performance within private space. “One of the important questions is why do …