This page details contents of a student project developed as part of the class ‘Art and Design Methods for the Social Sciences’ co-convened as part of HUD’s efforts to integrate its research into education. You can find more such projects listed on our main education page here.

The exhibition “The Shape of Inequalities” was conceived by four master’s students at the Geneva Graduate Institute. The main objective of this project is to demonstrate the intertwined relationship between architecture and politics and how inequalities can be perpetuated. Enshrined inequalities in architecture can manifest in various ways, such as the distribution of space—spatial segregation being a notable example—but also in unequal access to public services and to the political, social, and financial centers of the city. Likewise, infrastructure itself, including the aesthetics of complex buildings, can reflect structures of inequality, as it embodies how development is perceived. Using visual arts such as photography, video, and architectural schematics, this project aims to shed light on the obscurity and unclearness surrounding infrastructure projects.