Comb Sisters

From December 3 to 15, 2024, the Architecture Museum der TUM will present in Pavilion 333 the exhibition “Comb Sisters: Architecture of a Women's Collective”, based on the research of Master's graduate Yingjia Tan. The exhibition explores the radical communal architecture of the Comb Sisters, a 19th century women's collective in the Canton Delta that pioneered female autonomy. Archival maps, historical documents and the results of three months of field research, including photographs of abandoned communal houses and interviews with the last generation of Comb Sisters will be exposed. This exhibition is an extension of Yingjia Tan's master's thesis, which was supervised by Prof. Lepik at the Chair of Architectural History and Curatorial Practice at TUM.

About Comb Sisters: In the 19th century, numerous women in the Canton Delta of Southern China chose to remain unmarried. Empowered by their involvement in the thriving silk industry, they rejected the traditional submissive roles of wives and the constraints of a patriarchal feudal system. These women adopted the practice of “Combing Up”- a cultural ritual symbolizing their initiation: an unmarried, celibate, economically sufficient woman who lived communally with other women.

Opening: 3.12.2024, 6 pm
Parity Jour Fixe: 12.12.2024, 6 pm
Finissage: 15.12.2024, 3 pm