The project investigates the art form of drag and how its character-based performance and radical self-expression could be used as a tool to challenge and subvert the heteronormative American ‘tract house’ template that was widely celebrated and mass-produced in a postwar California.

The design approach aims to respond to a number of social and political factors: President Trump's anti-LGBTQ+ legislation; the gentrification and displacement of queer folk from West Hollywood; drag as a form of political and visual protest.

Based in Lakewood, California, the proposed movement uses housing typology model no.19 as a basis for customisation for a specific client rather than being designed for a generalised ideal. Originally nine custom model houses were designed for nine drag queens, each chosen for their own take on drag. Crystal Lebeija was chosen as a client and her house was developed further.

The ambition was to challenge the current imposed aesthetic and social norms that are strictly enforced within Lakewood. Crystal’s house will act as a new frontier for the new ‘Gay Village’ for people forced from West Hollywood. Rather than fit in with surroundings, Crystal’s house will question the notion of ‘taste’ and explore an architecture of character and self-expression.