#FOTM - Mamachari Is Always In A Hurry!!!

By Kee Cheow Yan

@keecheowyan

Studio Dr. Ho Puay Peng and Ar. Tan Kay Ngee

(in collaboration with KYOBI university (Special thanks to Prof. Yamauchi Takahiro and Miyauchi Tomohisa)

Y5S1 Options Studio 2022

Ingrained in the minds of society is the idealized image of the happy nuclear family. The men of the household are seen as the dutiful breadwinners, working hard to support the family, whereas the housewives are portrayed as happy loving mothers responsible for the care of children and management of the household.

The routine schedule of housewives involves sending their children to “yo-chien” (幼稚園) on their “mamachari” Japan (a colloquialism for “mom’s bike”) before heading to get the groceries and clean the household. Housewives then form their internal community, engaging in activities such as the “mamakai” (ママ会) to share their experiences and support other housewives.

However, this image of the banal everyday has increasingly become challenged as underlying domestic issues surface. A lack of support from their husbands in raising their child, difficulty in enrolling children into kindergarten as well as a stigma in the industry in hiring housewives exacerbate the already arduous journey of the housewife, resulting in the term “wanope ikuji” (ワンオペ育児) which translates to “One Operation Child Rearing”.

The project thus seeks to highlight this critical dichotomy between the projected image that is portrayed and the obscured reality by investigating the ubiquitous “mamachari” of. In a country that relies heavily on housewives and bicycles to sustain the community, the project attempts new ways of tackling the surprising lack of resources for struggling women and cycling infrastructure.

Special Thanks to Kee Cheow Yan.

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