Part W crowdsources ideas to create map of buildings by women in London

Part W, which campaigns for gender equality in architecture, engineering and construction, wants people to put forward projects for a new printed map entitled Women’s Work: London.

The open call-out will build on the work the group produced last year for a show at the Barbican – an initial map of 20 projects which was included in the exhibition How We Live Now: Reimagining Spaces with Matrix Feminist Design Co-operative.

Part W said it was looking to expand on that first step and gather a diverse and intersectional range of projects for the map via social media as an action for International Women’s Day (8 March).

The group said: From the construction of Waterloo Bridge to the design of the British Library; the refurbishment of the Supreme Court to the design of social housing, the crowdsourced map will seek to shine a spotlight on the immense contribution of women to London.’

The project hopes to address the ‘huge gap’ in how projects by women through history have been missed off digital and printed maps and in archives.

Part W said that throughout history ‘female-centred design projects’ have not been granted equal recognition to the work of men, including in resource packs at school level, in universities and in precedents promoted by architectural foundations and design institutes.

The group wants people to nominate built projects in Greater London where a woman or women have played a pivotal role in their design development, conservation, commissioning or construction.

These women could be architects, engineers, placemakers, landscape architects, designers, commissioners, conservationists, activists, community groups or citizens.

Projects already included on the first leg of the 2021 map include the Jagonari Women’s Centre led by feminist collective Matrix, Waterloo Bridge built by female construction workers and Dawson’s Heights social housing designed by architect Kate Macintosh (pictured above).

Zaha Hadid Architects’ Aquatics Centre

Part W chair Alice Brownfield, winner of the MJ Long Prize for Excellence in Practice in 2021, said: ‘The final crowdsourced map will be an opportunity to get outside, go and visit these spaces in person and learn more about how women have shaped the city around us.

‘The map will highlight lesser-known stories of women’s significant contribution to the city around us, and spark conversations about who is (and is not) involved, represented and recognised in the production of our built environment.’

Click here to make a suggestion and join in on social media by tagging @PartWCollective with #WomensWorkLondon. The posts should include an image of the project and an explanation about why it should be on the map.

The deadline for suggestions is the 31 March 2022.

#WeArePartW is inviting suggestions for built projects where a woman/women have played a pivotal role to create #WomensWorkLondon, a foldout map highlighting built environment projects designed by women. Click here to find out more: https://t.co/fr8GAVapl7 #IWD2022 #GenderEquity pic.twitter.com/wIQFLxUBuY

— Part W (@PartWCollective) March 8, 2022