In collaboration with URBAN 13 and AIM, we are currently working on a project exploring feminist architecture and equality in public space. The focus area is located at URBAN 13 under Bispeengbuen which is a highway bridge on the border of Copenhagen and Frederiksberg. URBAN 13 has developed the large scale temporary urban space over the last two years and the area hosts a shared office space (where we are located), The Garage – a culture house and event space, a new diner, and sports fields for street sport.

In a socio-spatial mapping and survey conducted in 2019 and 2020, we found that only 15% of people spending time in the public spaces under the bridge were women and girls, and they were always accompanied by at least one other person. However, the number of women and girls passing by the area is approximately 50%. Through an online survey we also know that women to a much higher extent than men, feel unsafe in the area, and that respondents experience that it is difficult to orient themselves in the area.

The project has generously received funding from Frederiksberg Fonden, Tuborgfondet and Frederiksbergs Kommune for three physical interventions as well as citizen participation processes with the local girls and young women in the area. The physical interventions consist of a wayfinding intervention, an art installation and a new semi-public indoor space – the greenhouse. The overarching idea for these three interventions is to frame the ‘square’ – the area between the office and the Garage, create a better flow of pedestrian traffic, more intimate gathering areas, more greenery and art to invite for lingering. The goal is that the area will attract a greater diversity of activities and people, and that more women and girls will spend time in the space. Parallel to these interventions we are attempting to unpack and explore the field of feminist architecture in Denmark through workshops and dialogue with other actors in the field. See some more photos from the area in the story highlights “Buens Torv” and “Under Bispeengbuen” on our instagram @courban_designcollective.

Read more about the project and our approach in this article, or listen to our talk about gender bias in urban space during Copenhagen architecture festival 2021.

Supported by: Frederiksberg Fonden, Tuborgfondet, Frederiksbergs Kommune, Flügger farver and 3xBYG