Yearbook of Women’s History; Guest editors: Lidewij Tummers and María Novas (Web)

Proposals by: 01.05.2025

Gender theorists and activists often highlight the historical notion that “cities are made by men.” But is this entirely true? Or does this perspective omit and erase critical aspects of history? The scarcity of women in the architectural canon compels us to ask: why is this the case? What were – and are – the institutional gatekeepers that systematically excluded women, people of colour, and other marginalized groups from the proverbial drawing board, nowadays and in the past? Recent research into these questions has uncovered a wealth of historical information that challenges the supposed absence of women and other marginalized groups from architectural history and theory. Feminist critiques of urban planning and development from the 1980s and 1990s exposed how the built environment often failed to accommodate everyday practices tied to female roles. This failure was largely attributed to the lack of female representation in planning structures. But feminism is about more than simply the presence of women. It is a critical lens and theoretical framework through which the nature and impact of gender inequality can be explored. As such, feminist architecture challenges entrenched norms and reimagines how spaces are designed and inhabited. Starting from this premise, the Yearbook of Women’s History aims to examine how the built environment was shaped within and beyond the confines of architects‘ offices. How have local authorities, clients, building firms, activist organizations, and knowledge institutions been influenced by feminist ideas, intersectional perspectives, or decolonial thought on architecture? How have feminist contributions influenced the development of buildings, districts, and entire cities? And in what ways were such perspectives excluded or ignored?
For the 44th issue of the Yearbook of Women’s History, guest editors Lidewij Tummers and María Novas invite contributions that explore feminist architectural practices in past and present – whether through built projects, design approaches, or biographies. How have feminist frameworks (re)shaped our understanding of architecture and urban planning? How were women involved in the making of houses, institutional buildings such as asylums, schools, prisons, monasteries, shops, markets, governmental buildings? Whose stories remain untold, and what can we learn from them? Read more … (Web)