Uncovering Queer Stories in Public Space

Addressing issues of LGBTIQ+ inclusion through spatial interventions that preserve queer heritage - past, present and future.

• Investigators

  • • Professor Nicholas McGuigan
    • Associate Professor Jess Berry
    • Professor Gene Bawden
    • Timothy Moore
    • Dr Xavier Ho
    Monash Art, Design and Architecture

• Undertaken within

  • XYX Lab – Gender + Place

Queering public space means recognising that LGBTIQ+ and gender diverse people have always been part of our urban environments, yet  their stories, contributions and community building have often been silenced or erased. Surfacing queer stories in public space is an effort to make visible LGBTIQ+ right to the city.

Visualising LGBTIQ+ visibility in public space is an important factor in making urban environments feel more inclusive. Recognition of the presence of queer people and their heritage in public space not only means that LGBTIQ+ people see themselves represented, making diversity visible helps public spaces become more accessible for other marginalised groups.

This project will surface the voices of LGBTIQ+ and gender diverse people to recognise queer lived experience, narratives and histories specific to public spaces and commemorate these stories through spatial interventions. The project will propose strategies, toolkits and design based interventions to facilitate LGBTIQ+ communities’ reclamation, commemoration and celebration of queerness in public space and support the preservation of queer community knowledge.