Seeking statues of women

Sunday, March 01, 2026


Considering women make up around half the population, there is a huge lack of women on statues.

In many towns and cities, it's often the case that there are very few women on statues. Or very few named women on statues, as it's often the case that statues with female forms are abstract or mythological figures.

I wrote about there being so few statues of women in cities and towns across Europe in 2019 for Europeana, and recently published a gallery showcasing images of women on statues. Perhaps in the six years since that first blog, things have gotten a little better.

Since writing that blog, my eyes are now very open to statues that commemorate women. I spot them, photograph them, and upload them to Wikimedia Commons. See here for all the photographs of statues I've shared.

Here are some examples from various countries.

Armenia

Mother Armenia statue, Yerevan, Armenia

Austria

Maria Theresa Monument in Vienna, Austria

Belgium

Queen Astrid statue, Charleroi, 2026

Canada

Queen Victoria statue, Montreal, 2024

Czechia

Saint Ludmila on the Wenceslas Monument

Germany

Pauline Viardot statue, Baden-Baden, 2025

Hungary

Statue of Pálné Veres

The Netherlands

Queen Wilhelmina statue, Apeldoorn, 2024

United Kingdom

Aphra Behn statue, Canterbury, 2025

Florence Nightingale statue, Derby, September 2024

19 instagrams celebrating cities' typography and type

Monday, February 16, 2026

Brick wall with black stencilled letters spelling Canvas

Walking through a city, one of the things I enjoy most is simply seeing words: typography, signs, lettering in all its forms. As you move through the streets, it often feels like the city itself is talking to you.

For years now, I’ve been sharing my take on these on one of my Instagram accounts, posting stylised snippets of words, tiles, bricks and other details that catch my eye. They come from many different places as I travel, from Bulgaria to New York - though most often from Amsterdam or London.

I’ve started to wonder whether these kinds of signs and lettering form a 'personality type' for a city, a visual language shaped by history, design and everyday life.

Today, I am highlighting a selection of nineteen Instagram profiles that focus on typography found in cities around the world, each offering a take on how urban spaces speak through letters.

EDIT: Since sharing this post on Instagram, I've received lots more recommendations, so I've added them as a list below.

Amsterdam


Bari (Puglia)


Berlin


Birmingham


Brussels


Dublin


Edinburgh


Frankfurt


Istanbul


Krakow


London


Madrid


Marseille


New York


Nottingham


Oslo


Rome


Rotterdam


Tokyo