- Plans have been submitted to Manchester City Council for consideration
Plans have been unveiled for a National Trans Monument to ‘symbolise the strength and spirit of the UK trans community’.
Set to be built in the heart of Manchester’s Gay Village, the monument at Sackville Gardens will incorporate four stand-alone pillars made from steel.
Under the plans submitted to Manchester City Council, the individual posts will have polished metal finishes which designers says will reflect sunlight, a nod to the trans experience of reflection.
A fundraiser has been launched by Trans charity Sparkle to raise £150,000 to bring the project forward, which includes the installation of the monument.
It is set to replace the UK’s first trans memorial, which was destroyed following a fire two years ago.
The new monument at Sackville Gardens will incorporate four stand-alone pillars (Pictured: The planned designs)
The four individual posts will have polished metal finishes, which designers say will reflect sunlight (Pictured: The planned designs)
A Sycamore memorial tree in Sackville Gardens was damaged during Manchester Pride in 2022
The memorial tree in Sackville Gardens was left ‘irreparably damaged’ by a fire during Manchester Pride in 2022.
The Sycamore tree, which had been part of the gardens for eight years, was specifically carved as a memorial. It was decorated with plaques of trans people who had passed away.
Jay Crawford, chair of Sparkle, said: ‘It was important to the Charity that the views and lived experience of the communities we serve helped shape the project to replace the previous memorial, so it’s fantastic that a trans person and their allies submitted a visionary design which fulfilled the original brief in such a captivating and uplifting way.
‘We’d like to thank everyone at Arup, the LGBT Consortium, AECOM, Mott MacDonald, and, of course, Bek and Samuel at New Practice, for getting the project to this exciting stage.
‘As well as welcoming donations from community members and allies, we’re also exploring public funding streams and talking to private sector benefactors to ensure that we’re able to deliver the new National Trans Monument within such an ambitious timeframe.’
The final design, named ‘Passing on Light’, was created by Bek Ziola, lead architect at New Practice, an LGBTQIA+ and women-led architectural practice.
The polished metal finishes on the poles will be a nod to the trans experience of reflection, designers say (Pictured: The planned designs)
Bek said: ‘The National Transgender Monument is a project that I hold very dear to my heart and have personal interest in getting delivered.
‘When I thought about how I wanted to respond to the project brief, I began by reflecting on my own journey to embracing my transness and becoming authentically who I am today.
‘The notion of ‘Passing on Light’ that is conveyed in the monument concept is a message to the trans community, that if you can live authentically as yourself, you will in turn encourage others to do the same.
‘Being transgender is beautiful and every day I am thankful for reaching acceptance of my identity which was achieved through the support of my community and the love they have given me.’
Transgender IssuesGender Ideology
