Who Cares? - London Festival of Architecture 2021

For the 2021 edition of London Festival of Architecture, Squire & Partners collaborated with local architecture/design studio AWMA on ‘Who Cares?’ - an installation in the windows of The Department Store which explored and showcased what care means to communities.

Following a call for submissions, we set out to identify how care had changed as we grappled with the fallout of a global pandemic. Drawing inspiration from colourful prayer flags, submissions received from local schools and the community were printed on seed-infused recycled paper and suspended in the windows, forming an art installation and symbol of care that residents and friends of Brixton could enjoy.

The installation was designed as an iterative process, where messages of care grew as more people added their thoughts to the installation over the month of the festival. The response was overwhelming, with enough submissions to extend the installation to two other venues: Pop Brixton and the Re:Sole hub in Brixton Village - an outreach program that delivers quality new and used shoes to homeless people in South London.

Once dismantled, the seed paper will be gifted to friends of Brixton to plant, giving the installation a life after the festival through community seed dispersion.

Who Cares? included contributions from Hill Mead Primary School, Kids Kreate, Lansdowne School, Stockwell Primary School and The Study.