The Stream

Can you name five women artists?

Female artists remain dramatically underrepresented and undervalued in the art world today.

On Tuesday, March 10, 2020 at 19:30 GMT:
Can you name five women artists? Most people cannot. But hundreds of museums around the world are hoping to change this through a new social media campaign that promotes the stories and work of female artists.

Half of all visual artists today are female, but major museums today only feature a fraction of art created by women. Additionally, artwork by women sells for 40 percent less than the work of their male counterparts.

Research shows that this is because people tend to inherently undervalue artwork produced by women, especially in countries with high gender inequality. Meanwhile, racism puts female artists of colour at a “double disadvantage” in terms of recognition for their work. 

#5WomenArtists aims to challenge this longstanding gender inequity through its campaign, which is timed to coincide with Women’s History Month. It highlights women artist contributions on various subjects, including immigrant rights, LGBTQ rights, racial justice, climate change and other themes.

In this episode we ask, can you name five women artists? Join the conversation.

On this episode of The Stream, we speak with:
Myrtis Bedolla @GalerieMyrtis
Founding Director, Galerie Myrtis 
galeriemyrtis.net

Aida Muluneh @aidamuluneh
Contemporary artist and photographer 
aidamuluneh.com

Chaédria LaBouvier @chaedria
Curator, Acclaimed Basquiat Exhibition at the Guggenheim
instagram.com/lalabouvier

Read more:
272 Museums Join Social Media Campaign to Promote Women Artists – Hyperallergic
The Color Line – Baltimore Magazine
Researchers Explore Gender Disparities In The Art World – NPR

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