Tuesday 16 July 2019

More Than Muses - Women in Art - Herstory and Herstorians

Marcelle Joseph, Curator 28/6/19

Herstory means history from feminist or female perspective.

Worthy art - gains value and meaning - critical recognition, reviews and sales.

UK gender pay gap 77%
68% of artists at top galleries are men
65% of post graduate arts students are women
Auction houses 88% sales - men artists
Senior staff in art & design institutions 68% men.    Institutions refers to the like of Tate Modern, Chisenhale, Whitechapel.

53% of not-for-profit museum directors are women.

Solo shows 55% women.  Only 3 female Turner Prize winners.  Charlotte Prodger; Lubaina Himid, Helen Martin.  Lubaina Himid only eligible to be considered when they removed upper age limit.  And she was the first woman of colour.  Like many women she organised and curated her own exhibitions (from 1979).  In the 80s showed work by black women artists - 11 creative black women - including Sonia Boyce RA, and Claudette Johnson.  Her star ascended in 2010, made the Honours list, solo show 2013.  Not overlooked by curators or other artists, but not written about.  Celebrates black women.  Resilience and determination  of black women - undermines the patriarchal system

Venice Biennale.  36% to 50% representation of women over last 20 years.

Phyllida Barlow. Sculpture at Slade.  5 children.  Did not exhibit after her MA 1966 but taught and raised children.  Aged 66, 2010, 2 person show at Serpentine Gallery.  Then solo exhibition UK, NY and Venice Biennale.  Hepworth prize nominee.  44 years to emerge?  Why?  Large and colourful.  Menacing and playful.  Low grade materials.  (Not largely understood??)

Sothebys - 12 sales for women.

Jenny Savile - most expensive woman.  Self portrait - £8.3 million.

The only Old Masters woman in NY is Gentileschi.

In the Best Artists List for most money, Yayoi Kusama is the first woman listed, at 20th position.  Had her first solo show in 1998 aged 69, received favourable reviews by Judd.  Lots of mental illness - obsessive compulsive neurosis.

1962. Kusama created surfaces with long soft phalluses.  Accumulation No 1.  Lots of talk no purchases.  Class Oldenburg - soft sculpture 1964.  Plagiarised her idea.  When she saw his soft sculptures at his exhibition, he said 'Sorry' to her.

Aggregation 10000 boat show 1964.  Self obliteration.  Repeat wallpaper and floor paper.  Ripped off by Andy Warhol 1966 repeating wallpaper.

Venice Biennale 1966. 1973 returned to Tokyo and put herself into mental institution.

2019 Women Artist solo shows:
Lee (formerly Lena) Krasner (first since 1965)
Cindy Sherman
Tate - Women artists display
Chisenhale and Serpentine - only women shows this year.
Commercial Galleries - Hauser and Wirth Phyllida Barlow and Luchita Hurtado
Lisson Gallery - Carmen Herrara.

Rose Wylie RA.  Roy Oxley - husband died, and her career took off in 2013, now aged 83.

What holds women back?  - galleries promoted husbands; women had large families and their time was focussed on children; women given hobbyist status?  Or childless or ethnic minority so not promoted? (This needs further explanation)

Ways to address:

Women artist with children are the most disadvantaged.

- residencies to cater for artists with children by providing childcare.

Networking restricted by children.
Galleries to support mid career women with children
Art schools to employ more female art tutors to relate to student interests
Collectors to invest in excellence - it does not have a gender or race
More women decision makers.
(My addition - women to go to look at exhibitions of women artists, whether or not their work initially appeals)

What is excellence?

Women, queer, colour.
- Performative of identity politics.
- material led.
- not necessarily be beautiful.
- consider ceramic, textiles, paint
- show the artist's hand and process of making.

Look at FT and Guardian Arts pages.  Worth following.

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