The Online Club: Do We Need Museums for Women Artists?
When the Louvre can attribute barely 0.14% of its 460,000 objects to women, while even the progressive Whitney tops out at 22%, it is clear that mainstream institutions are still far from gender-balanced. Could museums dedicated to women accelerate parity—or will true change only come when every museum reforms from within?
Discuss it with us!
Join Berlin-based sculptor Rachel Kohn—board member of the Women’s Museum Berlin and co-founder of the German campaign fair share! Visibility of female artists—and Polish curator Dr. Agnieszka Sosnowska, who leads the debate platform DISPUTAZIUNS at Switzerland’s trailblazing Muzeum Susch, dedicated to elevating women artists and reimagining the canon to amplify overlooked voices.
Points for discussion
- Could a women-only museum keep women artists off to the side instead of inside the big mixed museums?
- How do race, class, geography, and sexuality complicate the very idea of one museum for women?
- What concrete metrics—beyond head counts—should institutions adopt to track true gender equity?
- If real fairness means showing everyone together, could a separate museum slow that goal instead of helping it?
- Which activities yield the greatest results in raising the visibility of—and support for—female artists?
Key numbers at a glance
- 12.6% Average share of works by women across 18 leading U.S. museums
- 1.2% Share of works by women in the National Gallery, London
- 0.8% Share of works by women in Madrid’s Museo del Prado
- 11 Physical museums worldwide already put women artists center stage—from Susch in the Swiss Alps to Dubai’s Bait Al Banat
Join our Zoom meeting on Monday, 26 May, 20:00 CEST.
Please register with the orange "Register!" button in the left-hand corner of this page to receive the Zoom link.
After the lectures: get-together and networking in smaller groups.
The event will be held in English. Participation is free of charge—all you need is a PC, tablet, or smartphone with an internet connection.
Hosted and moderated by by Sculpture Network Curatorial Board member Natasha Bergmann.
Speakers: Artist Rachel Kohn and Curator Dr. Agnieszka Sosnowska.
