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CAN YOU NAME #5WOMENARTISTS?

Since 2016, the National Museum of Women in the Arts has posed a simple question on social media for Women’s History Month: Can you name five women artists? Using the hashtag #5WomenArtists, the campaign spotlights the lives and work of women artists, historical and contemporary. It also calls attention to the fact that women artists remain dramatically underrepresented—and their work undervalued—in galleries, museums, and auction houses around the world.

This March, the CCF/FCMA invites you to participate in #5WomenArtists by naming five women working in craft. Highlight female-identifying Canadian artists working in any medium who have made an impact on the craft world either on a regional, national, or international level.

Check out NMWA’s list of ideas about how to get started, including these highlights:

For individuals:

  • Learn about gender inequity in the arts through some shocking statistics
  • Download and share ready-made #5WomenArtists graphics on your social media feeds
    When you see an exhibition/museum/gallery that features few or no women artists, tell the institution that you would like to see more women represented
  • Buy a work of art by a woman artist
  • Start a support group or skill share with other women artists

For institutions:

  • Determine the ratio of women artists in your collection or membership by conducting a survey
  • Establish a program for women artists in your community (like a networking event, workshop, panel discussion, or scholarship)
  • Acquire a new work by a woman artist for your collection in the next year

We want to know which #5WomenArtists you highlight! Use the official hashtag and tag the CCF/FCMA in your Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter posts.

We practice what we preach. Over the past month alone we’ve featured 31 women artists on our social media channels, and during our 2018 national conference of the 39 presentations made, 26 were by women, including all four of our keynote speakers, one of whom is two-spirited.

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