Women Breaking Boundaries - The London Art Scene is Leading the Way in Showcasing Female Artistic Talent

It's been a catch 22. Prices won't rise for female artists until they're shown in major museums; museums won't show female artists until they achieve equal heights in the market. But, excitingly, more women are occupying key influential roles - from heading up galleries to curating museum content.
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An infamous April Fool's Day hoax last year, carried out by ArtSlant, reported that MoMA's 2015 programming would be dedicated to female artists. But it's no joke with London's Tate this year. I'm delighted that there will be a record five shows all devoted to female artists: Marlene Dumas, Sonia Delaunay, Barbara Hepworth, Agnes Martin and Leonora Carrington.

Sarah Lucas has been chosen to represent Great Britain's on possibly the most prestigious global art stage of all: the Venice Biennale.

Cornelia Parker is showing at the Whitworth Art Gallery in Manchester. And the list goes on...

I wish I could pinpoint the exact moment that London thrust itself forward to champion the art 'sisterhood'. Museum shows are often five years in the making. I've asked my friends in the art world and experts such as Benjamin Godsill, of Phillips auction house, believe it might be because "people are looking for value, for things that are undervalued and that have been overlooked". And it's not a moment too soon for me.

Until three months ago, there was only one female artist listed in the top 100 highest prices at auction, and even Tracey Emin lags far behind Damien Hirst in terms of pricing. Perhaps it was this frustration which caused Emin to comment recently: "it's harder to find a good female artist, than a good prime minister".

More women then men attend art college, and yet far fewer women work as full-time artists. What's been the issue?

It's been a catch 22. Prices won't rise for female artists until they're shown in major museums; museums won't show female artists until they achieve equal heights in the market. But, excitingly, more women are occupying key influential roles - from heading up galleries to curating museum content.

Georgia O'Keeffe's Jimson Weed, White Flower No. 1, went for a record $44.4 million in November and this was attributed partly to the thinking that "it was the right time for this painting". Now it seems that the time might be right for female artists to be finally awarded rightful places in major institutions such as the Tate - and the smaller institutions all play a role too.

Although it might feel as though London is leading the way, there is movement elsewhere. MoMA is showcasing a retrospective of both Yoko Ono's and Björk's work later this year, and Frida Kahlo's work can be seen from May (in her first solo show in NY in 10 years) at the New York Botanical Gardens. The works of our very own Tracey Emin are being shown alongside Egon Schiele's at the Leopold Museum in Vienna.

We hold plenty of lectures at LAS which celebrate male artists and the masculine influence, but it feels as though times are finally changing. We've been asked specifically for courses celebrating the female role in art - both as artist and patron - and with International Women's Day on 8th March, what a great time to toast female progression and boundary breaking in the art world.

I look forward to hearing your views on why we're enjoying such an exciting, dynamic movement and how we can combine effort to ensure what's happening in London is replicated throughout the world.

I, for one, happen to think this is just the beginning of an exciting new movement in art, with London firmly in the driving seat.