- Venue
- Southampton City Art Gallery
- Location
- South East England
‘One Hundred Years of Sexual Equality in the London Group’:
Since its inception, and still to this day the boundary-defying London Group have been the John Stuart Mill for gender equality in art. Its formation in 1913 was a reaction to the Royal Academy of Arts, which had become overly conservative, and cared not for progression of female artists. Therefore modern gender ideologies have always been an issue close to the London Group’s heart. Their latest exhibition ‘From David Bomberg to Paula Rego’ is a continuation of these sentiments. This is an exhibition which even its title seems to be a statement regarding gender egalitarianism. This collection impressively showcases works spanning the last one hundred years of the collective’s work, from an eclectic range of artists.
Although decades of protest and campaigning for equality between men and women, there is a very evident gender gap still evident in the art world today. An eye-opening study was undertaken in 2012 by the East London branch of the Fawcett Society (ELF). This uncovered that out of one hundred and thirty four commercial galleries in the London, cultural capital of the United Kingdom, a woeful five percent represent an equal number of male and female artists.
It is not merely the lack of representation that hinders female artists, art sales in auctions too highlight art’s gender gap. Curator Gemma Rolls-Bentley was shocked to discover that out of the top one hundred auction sales in 2012, not one of the artists were female. This sad statistic illustrates that the hailing of male over female artists continues, and permeates throughout the contemporary art world. This issue seems almost a given, yet there are a few organisations and groups which actively aim to rectify this. The London Group is one of them, in both historic and modern contexts. Within the nurturing bubble of the London Group talented women artists have flourished, their work exposed and appreciated. Yet, in the wider context of the world of arts, women artists continue to be discriminated against.
Victoria Rance, curator of the exhibition and herself being a London Group member told a local newspapers that: “We wanted to include as many women as possible, and there were seven women artists who fitted into our remit of former members now deceased…They are all in our show, especially fitting as the character of The London Group was formed by being open minded and inclusive of women and émigré artists, and this has enriched the group immeasurably.”
On speaking to Victoria on the subject of female artists in the London Group, she assured me that the number of female artists featured in the current exhibition was double the national average, according to the latest statistics published by the ELF. “We have made every effort to have as many female artists included in this exhibition as possible”. This is
very evident when pursuing the gallery, with almost half of the pieces being by women. The most notable of the female artists were the likes of Mary Potter, Paula Rego, Sylvia Gosse, Stanislawa de Karlowska and Nina Hamnett.
The most striking yet understated piece in the exhibition was Potter’s ‘Little
Shadow’ (1978), which is subtle, delicate and spectacular. Her use, or rather the absence of colour was striking; and the detached nature of the piece was transfixing. It is easy to see how she was such a big name in early twentieth century art, and is fantastic to see her work being revivified through the London’s Group’s latest exhibition.
Stanislawa de Karlowska (1876-1952), a founding member of the group, is yet another example of the high-standard of art that women brought to the London Group. This exhibition in Southampton displays De Karlowska’s ‘Polish Interior’. This simple and vibrant painting depicts children in a peasant’s cottage. This was inspired by her Polish roots, born near Lowicz in the Russian territory of Poland, and its rich local folk art. In March 1910, Huntly Carter once said “What S. de Karłowska has to say she tells us lucidly in pure and harmonious colour.”
The London Group openly and whole-heartedly support feminism, amidst a severely male- centric part of our culture; it is precisely for this reason why organisations such as the London Group are so essential to gender issues; ones which still ripple through art, artists and art lovers. Their latest exhibition is showing at Southampton’s City Art Gallery until 1st November 2014. Open Monday to Friday 10am – 3pm, Saturday 10am – 5pm, admission is free
Rebecca Read
