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#5WomenArtists

Black and white photo collage of around twenty different women artists shown from the shoulders up.

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Can you name five women artists?

Since 2016, the National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) has been asking this question on social media each March during Women’s History Month. Using the hashtag #5WomenArtists, the campaign calls attention to the fact that women have not been treated equally in the art world, and today they remain dramatically underrepresented and undervalued in museums, galleries, and auction houses.

Each year, hundreds of cultural organizations and thousands of individuals take to social media to answer the challenge, sparking a global conversation about gender equity in the arts.

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#5WomenArtists 2021: A Year-Round Initiative

For the sixth year of #5WomenArtists, NMWA is expanding the campaign to a year-round, museum-wide initiative. Throughout 2021 the staff at NMWA will extend #5WomenArtists beyond the boundaries of social media, incorporating it into programs across all departments of the museum. The 2021 campaign encourages art institutions around the world to focus on women artists, not just in the month of March, but all year long. 

Related Quote

“…I don’t think I’d know these five [women artists] if I wasn’t married to a woman artist. I love this campaign.”
@bendashley on Twitter
Color photograph of a light skin toned woman in all black on a white horse and carrying a large, white flag. Horse and rider are facing left and are in a rolling green landscape with a bright blue cloudless sky.
Marina Abramović, The Hero, 2001; Chromogenic color print, 49 1/2 x 49 1/2 in.; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Gift of Heather and Tony Podesta Collection; © Marina Abramović, Courtesy the Marina Abramović Archives
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Related Quote

“I absolutely loved following #5WomenArtists and hope we see more engagement in the coming years. It’s a joy to see the power of sharing stories that we want to see more, that is the priority I want to see more of.”
@curatormonforte on Twitter
Color photograph of a street scene. Red brick buildings with colorful awnings are on the right and a smiling woman on the left. She holds the arm of a companion who has been cropped out of the left side of the image.
Nikki S. Lee, Part (12), 2003; Fujiflex print mounted on aluminum, 30 x 26 1/4 in.; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Gift of Heather and Tony Podesta Collection; © Nikki S. Lee