The Women's Gallery was a collectively established and run art gallery in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, New Zealand, showing only the work of women, that ran for four years between 1980 and 1984.

History

In 1977, artist

Joanna Paul Joanna Margaret Paul (14 December 1945 – 29 May 2003) was a New Zealand visual artist, poet and film-maker. Early life and education Paul was one of four daughters of pioneering New Zealand publisher Blackwood Paul and artist and writer Ja ...

developed a project called "A Season's Diaries" in Wellington, which connected a number of female artists including

Heather McPherson Heather Avis McPherson (28 May 1942 – 10 January 2017) was a feminist poet, publisher and editor who played a key role in supporting women artists and writers in New Zealand. In 1976, she founded the Spiral Collective group and ''Spiral,'' ...

Allie Eagle Allie Eagle (9 January 1949 – 25 May 2022) was a New Zealand artist whose work in the 1970s was key to the development of feminist art practice in New Zealand. She was the subject of the 2004 documentary ''Allie Eagle and Me''. She identified he ...

, Gladys Gurney (also known as Saj Gurney), Anna Keir, Birdie Lonie and Marian Evans. It was this project that led Marian Evans, Anna Keir and Bridie Lonie to create the Women's Gallery. The gallery first opened in January 1980 at 26 Harris Street. It was run on a collective and usually voluntary basis, with many women contributing. The first exhibition, a group show, opened on 21 January 1980. The exhibition featured the work of Paul, Eagle, McPherson, Lonie, Juliet Batten, Claudia Eyley,

Keri Hulme Keri Ann Ruhi Hulme (9 March 194727 December 2021) was a New Zealand novelist, poet and short-story writer. She also wrote under the pen name Kai Tainui. Her novel ''The Bone People'' won the Booker Prize in 1985; she was the first New Zealande ...

, Nancy Petersen,

Helen Rockel Helen Margaret Rockel (born 1949) is a New Zealand artist. Background Rockel was born in 1949 in Wanganui, New Zealand. She attended the Ilam School of Fine Arts between 1968 and 1971, receiving an Honours in painting. Career Known as a pa ...

, Carole Stewart and Tiffany Thornley. Its aim was to promote images of women by women and to support and promote women in the arts. Exhibitions were often arranged thematically, engaging in issues that impacted women's lives (for example, ''Women and Violence'' or ''Mothers''). The gallery had a focus on education and promoting women, rather than on selling art. The show ''Mothers'' was particularly successful, and

Allan Highet David Allan Highet (27 May 1913 – 28 April 1992) was a New Zealand politician. He was an MP from 1966 to 1984, representing the National Party for Remuera, holding the then largest majorities in the House. Early life and family Highet was b ...

(then Minister of Internal Affairs) purchased 500 copies of the catalogue for distribution in schools and universities. According to curator and art historian Anne Kirker: The gallery struggled financially from its inception, and in early 1981 had to cancel a planned national tour of five poets/musicians due to an inability to obtain funding. In around 1981 or 1982 the gallery moved into new premises at 323 Willis Street, where it remained until its closure in 1984. The decision to close was made at the annual meeting in January of that year, largely due to ongoing financial difficulties. In 1988, ''A Woman's Picture Book: 25 Women Artists of Aotearoa (New Zealand)'' was published by Spiral and the Government Printing Office. It was compiled and edited by Evans, Lonie and Tilly Lloyd. Most of the women artists featured in the book had exhibited pieces in the Women's Gallery and the book includes information about the gallery. The gallery was associated with the publishers Kidsaurus 2 and Spiral. The Women's Gallery Incorporated charity continued to operate as a parent organisation and provide financial support for Spiral projects until 2005.

References

Bibliography

* * *{{cite book , last1=Dann , first1=Christine , title=Up From Under: Women and Liberation in New Zealand 1970–1985 , date=1985 , publisher=Bridget Williams Books Limited , isbn=978-1-9273-2727-2 , chapter=Chapter 8: Creativity 1980 establishments in New Zealand Art galleries established in 1980 Art galleries disestablished in 1984 1984 disestablishments in New Zealand Feminist art organizations Art galleries in New Zealand Culture in Wellington