The launch of a feminist audio guide will allow visitors to Tate Britain to bypass the Old Masters and discover work by relatively unknown women artists.
Museums Without Men by art historian Katy Hessel has launched at five galleries around the world including The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, The Hepworth Wakefield and Tate Britain.
Hessel, the author of The Story of Art without Men, said: “I am thrilled to be working with institutions to spotlight women artists in their collections.
“While the gender imbalance is still acutely visible – an issue many institutions are working on rectifying – I hope this project will help focus attention on the works by women that already exist in collections worldwide.
“My wish is to introduce new and existing museum visitors, of all backgrounds, to artists they may not be familiar with, and to shed light on great works in all art forms.”
The Tate audio guide will be available from March 25 and will “spotlight seven masterpieces by women and gender non-conforming artists”.
The gallery in Pimlico displays work from the last 500 years in British art with notable names represented including David Hockney, William Blake and Sir Joshua Reynolds.
It is also home to the world’s largest collection of works by JMW Turner.
The building, which first opened in 1897, attracted 3.8 million visitors in 2022.
It is home to the Turner Prize and is currently hosting an exhibition called Women in Revolt! Art and Activism in the UK 1970-1990.
