Women Art Dealers brings together fascinating case studies of galleries run by women between the 1940s and 1980s. It marks a departure from other work in the field of art markets, challenging male-dominated histories by analyzing the work of female dealers who anticipated the global model, worked to promote art across continents, and thus developed an international art market.
Part 1 focuses on the women gallerists behind the promotion of modern art after World War II who participated in important research about the neo-Avant-Garde. Part 2 examines the contributions by women art dealers toward the birth of new markets – through establishing the reputation of artistic genres, such as video art and photography, and working at the forefront of advancing contemporary art. Finally, Part 3 analyzes case studies from the southern European art scene, paying fresh attention to several under-researched markets in the region like Italy and Portugal.
Each chapter study provides a historiographic profile of the gallery under discussion and critical analysis is supported with a wide range of visual material including portraits of the women art dealers, photographs of the exhibitions they managed, and printed documentation like catalogues, invitations, and posters that were often used to support artists on display in experimental ways.
"Notes on Contributors Acknowledgements Series Editor Preface Introduction, Women Art Dealers: Creating Markets for Modern Art, 1940–1990, Véronique Chagnon-Burke (WADDA/International Art market Studies Association, USA) Prolegomenon, The ideology of the Gaze in Photography: Canons and Anti-Canons of Women Art Dealers’ Portraits (1924–2013), Caterina Toschi (University for Foreigners of Siena, Italy) Part One: The Promotion of Modern Art in the Aftermath of World War Two 1. The Girl with the Gallery: Edith Halpert in the Mid-Twentieth Century New York Art Market, A. Deirdre Robson (University of West London, UK) 2. Simone Kahn Collinet: From Member to Promoter of Surrealism, Alice Ensabella (University of Grenoble, France) 3. Nelly van Doesburg and Peggy Guggenheim. Their Role in Establishing the Reputation of Theo van Doesburg and De Stijl, Doris Wintgens (formerly Museum De Lakenhal, The Netherlands) 4. The Konstsalongen Samlaren of Agnes Widlund in Stockholm, Christina Brandberg (University of Loughborough, UK) 5. Galerie Gmurzynska in the Cold War Period, Elena Korowin (Albrecht-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Germany) Part Two: The Rise of New Markets 6. Bertha Schaefer: ""A Case of Ambidexterity."" Bringing Modern Art into American Homes, Antonella Camarda (University of Sassari, Italy) 7. Gabriella Cardazzo at Galleria del Cavallino in Venice, Lisa Parolo (University of Udine, Italy) 8. Constructing a Photography Market between New York and Paris: The Role of the Zabriskie Gallery (1970s–1990s), Isabella Seniuta (University Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France) 9. Linda Givon, the Goodman Gallery, and the Politics of the Contemporary Art Market in South Africa, 1966–1990, Federico Freschi & Lara Koseff (University of Johannesburg, South Africa) 10. Mapping the Impact of Women Art Dealers in Los Angeles: A Few Case Studies, Pietro Rigolo (Getty Research Institute, USA) 11. ""The Boom in Boone:"" Mary Boone in SoHo in the Early 1980s, Carlotta Castellani (Center for Italian Modern Art, USA) Part Three: Latin Galleries Between Italy and Portugal 12. From Fashion Journalism to Art Dealing: Irene Brin and L'Obelisco Gallery, Ilaria Schiaffini (Sapienza University of Rome, Italy) 13. Topazia Alliata, Piero Manzoni and the Coincidence between Idea and Visual Language. The Case of Riducibili, Rome 1960, Carlotta Sylos Calò (University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy) 14. Mara Coccia, a Gallery Owner in Rome, Francesca Gallo (Sapienza University of Rome, Italy) 15. Etheline Rosas: a Modern Art Conservator, an Art Dealer, and Museologist, Sofia Ponte (IADE-Universidade Europeia, Portugal) 16. Dulce D'Agro and Quadrum: A Modern Art Love Story in Lisbon, Adelaide Duarte (Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Portugal) 17. Lia Rumma: Art as Conviviality, Luigia Lonardelli (MAXXI of Rome, Italy) Index"
Véronique Chagnon-Burke is an art historian, co-founder of Women Art Dealers Digital Archives, co-chair of The International Art Market Studies Association, section editor for the Art Market Dictionary, and former Director of Christie’s Education in New York (2002–2021). Caterina Toschi is Associate Professor of contemporary art history and history of photography at the University for Foreigners of Siena, Italy. She is co-founder of Women Art Dealers Digital Archives and Senzacornice, and Associate Director of the Santa Maddalena Foundation.
Reviews for Women Art Dealers: Creating Markets for Modern Art, 1940–1990
This insightful book provides us with 17 detailed portraits of daring and innovative women art dealers and modern art pioneers all around the world, crucially filling a gap in art-market history by focusing on female agency and risk-taking. * Julie Verlaine, Professor of Contemporary History, the University of Tours, France * At a moment when art worlds are finally addressing gender inequalities, this timely volume highlights the crucial role that women art dealers played in shaping modern art markets. * Olav Velthuis, Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands * With its 19 thoroughly researched case studies, this fascinating book makes an important contribution to the study of the achievements of women art dealers in the latter half of the 20th century, filling existing gaps in our understanding of the vital role women have played in the art market. * Nadine Oberste-Hetbleck, Director of ZADIK | Central Archive for German and International Art Market Studies, University of Cologne, Germany *
