Gender Equality at UCL History of Art
Both gender balance and gender inclusivity are important to the Department. History of Art is a subject in which there are more female than male students and academics, and we are keen to bring more balance to this. However, it is also a subject in which female artists have been historically excluded or overlooked from the canon, and we are dedicated to rectifying this, too.
UCL History of Art is proud to have achieved an Athena Swan Bronze Award in recognition of our commitment and activities related to promoting gender equality in the department.
Support and Resources at UCL
- Information on gender equality, parental leave and other entitlements for pregnant staff and students at UCL can be found here.
- The UCL Gender Equality Network is a means of sharing good practice, ideas and information across the university.
- Find out more about the 50/50 Gender Equality Group here.
Support and Resources in the Department
- In 2022 the UCL History of Art Department submitted it’s application for an Athena Swan Bronze Award. The Athena Swan Charter is a framework which is used across the globe to support and transform gender equality within higher education (HE) and research. You can read more here about Athena Swan in general and Athena Swan at UCL.
Self-Education Resources
- Advance HE: Gender Equality in Higher Education
- British Council: Gender Equality in Higher Education
- Higher Education Policy Institute: Mind the gap: gender differences in higher education
- Royal Historical Society: Promoting Gender Equality in UK History: A Second Report and Recommendations for Good Practice (2018)
Feminism and Gender in Art Resources
- Tate: Women and Art
- @thegreatwomenartists on Instagram - an account created by UCL History of Art alumna Katy Hessel.
- encyclopedia.com: Gender in Art - a useful summary.
Learn more about our banner image…
Sonia Delaunay, dress designs, Paris, 1924. Photo: Bibliothèque nationale de France
“The banner image shows a carefully staged photograph of Sonia Delaunay and two of the artist’s friends. All three wear dresses designed by Delaunay that resonate in material and form with the paintings that surround them. Literally inhabiting or embodying images, Delaunay’s art exceeds the confines of the canvas as well as those placed on woman artists. Her material poetics of expressive colour and geometric form define her paintings but also her designs for costumes and everyday dresses, shoes, cars and household objects. Modernist multimedia practices like Delaunay’s defy the gendered hierarchies of art and craft. They ask us to think across traditional art historical boundaries of genres, genders, and materials.”
