About Katy Hessel

Hi there! Thanks for stopping by this site featuring all things women artists.

I am an art historian, curator, and broadcaster, based in London, and I run @thegreatwomenartists, an Instagram account that has celebrated women artists on a daily basis since 2015.

I have a fortnightly column, The Great Women's Art Bulletin, for the Guardian newspaper, where I write about an artwork made by a woman which speaks to today's news agenda.

In September 2022, my first book, The Story of Art without Men, will be published by Penguin. Pre-order your copy now!

I write and host The Great Women Artists Podcast, where I have interviewed artists Marina Abramović and Lubaina Himid, and writers, Olivia Laing, Ali Smith., and Deborah Levy. British Vogue and the Evening Standard listed it among their best podcasts. I also host Dior's podcast, Dior Talks – Feminist Art, which includes interviews with Tracey Emin and Judy Chicago.

I write and present arts documentaries for the BBC, such as Artemisia Gentileschi (2020) and Art on the BBC: Monet (2022). In 2021, I was selected for the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in Art & Culture, and in 2022, I was appointed as the Curatorial Trustee of Charleston, the former home of the Bloomsbury Group.

I write extensively on the subject of women artists, for British Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, including an interview with Zadie Smith; frequently lecture at The National Gallery, Courtauld, Tate, Cambridge University, and more; present films for BBC, Tate, Royal Academy of Arts, Sotheby's, Christie's, Hauser & Wirth, National Portrait Gallery, Barbican, and more; have appeared on BBC Radio 3 & 4; and been featured by The Sunday Times, ES Magazine, i-D.

I have curated exhibitions at Victoria Miro Gallery, Kasmin Gallery (NYC), Stephen Friedman Gallery, and more, and I once took over a floor of Tate Modern for a Tate Late. I run the annual The Great Women Artists Residency at Palazzo Monti for emerging artists.

I write a fortnightly newsletter discussing all things women artists, Sign up here.

Writing and speaking about art history in an accessible and fun manner, my goal is to readdress the gender imbalance in the art world by reinserting women back into the canon of art history.

For partnership and collaboration enquiries please contact:

Carrie Rees | carrie@reesandco.com

Yasmin Hyder | yasmin@reesandco.com

For presenting or broadcasting enquiries, please contact:

Vanessa Fogarty at Curtis Brown | fogartyoffice@curtisbrown.co.uk