National Gallery of Australia Know My Name initiative

Launched in May 2019, Know My Name is a gender equity initiative of the National Gallery of Australia. Aligning with the National Gallery’s mission to lead a progressive and inclusive cultural agenda, Know My Name is a whole of institution initiative that is simultaneously a celebration, a commitment and a call to action.

The National Gallery has acknowledged that only 25% of its Australian art collection and 33% of its Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art collection is by women artists. A defining moment in the history of the National Gallery, Know My Name represents a new chapter for the institution that addresses historical gender bias through programming, education and awareness building, collection development, and ongoing cultural and structural change within the organisation.

Critically Know My Name is underpinned by permanent structural change through policy development and associated reporting metrics. In 2019 the National Gallery formally committed to gender equity through the establishment of Guiding Principles for Gender Equity, and in 2020 gender equity was embedded into Corporate Plan.

In association with Know My Name throughout 2020-2021 the National Gallery is delivering a vibrant program of exhibitions, events, commissions, creative collaborations, publications and partnerships. These activities aim to reconsider the stories of art, to elevate the voices of all women and to celebrate and enhance understanding of the contributions women have made and continue to make to Australia’s cultural life.  

The flagship exhibition Know My Name: Australian Women Artists 1900 to Now is being delivered in two parts over 14 months creating a significant footprint across the National Gallery’s first floor and across the program.  The largest presentation of work by Australian women artists to be exhibited in Australia to date the exhibition in totality will include over 400 works by over 200 artists.

An extensive program of associated onsite and online events and programs has been developed to engage wide and diverse audiences. A dynamic new microsite (http://knowmyname.nga.gov.au) was launched in November 2020. The strategic intention of the site is to create a focused platform for Know My Name that captures the full breadth of the initiative and will become an ongoing digital archive and legacy of the project as well as public research and resource site. The site’s content will continue to be developed throughout the delivery of Know My Name and will include extended exhibition information, digital experiences, education resources, gender equity commitments and associated public reporting.