NEW: Art Fair and Art Auction at the Mall Galleries - this week!

This week there are two new initiatives this week at the Mall Galleries.

• one is in the galleries - the Women in Art Fair (WIAF) (11th to 14th October 2023)
• one is ONLINE ONLY - the Art for All | Fundraising Auction (9th - 16th October 2023)

Below is a short narrative about both - and I'll be visiting the Women in Art fair tomorrow when it opens and will report back.

Women in Art Fair

The Women in Art Fair a NEW Art Fair specifically celebrating art by women.

website: https://womeninartfair.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womeninartfairofficial/

Women in Art Fair seeks the best in contemporary art, photography, textile and sculpture; all mediums. 

Key Features:

A new initiative, WIAF is dedicated to redressing the gender imbalance in the art industry and will take over all three spaces at Mall Galleries (totalling 450 sqm)

The layout of WIAF

• West Gallery - a booth style art fair - with 9 different booths (not the 21 as indicated)
• East Gallery - a curated exhibition titled Unnatural Women - The show features seminal artists, such as Paula Rego and Jean Cooke alongside established contemporary names and emerging talent.
• North Gallery - an exhibition of artwork selected from an Open Call (which I obviously missed!)
• Theme: The World is A Family. 
• Artists were invited to submit work for exhibition, alongside galleries, for the inaugural WIAF in October 2023. 

WIAF seeks to create a positive global fair, from which women and those identifying as women, are given an opportunity to show their work and contribute to developing the exchange of ideas around gender, and culture.

It will be very interesting to see how people have responded to this new event. It sounds promising and I'm looking forward to visiting.

Event: Expert Panel Discussion

On Friday 13th October at 11:30am, there will be a panel of industry experts discussing pressing issues in women’s art. The Panel features:

• Virginia Damtsa, Katrina Aleksa, Cynthia Corbett - members of the WIAF Committee
• Elena Shchukina - Founder of @womeninartfair
• chaired by Susan Mumford, Founder and CEO of the Association of Women Art Dealers (AWAD)

Opening Hours:

• 11th - 13th October: 10am to 6pm
• 14th October: 10am - 4pm

The Women in Art Fair Partners

Women in Art fair is partnered with:

• Association of Women Art Dealers (AWAD)
• Association of Women in the Arts (AWITA)
• Business Library (British Library)
• The Twenty Two
• The Arts Club London
• Aesthetic Magazine
• Review of Sussex Arts (ROSA) Magazine

Art for All | Fundraising Auction

The artwork in this online auction has been contributed by artists who are members of the art  societies which make up the Federation of British Artists which is based at the Mall Galleries.

Bidding opened yesterday at midday and continues until 12 noon on Monday 16 October.

ALL artwork is for auction and is:

• original artwork made specifically for the auction
• either on an A5 postcard
• or as a small sculpture

Proceeds from the auction will support the Mall Galleries' mission to empower artists through a not-for-profit programme of exhibitions and events, prizes and awards, with a focus on figurative art. Mall Galleries is operated by visual arts charity, the Federation of British Artists (Charity No. 200048).

The names of all the contributing artists are listed on the dedicated page on the Mall galleries website

The contributing artists are listed, but the artworks will be kept anonymous until after the auction has ended to add an extra element of mystery and suspense!

i.e. see if you can spot an artist by style and not just by name. (I've done this before at the Bankside Gallery and came away with two artworks by leading artists I particularly like!)

Sample of artwork on the auction website with bid
I recognise at least two of these....

You can browse all the artwork for auction on a dedicated auction website. 

Bids start from

• £40 for works on paper, and
• £50 for sculptures and works on canvas / board

This FAQs page explains how the bidding system operates. 

• To place a bid you first need to register. 
• You can be anonymous when you bid or let your name be included as the bidder on the auction site.

The FBA's member art societies are:

• Royal Society of British Artists
• Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours
• Royal Society of Portrait Painters
• Royal Institute of Oil Painters
• Royal Society of Marine Artists
• New English Art Club
• Pastel Society
• Society of Wildlife Artists
• Hesketh Hubbard Art Society, London's largest life drawing group