Opening | The Woman Question 1550-2025, The City Of Women

The exhibition ‘The Woman Question 1550–2025’ revises the belief that before the 20th century, female artists were only exceptions. Through the works of nearly 150 female artists – from Artemisia Gentileschi to contemporary artists from Ukraine – it shows that women have continuously created, expressing their identity and agency. Divided into eight sections, the exhibition explores topics such as self-portraiture, education, physicality and motherhood. It is a visual story of resistance, strength and the presence of women in art history – a voice previously overlooked, now regained. As curator Alison M. Gingeras emphasises, painting is a form of power, and the exhibition is a manifesto for a new perspective on art history from a female point of view. ‘The City of Women’ is an exhibition about the multiplicity of female experiences and artistic narratives – from works with a distinct feminist character to queer and decolonial visions of the future. It shows both the historical contexts of female emancipation in communist Poland and the contemporary struggle for reproductive rights. In the face of socio-political crises, art becomes a tool of resistance and an alternative to dominant structures. Individual sections address the themes of the body, memory and community, presenting women's art as both an aesthetic and political form.