Over 35 years ago, a group of anonymous women artists and activists began a campaign to spread information and create awareness around racial and gender iniquities in the art world. Calling themselves “Guerrilla Girls” after the style of warfare that uses military tactics like ambushes, sabotages, and hit-and-run gambits, the art collective armed themselves with facts and statistics to challenge the hegemony of the art establishment, taking aim at art museums and galleries, and the people who run and support them. Their art and activism took the form of wheatpaste posters, stickers, and other projects that papered New York City’s streets, subways, and the facades of its most famous art museums with information about the systematic exclusion of women artists and artists of color from collections, criticism, and exposure. Since 1985, the group has completed over 100 street projects, posters, and stickers all over the world, including New York, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Mexico City, Istanbul, London, Bilbao, Rotterdam, and Shanghai. Their guerrilla approach to presenting information is disruptive, provocative, and at times, confrontational. The success of the Guerrilla Girls’ method is in the way they distill information down to easily digestible graphics and figures. A simple message, bold graphics, and hard facts and figures: this is how the Guerrilla Girls grab their viewers’ attention and create awareness around such critical issues as the number of women artists represented in the gallery system or artists of color in permanent collections.
How Many Women Artists Had One-Person Exhibitions in NYC Art Museums Last Year?, 1985
The Guerilla Girls poster has a white background with the words “How many women had one-person exhibitions at NYC Museums last year?” as the heading. The words are in bold black font. Along with the bold font, the letters are all uppercase. Below the phrase, midline, in uppercase and bold font as well, is a list of NYC museums in response to the question. The museums are Guggenheim, Metropolitan, Modern, Whitney. Next to the museum names are numbers representing the amount of times a one-person exhibition had taken place at each museum last year. All of the Museums have the number zero next to their titles except Modern. Signifying that only one museum in NYC had one person exhibitions last year.
Guerrilla Girls Review The Whitney, 1987
In bold and all cap words it reads, “GUERRILLA GIRLS REVIEW THE WHITNEY.’’ Under it is a photo of a woman sitting on a stool pointing at a banana with a Gorilla head. In the photo the girl is wearing a plaid collared shirt with fish nets and a pair of black boots and lastly she is also sporting a watch. Underneath the picture is the dates “ APRIL 16 – MAY 17 1987”. Below the dates is the opening date “ Thurs April 16 6-8 pm; Gallery open Thurs- Sun 12-6 pm. It also shows the location of the opening along with the address.
The Advantages of Being a Woman Artist, 1988
Dearest Art Collector, 1986
Black cursive text that appears to be handwritten is set on a bright pink background. This image is in letter format that lets an art collector know that they disapprove of the lack of women featured in their collection. It is cheeky, playful, and direct in tone and ends with a sign off All our love, Guerrilla Girls. At the middle top area of the image is a hand-drawn cartoonish flower. There is a frowny face in the center of the flower. Located at the bottom center of the image is a correspondence PO box address located in NY, NY.
We Sell White Bread, 1987
This Guerrilla Girls poster is meant to have the appearance of a public service announcement. It is all in black and white. The background is black and to the middle left of the poster is a print screen style image of a white bread slice. Black text that reads, WE SELL WHIYE BREAD, is in the center of the bread image. White text to the right of the slice of white bread states the ingredients. The bold white text reads Ingredients: white men, artificial flavorings, preservatives. *contains less than the minimum daily requirement of white women and non-whites. The piece's tone is humorous but serious in the delivery that there is a lack of representation of women and non-white artists in the art world. Below the ingredients list is a continuation of white text stating this poster is a service announcement, in the larger text below that is Guerrilla Girls, and below that text is a correspondence text for a PO Box based in NY, NY.
Only 4 Commercial Galleries in NY Show Black Women, 1986
The background of the image is white and all text is black. Large text at the top reads,“ONLY 4 COMMERCIAL GALLERIES IN N.Y. SHOW BLACK WOMEN.*” Text directlybelow expands, “ONLY 1 SHOWS MORE THAN 1.**” Both statements are in all capitalletters. Below this is a footnote that references which galleries show black women artists.Smaller text next to the single asterisk lists “Calvin-Morris, Condeso/Lawler, BerniceSteinbaum, Shreiber/Cutler” and text next to the double asterisk credits Calvin-Morris as theonly gallery to show more than one black woman artist. Below the footnote, in very smalllettering to the right, the source is included as “Art in America Annual 1986-7.” Text across the bottom of the image reads “A public service message from Guerilla Girls conscience of the artworld,” with the group’s name in larger and bolder font than the rest.
Women in America Earn Only 2/3 of What Men Do, 1985
Women in America Earn Only ? of What Men do depicts an American dollar bill in grayscale with a white background. In the center of the image, a US dollar bill is depicted in greyscale. Two-thirds of the way down the dollar bill, on the right side of the dollar, and just after the portrait of George Washington, there is a black dotted line going across the dollar vertically. Directly under the dollar, there are large black block letters that say, “Women in America earn only ? of what men do. Women artists earn only ? of what men artists do,” in all caps. Directly under that and at the bottom of the image, there is black text, in a smaller font, that says, “A public service message from Guerrilla Girls conscience of the art world,” in all caps. The words Guerrilla Girls are larger block letters. The rest of the bottom text is in a smaller, more dainty font.
It's Even Worse in Europe, 1986
Disturbing the Peace English, 2009
While progress has been made since the Guerrilla Girls’ first poster project in 1985, their work remains as important and relevant as ever, especially at a time when museums across the country are reexamining their role as gatekeepers of culture and implementing programs supporting diversity, equity, access, and inclusion. To highlight the work of the Guerrilla Girls and explore alternative ways to display the Nasher Collection, Associate Curator Dr. Leigh Arnold organized Guerrilla Girls: Takeover, a three-month-long online exhibition in the form of a dynamic digital content overlay on the Nasher Sculpture Center website, featuring selections from the Guerrilla Girls’ Portfolio Compleat 1985-2012 with Upgrade 2012-2016 (accessioned 2017). Employing a digital variation of the art collective’s method of "culture jamming", the Nasher has “papered” its website with images and videos from the Guerrilla Girls’ Portfolio. Visitors to the site can view and access a large selection of the Portfolio’s 110 poster projects in digital form—either on this webpage or while navigating other parts of the Nasher website, with images presenting as common intrusive online display advertising techniques, such as pop-up windows, “ads” of Guerrilla Girls’ images, and embedded videos. The result is a new and dynamic way to display art digitally in a manner true to the Guerrilla Girls’ method of confronting us with knowledge so we can all actively participate in the pursuit of progress.
Under Surveillance This Year, 1986
Guerrilla Girls' Pop Quiz, 1990
Guerrilla Girls Pop Quiz' is the headline of this piece, the header is in a large cold black font. There is a question underneath it that is meant to provoke thought from the viewer. The question reads: ' Q. If February is black history month and March is women's history month what happens the rest of the year?' In the bottom right corner, there is a sentence that is upside down, and in bold letters similar to the heading; it reads 'A Discrimination.'
Battle of the Sexes, 1996
This image is a combination of symbols and written statistics and phrases all across the image in a horizontal, two-page layout. In the background, there is a dark shade of gray, which underlies an irregular-edged rectangular shape, almost like paper ripped from a book, and within it we see statues or sculptures of women with Gorilla heads fighting men. We can tell that there are men and women by looking at the nudity of the men. The clothing, as well as the clear protrusion of the female breasts, gives away the presence of women in the piece. The phrases and statistics, not in order, all say: ?"Serve coffee with a smile when white men finally go to Washington for their day of atonement." "Delight in the special connection you have with your body: if a guy loses his temper, it has nothing to do with his penis; if you lose yours, it's P.M.S.""96% of top executives are white males." "Don't agonize over whether to work or stay home with your kids--you'll feel guilty either way." "Be glad you don't need to intimidate your co-workers by telling dirty jokes and grabbing their asses." "Don't be afraid of being lonely at the top, because you'll never get there." "Insist that men who picket abortion clinics also harass deadbeat dads." "Relax. Soon white men will need affirmative action to get good jobs.” “Be proud. Now you candie an honorable death in combat rather than be raped and pillaged." "The average salary of a black female college graduate is less than that of a white male high school dropout." "34% of men's work is unpaid; 66% of women's." "Just 10% of U.S, families consist of a husband who works, a housewife, and kids." "The higher the social class, the less sleep a working woman gets and the more a working man gets." "For years, A.T.&T. claimed that women weren't interested in line work. Suddenly, after a lawsuit, it found 10,000 women who wanted to climb poles and install equipment." "The ceiling isn't glass; it's a very dense layer of men.—Anne Jardim." "The more a field is dominated by women, the lower the pay scale." "Women are thes ole breadwinners in more than 25% of the world's families." "As of 1990. U.S. fathers had failed to pay $24 billion in child support." "Have fun with the money you'll save on clothes and cosmetics after you're fifty and no one cares what you look like." The phrases, which seem more passive aggressive and more blunt and less formal than the stats, are written in a strong red ink, in all-cap font across the superior part of the image. The stats sit aligned towards the bottom, almost serving as the floor of the fighting men and women.
Hormone Imbalance, Melanin Deficiency, 1993
Picture of the "The New York Times Magazine "cover above the title there is a black text box. that says, "Good Health: The Self-Health Movement." Below the type, there are 12 white men all look older they are sitting and standing the ones sitting are seated in chairs, latter as well as a member sitting in a wheelchair. The image is black and white. They all are looking at the camera except for Paul Steinberg. Below the figures, there is a heading that reads "Arnold Glimcher and His Art World All-Stars" it then has a thin horizontal line and then in a smaller type the words “Carring Salesmanship to the Level of Art. By Allan Schwartzman”. The Cover is enclosed by a white border with some black bold type at the bottom. The Title is "Hormone Imbalance. Melanin Deficiency" it is in a bold black all-cap type. Below that is the Gorilla Girls Logo and at the bottom, there are words that are across the whole width of the poster that reads "532 La Guardia Place. #237 NY, NY 10012
Museums Cave in to Radical Feminists, 2008
ARTFORHIM, 1994
There is a poster, directly on top is a black rectangle with white-capitalized letters inside of it saying “ART FOR HIM” this saying is pushed together to make one whole word. Under that there is names top to bottom and in black and bold letters, the first name is “Ingrid” and below it says “Editor of Artforhim 1985-87” next to it there is three columns in lowercase letters and from left to right and top to bottom: “white men, Covers: 91%, Articles*: 80%; white women, Covers: 6%, Articles*: 15%; men of color, Covers: 3%, Articles*: 4%; women of color, Covers: 0%, Articles*: 1%”. The next name is under is “Ida” and right below it says, “Editor of Artforhim 1988-92” next is the three columns saying from left to right and top to bottom: “white men, Covers: 72%, Articles*: 71%; white women, Covers: 26%, Articles*: 22%; men of color, Covers: 0%, Articles*: 5%; women of color, Covers: 2%, Articles*: 2%”. As well as the last name on the list which says, “& Jack” and right below it says, “Editor of Artforhim 1992-present” next to it is the three columns saying from left to right: “white men, Covers: 67%, Articles*: 75%; white women, Covers: 28%, Articles*: 21%; men of color, Covers: 5%, Articles*: 1%; women of color, Covers: 0%, Articles*: 3%”. The word “Article” has an asterisk right next to it. In the bottom of these poster there is the asterisk next to wording saying, “We counted only feature articles on a single artist, not articles about groups of artists, not reviews.” Also, below this there is wording saying “A public service from GUERRILA GIRLS (in big and bold letters) conscience of the artworld.”
Guerrilla Girls' Code of Ethics for Art Museums, 1990
Two black and white stone like tablets side by side that, in roman numerals, count up to ten. There are five numerals on one tablet and five on the other. Next to the roman numerals are the code of ethics that the guerrilla girls expect art museums to upheld. Above are large bolded letters with the title of the piece, and below is guerrilla girls in bolded letters and a smaller text that states that it's a public message from them.
Who are the Guerrilla Girls?
The Guerrilla Girls is a group of women artists active since 1985 who highlight gender and racial discrimination in the art world. Early in the group’s formation, they focused their efforts in New York City, but in the years since they have developed worldwide projects, exhibitions, and demonstrations. The group members are anonymous and conceal their identities by wearing gorilla masks in public and by assuming pseudonyms taken from such famous female figures as artists Frida Kahlo (1907–54), Hannah Höch (1889–1978), and Käthe Kollwitz (1891–1940). The Guerrilla Girls formed as a reaction to the 1984 exhibition International Survey of Painting and Sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, in which work by women artists represented less than 10% of exhibition. The following year, the group began a poster campaign targeting museums, galleries, curators, writers, and artists who they felt were either responsible for or complicit in the exclusion of women and non-white artists from mainstream exhibitions and publications. Since 1985, the group has completed over 100 street projects, posters, and stickers all over the world, including New York, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Mexico City, Istanbul, London, Bilbao, Rotterdam, and Shanghai. The Guerrilla Girls have had retrospective exhibitions in Bilbao (2002), as well as a traveling exhibition that toured the U.S. titled Not Ready to Make Nice: The Guerrilla Girls in the Art World and Beyond (2012-2016). Recent exhibitions include Guerrilla Girls: Not Ready to Make Nice, 30 Years and Still Counting, Abrons Arts Center (2015); Media Networks: Andy Warhol and the Guerrilla Girls, Tate Modern (2016); Art at the Center: Guerrilla Girls, Walker Art Center (2016); Front Room: Guerrilla Girls, Baltimore Museum of Art (2017); and Guerrilla Girls, The Verge Center for the Arts, Sacramento, CA (2017).
Additional resources on combatting gender and racial inequities