For the last 2 years, TART Gallery London has been selling art online and presenting biannual physical exhibitions across London. Committed to embracing creativity throughout the strain of the financial crisis, their last exhibition “TART Factory” took place in an empty warehouse that was transformed by a vibrant display of art.
The exhibition idea came about after visiting numerous alternative exhibitions in Venice, Madrid and Brussels last year. With the ongoing recession in the UK, artists are struggling and so are independent art galleries like ourselves. Nevertheless, art lives on, so we decided to do an open call and display all artworks selected in an empty warehouse in London. It was extremely challenging, but the result was amazing. Artists coming together to create, exhibit and talk about art – it felt incredibly refreshing and made it all worthwhile.
TART is dedicated to offering exceptional artworks while simultaneously tackling gender inequality within the art sphere. TART stands as a beacon for innovation in the realm of artistic expression. Committed to embracing creativity and supporting women artists, both emerging and established, providing them with a platform to showcase their creations.
We believe that delivering good art and acknowledging inequality in the art world are not mutually exclusive. In fact, art is a powerful tool for social change, shedding light on issues related to gender, discrimination, representation and empowerment. We are a collective of diverse individuals united by the common goal of breaking barriers and promoting fairness.
Catherine LETTE has been working with TART for a year now. Her paintings propose an alternative plane to grapple with questions of this world on the screen of another ground, transforming the banality and absurdity of everyday life into something transcendent through art.
An artwork’s power lies in its ability to create an emotional response that transcends our logical
understanding. The more we look, the more we see. The more we see the further we look. The
ambiguity of art allows it to surpass constrictions of language, cultural specificity and societal
boundaries. Artworks are allowed to bend the rules, be playful, experimental and question the
status quo.
Art creates a chance to open up a dialogue where other institutions might close it down. Artworks
question perspectives on gender, race, identity, the environment, and many other important topics
encouraging viewers to engage with the debate on an emotional level, consciously or
subconsciously.
Lily HARGREAVES has been part of TART for a few months. She is currently working on her MA in painting at The Royal College of Art and her unique practice is holistic in nature. She paints scenes from an alternate timeline, adopting the role of historian as she documents the happenings of Willowfield village and its residents. Her canvases invite viewers out of their world and into one that parodies, probes and pulls at the seams of the former’s contemporary institutions.
I don’t really paint individual paintings; every canvas is like a square in a storyboard for a film. I
think world-building in this way helps make a viewer feel part of the narrative. The images start to
interconnect with characters and motifs repeating, allowing a spectator to follow along and weave
together their own story. Being part of TART Gallery is special; it is so important to have spaces in the art world that openly stand for equality and bettering access to opportunities.
Another newly represented artist, Susie HAMILTON, creates work that focuses on marginalised female figures, exploring the experiences of pensioner shoppers, or of the vigorous but precarious lives of girls on ‘Hen Nights’. Her series, ‘Plumpers’, depicts and transforms curvy and solitary women into powerful and sometimes fearsome goddesses like The Cailleach or Brigid. Hamilton has worked with the mental health charity Hospital Rooms since 2018, painting large murals in secure psychiatric units and leading workshops which bring artworks and creativity into spaces treating people with the most serious of mental health diagnoses.
I do believe that art is transformative, not just by creating something amazing out of emotions that
seem unacceptable but by putting people in touch with their inexhaustible inner worlds. I’m excited to be part of this innovative and supporting team. Teresa has the kind of energy and vitality that I really appreciate and her nuanced and inclusive approach to feminist ideals is very appealing.
To add to their impressive collection of talented women, they have now included male artists to their gallery, supporters of an inclusive artistic landscape.
In a world striving for equality, we understand that men actively play a pivotal role in dismantling stereotypes and advocating for a more balanced society.
The first male artist to be included is Duncan McAfee, a British artist working in a wide range of media. McAfee playfully employs misremembered parts of art history and contemporary imagery, combining pure flat colour, graphic and figurative elements with messy paintwork. With a prolific career and a multitude of exhibitions under his belt, he has now joined TART.
I would certainly identify as a feminist and recognise the historical struggles of women, particularly in the art world. It’s really encouraging to see these inequalities being addressed in many places now through numerous books, institutional and commercial exhibitions. I think there’s an interesting point (as made by Žižek in relation to the no-platforming culture of some progressives) around the self-destructive contradiction of trying to achieve inclusion through a policy of exclusion. It’s great that Tart Gallery is inviting selected non-female artists to stand alongside the women they represent. I see it as a form of political solidarity.
Will REINSCH, born in Essex in 1994, has been painting for a decade. Exceptionally talented, for the last 5 years he has been focusing on a series of paintings titled “Naked Island” which is a world he has been slowly building, consisting of nude yellow figures, spray-painted sheep and barren landscapes. These visual ideas are not explicitly trying to tell any kind of story but are for whatever reason speaking to something in him that he feels a duty to explore further and hopefully uncover the mystery of.
I feel honoured to be among such a unique roster of artists including some who I’ve been following for many years such as Geraldine Swayne and Katya Granova. The galleries focus on figurative art that walks the line between realism and abstraction is what drew me most and I think a lot of the artists here are pushing the limits of what’s possible within those boundaries.
Supporting art and artists is essential to sustain creativity, preserve cultural heritage and contribute to the enrichment of society, and there is no better way of doing that than BUYING ART.
Other inspiring artists represented by TART at the moment include; Claire BREWSER – Eleanor DALY – Renata FERNÁNDEZ – Fiona G. ROBERTS – Felicity GILL – Steph GOODGER – Katya GRANOVA – Susie HAMILTON – Huddie HAMPER – Annis HARRISON – Alice HERRICK – Amanda HORWOOD – Sonia MARTIN – Luna SUE HUANG – Geraldine SWAYNE – TRIBAMBUKA – PETRA WILLIAMS – Martha ZMPOUNOU –
For enquiries, buying or being part of TART, get in touch. enquiries@tartgallerylondon.com
