For millennia, female power has been portrayed, mediated and exerted through visual art. But to what extent have women been packaged to fit a male template? And how much have they been able to control their own image? In today’s episode, which was originally recorded as a live event at Sotheby’s in London, Sotheby’s specialist Holly Braine was joined by Britain’s best known classicist Mary Beard for a conversation about how Western culture has represented powerful women through the ages. They discuss sculptures of ancient goddesses like Aphrodite and Athena, depictions of Queen Elizabeth I as ‘Gloriana’, and contemporary portraits of cultural icons and politicians. 

To see the works discussed in this episode, or to watch an extended version of this talk, visit https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/sothebys-talks/women-and-power-how-have-powerful-women-been-represented-in-western-culture 

And, to step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

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In this episode, art historian Katy Hessel is joined by former National Gallery London curator Letizia Treves and Sotheby’s Edoardo Roberti for a conversation about the pioneering 17th-century artist Artemisia Gentileschi, whose work – in which she painted subjects that were traditionally the preserve of male artists, and intended for the male gaze – has inspired some of the greatest female artists of our time.

This podcast was originally recorded to celebrate the opening of the National Gallery’s exhibition ‘Artemisia’, which ran from October 2020 to January 2021, and was sponsored by Sotheby’s. 

To see the works discussed in this episode, or to watch an extended edition of this talk, visit https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/sothebys-talks/museum-spotlight-artemisia-gentileschi-the-greatest-female-painter-of-the-17th-century

And, to step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

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The idea of the artist’s muse conjures up a glamorous but passive woman portrayed by a male artist. Yet many women who are commonly identified as muses have been talents in their own right; they are creatively inspired as well as sources of inspiration for others. In this episode, photographer Mary McCartney, Golden Lion prize-winning artist Sonia Boyce, and the Daily Telegraph’s fashion director Lisa Armstrong sat down at Sotheby’s in London for a conversation celebrating female creativity, and how women have used art, fashion and photography to reframe the role of women in art as both subject and image-maker. 

To see the works discussed in this episode, or to watch an extended edition of this talk, visit https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/women-in-art-from-image-to-image-maker 

And, to step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

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Marina Abramović is one of our greatest living artists: an art world icon and a performance art pioneer. In 2023, Marina presented her solo exhibition After Life at the Royal Academy and  became the first female artist in the institution’s 250-year history to fill the entire gallery space with her art. Will Gompertz was joined by Sotheby’s Marina Ruiz Colomer and Marina Abramović for a conversation about her life and work, and what it means to be a female artist more broadly.  

To see Marina’s work discussed in this episode, or to watch an extended edition of this talk, visit https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/sothebys-talks/contemporary-conversations-marina-abramovic 

And, to step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

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In this episode, which was originally recorded as a live event, we are joined by two literary icons for a conversation about the beloved 19th-century novelist Jane Austen. Helen Fielding is the creator of the multi-million selling Bridget Jones novels and films, and Gill Hornby is the author of the bestselling Miss Austen, and The Story of Jane Austen. Along with Dr. Kalika Sands, a specialist from Sotheby’s Books and Manuscripts department, Helen and Gill sat down at Sotheby’s in London for a conversation about the enduring appeal and contemporary significance of Jane Austen, and the impact she has had on their own life and work. 

To listen to an extended edition of this talk, visit https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/how-jane-austen-changed-my-life 

And, to step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

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Human beings have been making visual depictions of human life for tens of thousands of years. Fascination with our own likeness is one of the great constants of human history – and the portrait has long been the focus of that fascination. What can portraits tell us about the world? And what can they tell us about ourselves? In today’s episode – originally recorded live in Sotheby’s in the week that the National Portrait Gallery reopened in London – Helena Newman, Chairman of Sotheby’s Europe, sat down with Barbican Art Gallery curator Eleanor Nairne, and the award-winning art historian Simon Schama, for a conversation about the enduring power of the portrait. 

To see any of the portraits discussed in this episode, or to watch an extended version of this talk, visit https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/sothebys-talks-celebrating-portraiture

And, to step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

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In this episode, art historian and broadcaster Carrie Scott is joined by Turner Prize-winning artist and activist Lubaina Himid, writer Lauren Elkin and Head of Modern and Contemporary African Art at Sotheby’s Hannah O’Leary for a conversation exploring modern city life from the perspective of female artists. This podcast was originally a live event, time to highlight the touring exhibition Found Cities, Lost Objects: Women in the City, curated by Himid, which features works from the Arts Council Collection. 

To see the works discussed in this episode, or to watch an extended version of this talk, visit https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/sothebys-talks/celebrating-women-artists-in-the-city-with-lubaina-himid

And, to step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

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There has never been a better time than now for women working in art, fashion and design. But female artists, gallerists, and collectors have always shaped taste, pushed patriarchal boundaries, and challenged orthodoxies to find ways of expressing themselves and championing the work of others. In this episode, originally recorded as a live event, Will Gompertz was joined at Sotheby’s in London by jewellery designer Paloma Picasso, art critic and 2024 Istanbul Biennale curator Iwona Blazwick, and Sotheby’s Emma Baker for a conversation about the past, present, and future of female creativity, and how women have influenced the art world as we know it today. 

To see the works discussed in this episode, or to watch an extended version of this talk, visit https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/sothebys-talks-celebrating-portraiture

And, to step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

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Julianne Moore is one of our greatest living actors: an Academy and Emmy award winner, and the first American woman to be awarded top acting prizes at the Cannes, Berlin and Venice film festivals. She is also an avid collector. In this episode, Julianne joins curator and author Glenn Adamson, curator Dakin Hart, gallerist Jean-Gabriel Mitterrand, and Sotheby’s Florent Jeanniard, for a conversation about 20th Century designers, including Isamu Noguchi and Claude Lalanne, and the role design plays in our lives. 

To see the works discussed in this episode, or to watch an extended version of this talk, visit https://www.sothebys.com/en/series/sothebys-talks/inspirational-living-important-design-with-julianne-moore

And, to step further into the world of Sotheby’s, you can visit any of our galleries around the world; they’re open to the public. For more information, visit sothebys.com.

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Edvard Munch pioneered Expressionism and embraced life’s most painful experiences to create art: his pursuit of emotional truth changed art forever. Tracey Emin, who has been a major figure in contemporary art for more than 25 years, has always been fascinated by the Norwegian master and, in 2021, she exhibited 25 of her own works alongside Munch’s oils and watercolours at the Royal Academy. In this episode originally recorded at Sotheby’s in London, Emin sat down with Sotheby’s Simon Shaw to talk about the role of women in Munch’s work and to explore why his paintings still have such a compelling hold on us today.

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