Beyond Visibility: Women Artists Shaping the Future
- 3:30pm to 4:30pm | Mall Galleries
Beyond Visibility: Women Artists Shaping the Future brings together artists, advocates, and communities who are actively creating opportunities, championing visibility, and shaping a more inclusive future for women in the arts.
For generations, women artists have faced barriers to visibility, exhibition opportunities, collecting and institutional recognition. Yet, despite these challenges, women artists have continued to innovate, influence and enrich cultural landscapes, often without receiving the recognition they deserve.
Beyond Visibility: Women Artists Shaping the Future brings together artists, advocates, and communities who are actively creating opportunities, championing visibility, and shaping a more inclusive future for women in the arts. Through conversation and real-world examples, the panel will examine the historical obstacles that have shaped women’s artistic careers, the progress already made, and the practical steps needed to create a more visible, sustainable, and inclusive future for women in the arts.
Meet the panel:
Addi Aegisdottir
Addi Aegisdottir is the Creative Director at Mall Galleries, home to the Federation of British Artists, the UK’s leading art societies. A member of the senior leadership team, she works closely with the CEO, Chair, and Board of Trustees to shape the organisation’s creative vision, audience engagement strategy, exhibitions programme, and strategic growth initiatives. Specialising in the culture and heritage sector, Addi leads across marketing, brand strategy, digital platforms, e-commerce, and commercial development, with a focus on expanding audiences, strengthening partnerships, and supporting artists at every stage of their careers.
Rachel Parker PSWA
Rachel Parker is a British painter working primarily in oils, known for her figurative works, expressive landscapes, and contemporary still life paintings. Her versatile approach to both technique and subject matter allows her to move fluidly between traditional and experimental methods, creating a body of work that is unified by its sensitivity to light, atmosphere, and form. She serves as President of the Society of Women Artists (SWA), a role that reflects her dedication not only to her own practice but also to championing women’s contributions to the arts.
Nicola Stratton Tyler
After studying History of Art at the University of Edinburgh, Nic joined Christie’s auction house in London as a specialist in Drawings and Watercolours where she worked for a number of years. She later moved to Bonhams Auctioneers before working for an independent art appraisal company. She became a full time painter 2 years ago.
In her career Nic has also curated numerous exhibitions and has written and edited various books on art. She is a trustee of the Fry Art Gallery.
Helen Masacz
West Sussex-based artist, Helen Masacz is an oil painter who explores the human form and still life within a narrative context. Her current body of work reflects on female presence, endurance, and visibility. Masacz has exhibited widely, including at the National Portrait Gallery and multiple times with the Royal Society of Portrait Painters. She has received several notable accolades, including the Arts Club Award at the Royal Society of Portrait Painters and the Living Prize Solo Show Award at the Women in Art Prize. She is currently preparing for her upcoming solo exhibition, Anima-Occupying Space, at Zebra One Gallery, this October.
Anne Blankson-Hemans
Anne Blankson-Hemans is a Ghanaian-British artist based in Cumbria. Born and raised in Ghana and living in England since 1984, her work is shaped by questions of place, memory, cultural inheritance, and belonging. Working across painting, film, and community engagement, she explores themes of identity, migration, and representation. Through vibrant figurative and landscape work, she seeks to place everyday lives and overlooked stories at the centre of the narrative. Anne is Vice President of the Society of Women Artists and has exhibited widely across the UK.
Tickets are £5 and include entry to The Society of Women Artists | 165th Annual Open Exhibition, which runs from 23 Jun 2026 - 27 Jun 2026.
