Women, network!

Some time ago, the cultural sector was still firmly in the hands of men, but today there are more and more women in important positions. Although much has changed, there are still areas in which male alliances set the tone. Why do men seem to find it easier to network? The queer-feminist initiative ‘And She Was Like: BÄM!’ founded in 2015 - BÄM for short - aims to counteract this and is committed to equality in the fields of art and design. Nelly Gawellek is an art historian and has been working as a project manager and curator at the Anna Polke Foundation since 2018: ‘I'm responsible for old white men in my main job, so to speak, and for feminism in an honorary capacity.’ Together with Ilka Helmig, visual artist and professor of visual conception and graphic design at Aachen University of Applied Sciences, and Katharina Klapdor-Ben Salem, she has been a member of the BÄM board since 2019, but was already part of the network before that. Helmig explains the aim of the initiative: ‘’And She Was Like: BÄM!‘ serves to network and raise the visibility of queer-feminist positions that are still not evenly represented in the workplace’.

The degree programme is over, the first few years of work completed - time for a first personal review. Nelly Gawellek noted: ‘As a woman, you have certain experiences in your professional life, for example that male colleagues often get into better positions faster or that female colleagues themselves are not so present.’ Accordingly, the purpose of the first events in 2015 was a kind of stocktaking. Who are the women actually working in the cultural field in the Rhineland? The founders wanted to network and exchange ideas with them. According to Gawellek, this aim has become more permanent over the years, with new formats, publications and media being added. The meetings mostly take place in Cologne and the wider Rhineland region. They visit exhibitions and studios together and engage in dialogue. In July, for example, the association met with the curatorial assistant of the Museum Ludwig Leonore Spemann and combined the meeting with a joint visit to the exhibition ‘Give Me Paradox or Give Me Death’ by US artist Roni Horn. The decentralised association does not have its own premises. Instead, it draws on a pool of locations that can be used for its own events, such as the M*Treff in the Alte Feuerwache. However, it is not only members who attend the regular meetings, but also people from the wider network. ‘Basically, everyone is welcome,’ says Nelly Gawallek.

Contact is maintained via a monthly newsletter, which now reaches over 1600 people. Excerpts from editorials and guest contributions from the website, exhibition, book and podcast tips as well as calls for entries are compiled here. The website functions like a kind of magazine. It contains articles on topics such as the ideal of the artistic genius, medical sexism and feminicides. One of the articles, for example, deals with collaborations in the art world. Gawellek and Klapdor-Ben Salem write: ‘Although topics such as gender equality, the gender pay gap and sexism are still sadly topical and we will have to turn many small and larger wheels in the future, actual equality means much more than a male-female balance’.

And She Was Like: BÄM!’ is now organised as a non-profit association whose core team consists of five to eight volunteers. These include both the founders and new members. Helmig: ‘We never actually had the feeling that the formal structure was becoming too dominant. BÄM is still focussed on content today.’. The approximately 140 registered members include gallery owners, artists and art historians. The membership fee ranges from a reduced 15 euros to a regular 30 euros to a sponsoring membership of 100 euros per year. Gawellek: ‘BÄM could be described as a kind of safe space in which members can engage in dialogue with each other across generations and hierarchies at eye level’.

Founding members Leonie Pfennig and Luise Pilz recently published ‘Work in Progress. Conversations about work’. To do so, they gathered a picture of the changing situation of work during the pandemic and held discussions with twelve women working in the art industry in NRW, including artist Selma Gültoprak, art association director Fatima Hellberg and gallery owner Petra Rinck. Gawellek says: ‘During this time, many female protagonists disappeared into obscurity, they were no longer seen in exhibitions, no longer met and were no longer in dialogue with each other.’ In addition to its function as a contemporary document, the publication also provides a very tangible account of the different lives of those portrayed. ‘Back then, when I finished university, I would have liked a publication like this. I think it would have helped to calm me down a little.’

Initially, BÄM received funding from the City of Cologne's Department of Culture, but according to the Executive Board, this has been cancelled during the pandemic. However, the voluntary work remains labour-intensive and resource-intensive. ‘We don't receive any structural funding. We work solely with the association's contributions and have to apply for funding for additional projects,’ explains Gawallek. However, funding for projects is also declining due to tight budgets. This affects the independent theatre scene in particular. A situation that the network is trying to cushion. Helmig: ‘This creates an enormous competitive situation, as everyone is competing for the few positions and resources available.’ Exchange therefore seems to be more important than ever. Helmig: ‘How much can I charge for an essay? By comparing myself with other people, this counteracts exploitation mechanisms a little’.

Networking is also what interests BÄM about their appearance at ART COLOGNE. ‘The actual invitation was more for a talk format,’ reports Gawallek. ‘However, we spontaneously came up with the idea of creating a platform for our network and engaging in dialogue with people at the stand.’ To this end, artworks by members of the association will be on sale. The proceeds will be shared in solidarity with all participating artists and a portion will be used to continue funding BÄM. There is no fixed form, so anything is possible, from originals to editions, older works or works fresh from the studio. ‘The highlight is that the works are not labelled with names, but are ‘only’ listed on the exhibition wall,’ says Gawellek, ’You buy what you see and not who you see.’ This questions fundamental decisions when buying art, where established names are often favoured. Or even the art of men, whose works still fetch much higher prices on the art market.