Can you name #5WomenArtists?

NMWA’s year-round mission is to address gender imbalance in the art world, but every March—Women’s History Month—the museum has an opportunity to catch the attention of a wider audience to celebrate women artists. This March, NMWA launched a social media campaign asking, “Can you name five women artists?” A seemingly simple question with a not-so-simple answer—even for those who consider themselves well-versed in the arts—#5womenartists elicited shock, provided a challenge, and sparked conversation about gender parity in the arts. A huge community joined in: More than 370 art museums, libraries, and galleries from 20 countries answered by sharing and tagging their favorite women artists. More than 11,000 individuals joined the campaign to promote women artists. Together, participants shared more than 3,300 Instagram posts and more than 23,000 tweets using the hashtag #5womenartists. News outlets like the Huffington Post, artnet, and the Atlantic helped spread the challenge. During the campaign, NMWA’s number of digital followers increased by 140% on Instagram, 19% on Facebook, and 12% on Twitter. At least 60 individuals and cultural institutions wrote blog posts about the challenge, in English as well as Spanish, Italian, Turkish, and Estonian. NMWA’s blog post launching the campaign was read almost 2,000 times. Our case study will break down the success of the campaign from the initial planning, partnership cultivation, and press, to tracking and stoking the conversation throughout the month. Because the campaign offered a simple idea, flexible framework, and value to the arts community, partner organizations could seamlessly integrate #5womenartists into their existing content strategies. Ultimately, the campaign created a platform for museums to share lesser-known work by women, women artists to share their own work and professional challenges, and art lovers to challenge their friends and family to learn more about women artists. Speakers Session Leader : Emily Haight, Digital Editorial Assistant, The National Museum of Women in the Arts Co-Presenter : Mara Kurlandsky, Project Coordinator for Digital Engagement, National Museum of Women in the Arts MCN 2016 Presenting Sponsor: Piction New Orleans, LA