In the canon of art history, there are more than a few missing chapters when it comes to the stories of women being told from a female perspective, either because the genuine stories of women were not considered by the male gaze important enough to be recorded, or were simply not allowed to be painted in the first place.
As such, historical portraiture by women is patchy at best, and even in the contemporary sphere the work of female artists has nothing close to market parity with works by male peers. One gallery, however, that is fundamentally committed to telling the extraordinary stories and journeys of women in art is Glllian Jason Gallery - a mother and daughter run operation that has been championing female artists since its inception. And the familial nature of the business is one that works brilliantly. "I think it's really safe to say that I never wanted to work with my mother," says founder Elli Jason Foster, in explanation, with a laugh. "But there is a relationship between Millie and I that has always worked for both of us in all sorts of ways, and we come at the business with such different skill sets - so we are able to work in our own spheres."
While both of them handle artist liaison and representation, her daughter Millie brings a business acumen picked up from a career in banking, and both are extremely passionate about both the lineage of the gallery and platforming women's voices. "Because I grew up with Elli. I have a lot of the same outlook on life, for good or for bad," explains Millie. "We do sometimes have a difference in style, and aesthetic taste, but that just means that we can truly bounce ideas off each other, have different opinions and, almost always, come to the perfect strategy of why we want to exhibit an artist," she continues. "And often that pause for thought is actually really important." It's a winning combination that is apparent in the current show Face To Face II, and one thing mother and daughter undoubtedly share in common is a real verve and passion for what they do. As such, it was fascinating for us to ask them to choose five artists from their stable, and current exhibition, who are collectively changing the face of female portraiture.
