Katy Hessel’s 'The Story of Art Without Men' Reimagines Art History

In 2022, Katy Hessel, an art historian and curator with a following of over 372,000 on Instagram, released 'The Story of Art Without Men', which reinterprets art history by omitting male artists, drawing inspiration from Linda Nochlin’s essay from 1971. The book highlights 16th-century creators such as Caterina de Vigri and Plautilla Nelli, along with notable figures like Sofonisba Anguissola and Artemisia Gentileschi. It was awarded Book of the Year 2022 by Waterstones, which hailed it as a 'must-have'. The Times Literary Supplement praised it as 'sumptuous', while The Observer referred to it as a 'beautifully written corrective'. Hessel addresses the historical neglect of women in art, pointing out that E.H. Gombrich’s 'The Story of Art' (1950) featured no female artists, and referencing the Guerrilla Girls’ 1989 billboard that exposed gender inequality at the Met.