WHY WOMEN ARTISTS STILL CASH IN LESS
- COVL
- Dec 1, 2025
- 3 min read
When the news that Frida Kahlo made history for selling "El sueño (La cama)" at $54M, the media celebrated this as a record high
for women artists. Yet my antennas perked up because I recalled how Leonard da Vinci clocked in at $450M, making the gap a little too loud for me.
This led me down a rabbit hole, learning why there is such a disparity between how much women get paid in comparison to men
in the arts. I've learned that it has a lot to do with bias, lack of access to opportunities, and history.
Here are five factors backed by facts as to why women are
playing catch-up in the art world. Shall we?
1. Museums still play favorites
Museums are like the ultimate scorekeepers for who “matters” in art. And historically, they’ve been biased.
A survey across 18 major U.S. museums found 87% of artists in permanent collections are men | Carnegie Mellon Shorthand Story
Women only make up about 11% of acquisitions | The Guardian
Meaning: if museums don’t collect and display women’s work,
it’s harder for the market to see it as valuable.
Auction houses notice that stuff.
2. Women were locked out of the art world for centuries
Before the 20th century, women weren’t just underrepresented,
they were systematically excluded from the foundations of an art career, think: education, apprenticeships, guilds, and professional networks.
Many formal art academies didn’t admit women until the late 19th or early 20th century.
Large-scale commissions, travel scholarships, and gallery access were almost exclusively reserved for men.
This means that women didn’t fully participate in the commercial art world until fairly recently. So, it’s no surprise that the historical market, which informs today’s auctions, skews heavily towards males.
3. Scarcity isn’t always a superpower
You might think fewer works = higher prices. Sometimes, yes.
But for women artists, smaller bodies of work often come from centuries of exclusion, fewer commissions, fewer exhibitions, and fewer chances to build a legacy.
One study of 1.5 million auction transactions found that works by women sell for 47% less than similar works by men
So yeah, women can be rare, but the market hasn’t learned to reward it yet.
4. Gatekeepers still skew male
Auction prices aren’t just about talent; they’re about momentum. And momentum comes from curators, critics, dealers, and galleries. Guess what? Most are men.
Only 34% of artists at top galleries are women Art Basel / UBS Art Market Report 2024
In major evening auctions (the big headline-grabbing stuff), women make up under 10% of the lineup | Artsy 2024 Women Artists Market Report
If you’re not in the room where value is set, it’s hard to reach sky-high prices.
5. Collectors buy what they know
High-end auctions are mostly driven by wealthy collectors, mostly men who tend to buy artists they already recognize.
And historically? Those names are mostly male.
Over 90% of artworks sold above $10 million are by men Artprice by ArtMarket 2023
This isn’t a knock on collectors; it’s a system built over centuries that’s slow to change.
Looking forward...
The gender gap in art sales isn’t just about talent.
It’s also about history, bias, and opportunity.
Women were shut out for generations, so it makes sense that the market still undervalues their work. Yet looking forward, I can also notice the shifts. While it's complex, it is indeed a record for Frida, for women in the arts, when you zoom in.
Among living, contemporary artists under 40, women are actually capturing 44–63% of auction interest in some segments
Global auction sales by women are growing, from 2% of total sales a decade ago to around 8–9% in 2023 Artprice by ArtMarket 2023
So, the gap is real, but the narrative is shifting.
And for anyone like me, trying to understand the art world, watching this slowly change is honestly kind of thrilling.
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