There are many traits that traditionally have been projected onto women – tenderness is one of them, though few would argue that men are incapable of being tender. The stereotyping of gender at a time when the boundaries between genders are blurring, together with the fact that there are very few women artists represented at the highest levels of the artworld prompted curators Guy Portelli and Karina Phillips to focus on women‘s art. Is there such a thing and if there is what is it about their work that is different.

Guy Portelli suggests that it comes from a different place; that men take external facts, research or experiences and process them to produce their work, whilst women produce from within.

The exhibition features 22 women working in a wide range of media and genres and from widely differing backgrounds. Each has considered if and how their being female has impacted on their practice or the work that they produce. The resulting exhibition is both a celebration of their exciting vibrant and sometimes challenging work as well as a debate about “women‘s art”. Tender comprises painting, sculpture, mixed media, photography, textiles and ceramics from both British and International artists including major names with works in the Tate‘s permanent collection to exciting emerging talent.

Join the debate: Gallery DIFFERENT invites you to attend the private view, and various events and forums taking place during the exhibition. Further details will be posted to the website in due course.