The CoUNTess.Report

The Countess.Report is an ongoing independent artist-run research project led by Amy Prcevich, Elvis Richardson, Miranda Samuels and Shevaun Wright, with special guest collaborators including Melinda Rackham, co-author of Countess: Spoiling Illusions Since 2008 (2023).

Countess.Report investigates the structures and frameworks that govern artistic production and legitimation in the Australian contemporary art world. We publish data and analysis on trends in gender representation, the education of artists, the distribution of arts funding, media representation and related topics. Our research is self-published in quadrennial sector-wide reports.

Countess.Report is Amy Prcevich, Elvis Richardson, Miranda Samuels and Shevaun Wright.

2019 Countess Report
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2016 Countess Report
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CoUNTess: Spoiling Illusions Since 2008

COUNTESS: Spoiling Illusions Since 2008 is a book about data - data which exposes the inequity of gender representation in the Australian visual arts sector and the history and impact of the CoUNTess data collection and analysis project. It is also a book about the lives of women artists, writers and academics navigating an asymmetrical art world, where the odds are statistically weighted against them.

CoUNTess is a uniquely Australian project which calls out gender inequity in the art world with biting humour backed by decades of data. Boldly and insightfully written by Melinda Rackham and Elvis Richardson, CoUNTess: Spoiling Illusions Since 2008 offers insights and actions for change. Statistical analysis combined with cultural and feminist theory chart how the education of artists, the role of galleries and museums, art prizes, magazines, curators, collectors and philanthropists contribute to an artworld where women miss out. From original cheeky anonymous CoUNTess Blog posts to today's collaborative Countess.Report collective interventions, this is vital reading.

Beautifully designed by Elliot Bryce Foulkes and Maria Smit.

This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body. This project has been supported by the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria
...and made lots of fun by a Jacky Winter Gardens Residency.


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