Conversation with Alexis Hunter, London, 2002

In this conversation, Alexis Hunter discusses her artistic and activist trajectory, beginning with her move to London in 1973. She became involved with the Women’s Workshop of the Artists Union and later the Women’s Free Arts Alliance in 1977. Alongside Pauline Barrie, she also helped establish the Women Artist Slide Library in the 1970s. This key initiative documented women artists erased from art history, serving as both a tool of reclamation and an academic resource. “It was a fact that there were so many women artists…over the last thousand years [who] had just been written out of art history, especially by the Victorians.” Women Artist Slide Library struggled with digital adaptation, leading to funding issues and its relocation to Goldsmiths Library. Hunter emphasizes its immense historical value, particularly in preserving works by deceased artists.

Hunter recalls her early engagement with film and exhibitions through the Women’s Workshop, showcasing art in public galleries, local museums, and theaters. “It brought together all the ideas one had in the 1960s about collectivization, collective living, anti-racism.” Reflecting on ideological divisions within feminist circles, she notes a shift in her artistic practice by the late 1970s. While contemplating a return to painting, she remained committed to feminist issues. “I was sitting very much on the fence at the end of the decade, but I still feel that, if your art drives you, you try to maintain a sense of integrity for your own reasons for doing things.”

At 53, Hunter performed for the first time at the Italian Embassy in London, drawing inspiration from 17th-century painter Artemisia Gentileschi. She explored the parallels between their experiences as female artists in different centuries. “I wanted to do something about the past and to bring the past back into life.” Hunter stresses various historical and contemporary challenges that artists face, noting that past artists relied on patronage and biblical themes, while those of today must be imaginative and politically engaged. She also links 17th-century European conflicts to modern global issues like terrorism.

She further reflects on the objectification of the female body, recalling how ignorance and cultural norms in the 1970s made such discussions difficult. Over time, feminist discourse has gained traction, making it possible to engage with these topics more openly. Hunter closes the conversation by articulating a contemporary understanding of a feminist position: “You have your identity. Yes, it’s an intellectual identity. It’s larger than what people see you as.”