The Countess. Report 2022

The 2022 Countess Report is the third comprehensive report on gender representation in the Australian art sector. The report analyses gallery and museum exhibition data as well as data on artist education, prizes, funding, organisational governance, collection acquisitions, and commercial gallery representation from across Australia in the calendar year of 2022.

Data on approximately 22,000 artists across more than 450 galleries and arts institutions was manually counted and verified, while data on acquisitions and exhibitions was provided directly by state and territory galleries, allowing for closer scrutiny of asymmetry in acquisition methods, including the Cultural Gift Program. We looked at institutions of all sizes and budgets: artist run initiatives, contemporary art spaces, commercial galleries, public galleries, Aboriginal-owned art centres, university art museums, major museums, and state galleries

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.

The Countess.Report is an evolving independent collaborative research project led by artists; 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).