Getty Center Honors Guerrilla Girls with Comprehensive Exhibition

On November 17, 2025, the Getty Center in Los Angeles honored the Guerrilla Girls, an anonymous feminist art collective known for challenging gender and racial inequalities in the art world since the 1980s. The event featured two members of the collective, known by their pseudonyms "Frida Kahlo" and "Käthe Kollwitz," who addressed the audience, reaffirming their commitment to activism.

This tribute coincided with the opening of the exhibition "How to Be a Guerrilla Girl" on November 18, 2025, at the Getty Research Institute. Running through April 12, 2026, the exhibition offers an in-depth look into the group's strategies, including anonymity, data gathering, protest actions, culture jamming, and grassroots distribution. It also features a newly commissioned work that reimagines the voices of women in the Getty's European painting and sculpture collection through a contemporary lens.

Founded in 1985, the Guerrilla Girls are an anonymous collective of feminist artists who adopt the names of deceased female artists and wear gorilla masks to maintain anonymity. Their mission is to expose and challenge discrimination and corruption in the art world, particularly concerning gender and racial inequalities. Over the past four decades, they have utilized posters, billboards, books, and public appearances to highlight issues such as the underrepresentation of women and artists of color in galleries and museums. One of their most iconic works is the 1989 poster "Do Women Have To Be Naked To Get Into The Met Museum?" which critiques the gender disparities in art institutions.

The "How to Be a Guerrilla Girl" exhibition at the Getty Research Institute provides a comprehensive look into the collective's inner workings. Drawing from the Guerrilla Girls' archive, the exhibition explores the steps the group took to create their eye-catching and humorous public interventions. It places the Guerrilla Girls' well-known posters in the broader context of their data research, protest actions, culture jamming, and distribution methods. Coinciding with the Guerrilla Girls' 40th anniversary, the exhibition tells the story of their collaborative process and longstanding commitment to call for equity for women and artists of color in the art world.

A highlight of the exhibition is a newly commissioned work where the Guerrilla Girls reimagine the voices of women depicted in the Getty's European painting and sculpture collection. Using comic strip-style speech bubbles, they provide a contemporary lens on these historical artworks, exposing deeply rooted biases in the representation of women. This piece exemplifies the collective's characteristic witty style and their ongoing critique of art historical narratives.

Katherine Fleming, president and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust, emphasized the institution's commitment to cultural resilience and freedom of expression amid political and environmental challenges. She highlighted the importance of maintaining institutional neutrality and allowing art to speak for itself without political manipulation. Fleming stated, "We want you to know tonight, we are not giving up. Whether it's our work about art and culture, or about what's going on in our country, our fight will never be over."

The tribute and exhibition underscore the ongoing relevance of the Guerrilla Girls' activism in addressing systemic inequalities within the art world. By hosting this event, the Getty Center not only honors the collective's contributions but also reaffirms its commitment to fostering dialogue on diversity and inclusion in the arts. The exhibition serves as both a retrospective and a call to action, encouraging institutions and individuals to reflect on and challenge existing biases.

This event marks a significant milestone in the Guerrilla Girls' history, coinciding with their 40th anniversary. While the collective has been featured in various exhibitions over the years, this comprehensive showcase at a major institution like the Getty Center signifies a broader recognition of their impact. The inclusion of a newly commissioned work that critiques the Getty's own collection demonstrates a willingness on the part of the institution to engage in self-reflection and address historical biases.

The Getty Center's tribute and exhibition not only honor the Guerrilla Girls' enduring legacy but also serve as a call to action for continued dialogue and progress toward equity in the art world.