Dear Reader,

It’s the month of March, so we’re doing a Women’s Issue—not to be confused with the women’s magazines you might find in the dentist’s waiting room; you know, the ones that typically have recipes, makeup tips, lose-weight-fast diets, and advice on how to keep your man satisfied. There’s nothing wrong with that kind of magazine mind you, but they are the kind my mom would read. That’s not considered to be a put down either—I love those magazines (when I’m at the dentist’s).

March is the month when women are celebrated, so that’s what we’re doing in this issue. We’re not doing a women’s issue because we are sick and tired of living in a man’s world (as my mother used to proclaim), but to honor and focus on women’s contributions to the art world. We also decided to concentrate exclusively on female artists in the review section, and even our Roll Call photo feature only points the camera on women at the openings.

Let this go on record, this is not an “I am woman, hear me roar,” issue. That sentiment has always turned me off. Why should women have to go to extremes to be heard? Men don’t. Why do we have to raise our voices and be annoying? Men don’t have to. “Women have come a long way,” as the Virginia Slims cigarette commercial used to say. Really? We’ve come a long way to smoke cigarettes, just like a man? We can also join the Army and commit murder and torture. Why emulate the most odious proclivities of the male species?

Women can be powerful in more intelligent ways, as we have in the past and still do. In the creative arts, women are created equal but it’s been only fairly recently that women have begun to gain significant recognition for their contributions to the arts.

Right now, here in Los Angeles, it couldn’t be more prominent, with numerous important solo shows by women artists. Photographer Zoe Leonard captured contributor Colin Westerbeck’s attention with her stellar shows at mega-gallery Hauser & Wirth and the Geffen. Veteran photographer Sally Mann finally gets her due with a retrospective at the Getty Museum, considered here by Clayton Campbell. Betty Ann Brown taps into the politically-driven work of Diane Williams, who graces our cover. Staff writer Ezrha Jean Black pays painter Francesca Gabbiani a visit at her Los Feliz studio, while filmmaker Tyler Hubby stays at home trolling Instagram for follow-able artists. Women-performance artists command contributor Leanna Robinson’s attention, and our intrepid news reporter Scarlet Cheng talks with Kim Schoenstadt about what’s next for her “Now Be Here” photo project.

We didn’t just come up with the idea of celebrating women—the month of March did. But we’re certainly happy to, and just for the record, we always have.