Over the years, the French art historian, writer and collector Catherine Petitgas has been particularly keen to ensure a balanced representation of women artists in her extensive collection of Latin American art. She has done the same in other roles as trustee or council member for a.o. Whitechapel Art Gallery, South East London Gallery, Gasworks and Serpentine Gallery. And as consultant for Tate Acquisitions Board, Centre Pompidou Acquisitions Board and Sao Paulo Biennale. She has worked with artists, collectors, gallerists and curators in Mexico, Brazil and Colombia to produce three major overviews of the contemporary art scene.
A modest person by nature, she has often been named one of the hundred most influential people in the art world.

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Drawing on her collection she tells her own story for the first time. Political, social and cultural issues are strongly interwoven with the subjects selected by artists from Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Brazil and other Latin American countries.

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Petitgas says: About twenty years ago, my former husband and I decided to build a collection of Latin American art. This coincided with a new generation of conceptual artists entering the international contemporary art scene. For me, the main aim of collecting contemporary art is to participate in the life of the art scene, to enable the artists to continue to create, the galleries to continue to represent them and the institutions to continue to present high quality exhibitions. I give priority to female artists because I am more touched by their work. Living among the creations of the artists I collect and sharing their philosophy of life fills me with joy!