“Why have there been no great women artists?” It is true that throughout history there have been no “great” women artists, artistic female “geniuses,” or Michelangelo, Rembrandt, or Van Gogh equivalents that also possess a vulva. This is not due to an inability for women to create great art, or due to a lack of talent. Artists, such as Artemisia Gentileschi and Mary Cassatt demonstrate the ability to create dimension, mimic realism and convey strong emotion through expressive mark making. There is no specific visual aspect of their work that possesses a feminine quality that renders the work less significant than work created by any male artist, other than her signature on the back.
These female artists lived in a patriarchal society during a time when women were refused equal education and the opportunities for success. Aspiring female artists were not permitted to train and develop crucial skills in order to excel. During this time women were not only kept from achieving “greatness,” but they were also denied the recognition when they did. Each of the masterpieces displayed in this exhibition is an example that the artists’ reproductive organs did not keep them from possessing any sort of artistic talent, and demonstrates that female artists, and women in general, are in fact capable of greatness.
