Women by Painters – Various Famous Painters (2)

Welcome to “I am Jenny” Your Guide to Visual Art, where you can find out about artists and art movements. This video focuses on how women are represented in art. There are various words used to refer to the quality of being a woman. The term “womanhood“ merely means the state of being a woman; “femininity“ is used to refer to a set of typical female qualities associated with a certain attitude to gender roles; “womanliness“ is like “femininity“, but is usually associated with a different view of gender roles. Throughout the history of art, women have been painted and idolized. It appears that many woman artists have been erased from traditional art history; this becomes very apparent when looking at the creators of art throughout time. The vast majority of famous Artists are men, many of whom are described as the “Master of the Arts”. The use of the word “Master” demonstrates that even language is used to promote the idea that a male is the only gender that can be well-practiced and respected in this area. The idea of what art is and who creates it has been debated throughout the 20th century. The view that women have been systematically erased from the history of the art world is very well illustrated in an essay by Linda Nochlin, titled ‘Why Have There Been No Great Female Artists”.