Assignment 1

In art history, women have not always been treated equally to men nor have they been respected to the degree that many others have. Women in Art were often ‘invisible’ to their male counterparts and often omitted from historical documentation of art. The achievements of women were undermined and accomplished artists did not receive the recognition that they should have. However, many people began acknowledging the underrepresentation of women in museums and art exhibits and began moving towards the deterrence of such undermining circumstances. Nowadays, the recognition of women artists have increased and the relationship between feminism and art plays a significant role in the world of art. Feminism is the doctrine advocating social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men (dictionary.com) and though not all museums and exhibits incorporate feminism, many do highlight the accomplishments and achievements of profound women art and artists.

The National Museum of Women and the Arts and The National Museum of the American Indian were both feminist museums showcasing many female artists, their achievements, life stories and contributions to society as a whole. Throughout the museums there were many personal assumptions about art and feminism that were aroused once I was confronted with the art. Many of my assumptions were hidden until I was shaken up or had an emotional reaction to the exhibits, information learned, historical facts and what I actually saw. The National Museum of Women and the Arts is a feminist museum which was founded after 20 years of assembling art by women and wanting to showcase such artists as part of their permanent collection. I was surprised walking into the museum that there was light pink/orange marble and flower accents throughout which seemed rather cliché, however, the depth of each painting, learning about the meanings and struggles women artists went through during this time period overpowered such a cliché. Many of the paintings of women were on dark backgrounds ensuring that all the attention will be on this woman. She was typically dressed up with a laced dress and jewelry depicting her status and wealth; the paintings were given to their husbands and put in their home for ‘bragging rights’ (example: Portrait of Costanza Aldosi, ca. 1595. Lavina Fontana. Italian 1552-1614). Paula Rego is another artists featured in this museum but with her own exhibit. Many of her paintings were striking to the eye due to her array of vibrant colors and use of animals to depict humans. I believe she is one of the artists within this museum to clearly convey her feminist beliefs throughout her paintings. Many of her paintings and pastels featured women with solid more defined bodies and unwelcoming facial expressions, depicting the physical features of men. She refrains from drawing the women with typically model figured bodies embracing eloquence and grace in order to depict women as “the embodiment of will and power,” equivalent to that of a man. Feminism is based on advocating equal social rights to women and men and Rego takes initiative in representing their physical appearance in very similar aspects. The National Museum of the American Indian also displays women’s art and emphasizes women’s contributions to society. This museum was very lively and welcoming, not necessarily displaying art as paintings but through musical and dance performances, traditional art rituals and crafts used by the American Indians in their culture. As I entered the museum, many gathered around a Bolivian group consisting of traditionally costumed men and women. Both men and women engaged together in song and dance in unity, depicting the importance of both song and dance as art as well as the use of men and women together. Art by women plays a significant role in this museum because much of the art in their society such as their typical dresses (Identity by Design exhibit) were made by women for women to tell a story, speak of individual visions, depict family status, tribal values and social/cultural change. The dresses carried on life lessons of all the people who made dresses before them and each pattern and design signified something important. This exhibit and the museum as a whole, I believe is a feminist museum showcasing the roles of women in society and though their roles were different that those of men, they were equally as important to the societies well-being and upholding cultural traditions. Certain dresses were given to teenage girls whose family thought especially well of her, the importance of females was not looked down upon but rather embraced. Feminism is also embraced as the role of women in society is exposed as women are defined as “leaders in the community. We can make decisions because we are always in the community. We’re concerned about the children and what they learn.” This information was presented in the Our Lives exhibition which closely emphasizes the roles of men and women differentiating yet each contributing in significant ways, each having similar social, political and other varying rights.

I believe The National Gallery of Art and The Hirshhorn Museum both incorporated antifeminist aspects throughout their galleries and exhibits. The National Gallery of Art had mainly male artists featured throughout the museum. One painting in particular, The Copley Family (John Singleton Copley 1738-1815) has a women, her husband and three kids present. The woman was showing affection to her children, while the husbands eyes were focused elsewhere, paying no attention to his family. This depiction was common throughout many of the paintings, showing the woman in her role as a wife and mother, while the husband was portrayed of higher status. The Kitchen Maid (Jean Simeon Chardin, French 1699-1779) was of a lady in frumpy clothing, in a kitchen preparing food. One would typically assume a woman to be portrayed in this role, but it was shocking to actually see a non-feminist artist depict such a status beneath that of a man. Many of the sculptures throughout the museum were also emotion evoking, with women’s bodies exposed, a few with their bodies slouched and head facing downwards. This clearly is not feminists because it chooses not to embrace the beauty of a woman as an equal but portrays women in rather stereotypically scenarios. Hirshhorn, I believed was not a feminist museum for various reasons as well. Unlike the first two museums I visited, Hirshhorn did not embrace or emphasize the works of female artists. There was one artist, William de Kooning whose paintings were the most emotion provoking. Many of his paintings used variations of the color pink along with dark, gloomy colors. The women in his paintings were typically distorted, abstract, fading into the background, breasts were large and altogether they seemed a bit degrading to women in general.

Prior to this experience feminism was simply a word with a meaning that I believed in and dealt with in my daily life as a women. Art was considered to be a beautiful aspect of life that many enjoyed for what it was. However, it was not until taking an in depth look at feminism and art did I unveil my assumptions and relationship between the two. Feminist museums not only display art by women but also focus on inspirational pieces denoting the power and importance of women in society.

Assumptions:

I assumed that art museums typically consisted of paintings, drawings and sculptures and would not consist of music and dance.

I assumed that feminism was about being anti-male.

I assumed that many of the museums would focus on more political aspects as we do today.

I assumed that the dresses and cradleboards had designs on them that were simply for decoration purposes only.

I assumed women and men were treated more equally nowadays.

I assumed that a women’s museum would avoid using the color pink in paintings/decorations and visual use of flowers because it seems to cliché.

I assumed many of the museums, feminist or not, to have more women artists on display.