Assignment One

Lauren Kessl
2/10/08
WMST250 Sec. 0108

The unique historical struggle of women in cultures of the past and present has been the striving to be recognized in an inherently male-dominated society. It is a grand accomplishment for women to be accepted graciously into previously androcentric worlds, such as in art museums for their passions and crafts. In visiting the National Museum of Women in the Arts, the National Museum of the American Indian, the Hirshhorn and Sculpture Garden, and the National Gallery of Art, I experienced the wonderful contributions of women to the artistic world, as well as the influences of feminism on art in general and in the perceptions of a changing society.
I visited the National Museum of Women in the Arts and was first impressed by the grandeur of the building itself. The architecture was aesthetically pleasing and powerful, seemingly to emphasize the power and beauty of women as artists and as people. In the permanent collection, I observed a self-portrait painting by Alice Bailly in which half of the woman's face is blurred and unrecognizable, and her breasts are defined though the rest of her body is not. This was surprising to me considering my assumption that most strong women artists or feminists would be proud and certain of their identity as women in society, though this woman seemed to be in crisis about who she was or how she should be defined. I also observed a painting by Marguerite Thompson Zorach called Nude Reclining, in which a full-figured woman lays nude on a couch in a slightly submissive pose. Initially I was startled due to my assumption that most women or feminists would find it exploitive to portray women in this pose, nude, recumbent, and youthful with disproportionate hips. On the other hand, the position of her arms and the rest of her body could be seen as sexually empowering and strong; therefore I am unsure of the message of the artist in this work, but either way, it disturbed my assumptions. Currently there is an exhibition of works by Paula Rego, whose works feature realistically proportioned women in scenes that discuss human emotion and the complications of daily life. The National Museum of Women in the Arts is feminist in that it is the only one in the world exclusively dedicated to women artists. In addition, the majority of the subjects are women portrayed positively and in ways that may test roles and stereotypes of gender. Some are portrayed with great power and superiority, as seen in portraits from earlier centuries in which noblewomen are depicted with beautiful elegance and grace, exquisite clothing and jewels and grand headwear. The museum serves to celebrate the accomplishments of women in art throughout history.
I then visited the National Museum of the American Indian and was impressed by the architectural design of the building as an art work itself. The museum is still new and so the collections are not as grand as they will be, but I enjoyed the highlighting of various communities within the American Indian culture and also how it attempted to present the culture in a way that defied ethnic stereotypes. I observed the passionate crafts of native women in making pottery, clothing and jewelry among other works. This museum features many artistic contributions of women and currently features an exhibition called “Identity by Design: Tradition, Change and Celebration in Traditional Women’s Dresses”. The exhibition views the dresses as extensions of identity and culture, and portrays women as benefiting not only their families but also their entire community. The National Museum of the American Indian is feminist in that it represents women as empowered members of their native societies. However, I was surprised in that gender stereotypes of women as homemakers, cookers, cleaners, preparers of clothing and so on were seemingly perpetuated, but I would think one would try to avoid this when recognizing women artists. The American Indian museum does not strive to advocate feminist ideology in particular like the Women in the Arts makes a point to do, but in giving native women the opportunity to express themselves uniquely through their art they have advocated it to some extent.
I visited the National Gallery of Art and although none of the current exhibitions feature women artists in particular, they are somewhat equally represented in the collection do to the vastness and magnitude of the museum. I observed several paintings by Mary Cassat and enjoyed them due to the candor with which she paints her portraits, and the realistic representation of the women in them; they are not idealized or romanticized. I do not believe the National Gallery of Art makes a point of perpetuating feminism or recognizing women artists in particular as opposed to artists in general. Men represent the majority of the collection, but many female artists are shown also. Men and women are portrayed positively and negatively, in varying degrees of power, some are exploited, and some are put on pedestals.
I visited the Hirshhorn and Sculpture Garden and was startled emotionally by a few artists in particular. Willem de Kooning created several works with women as subjects that seem to portray them negatively or otherwise exploit them in some way. One painting revealed a simplistically sketched woman whose face was unrecognizable, with jagged, angry-looking lines that distort the body and appear to pull the woman from all sides or otherwise contain her. I assumed that feminists discussing the sexism and exploitation by men and male artists of women were exaggerating, but I surprised to find that this artist and others seemed to perpetuate societal patriarchy in their works. On the other hand, a painting by Tom Wesselmann entitled "Bedroom Painting No. 38" seemed to portray a woman in a very positive and strong light, perceptualizing feminist concepts of independence and personal power. However, my assumptions were startled because I figured that a woman portrayed in such a way would better fit a feminist ideology if she were not wearing so much heavy makeup and did not have such perfect features. Similar to the National Gallery, within the Hirshhorn the concept of perpetuating feminism and the importance of recognizing female artists as opposed to male does not seem to be an issue. Women and men are represented fairly equally and as subjects are perceived with varying degrees of negativity and positivity, strength and weakness.
We as people are sometimes hasty to judge, opinionize, and formulate assumptions about the way things are or the way things should be, and we often fail to grant our quick judgements enough consideration before they transform themselves into solid beliefs. Therefore it is important to provide oneself with opportunities to challenge assumptions, whether or not one recognizes they exist, by learning and experiencing new situations, or viewing old situations in a new light. Visiting art museums and concentrating on art by women and perceptions by artists of women was a wonderful opportunity to challenge societal assumptions of art and feminist ideology.

Assumptions:

I assumed that in recognizing women artists, gender stereotypes would be avoided.

I assumed that feminists exaggerated the sexism and exploitation of women by male artists

I assumed that many feminists dislike men.

I assumed that feminism seeks to eliminate societal gender rules.

I assumed that many feminists think men are generally sexist.

I assumed that many feminists think men feel they are superior to women.

I assumed that feminism believes that modern culture and the media exploit women by advocating gender stereotypes in film, etc.

I assumed that art by women has been historically less accepted than art by men

I assumed that women have gained equal status to men in the present era.

I assumed that feminists were proud and certain of their identity as women.