Celebrating Women and Their Works of Art
In celebration of Women’s Month, we’re honoring women and their artistic contributions through the years. While being a woman has its highs and lows, we continue to break the glass ceiling in terms of recognition, privileges, and leadership roles that used to be patriarchal in nature.
Female artists have been practically invisible but thanks to modern advancements, women are now making waves in their chosen careers outside their homes. Looking back, there have been popular women artists who have made an exemplary difference in the art world.
Rising Against the Ideals in the Feminist Art Movement
Beginning in the late 19th century, feminism became the first real political movement for women. Beyond fighting for our right to vote and challenging family-centered gender roles, feminism has come a long way since.
The new wave of feminism gave birth to feminist art in the 1960s. Feminist artists painted their way toward equality against the patriarchal status quo, further encouraging a fundamental shift in contemporary art. Their subjects lean toward feminine wall art collections with elements of nature, floral, and geometric shapes. But more importantly, this art form highlights women's liberation from a revolutionary perspective.
Meet Popular Women Artists Who Defied the Societal Odds
Get to know the famous female artists who have brushed their way up to challenge the gender norms of their time combed through their eccentric wall art.
Georgia O’Keeffe (American, 1887-1986)
Georgia O'Keeffe - photograph by Alfred Stieglitz (MET, 1997.61.29), CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
The foremother of the feminist art movement slammed the stereotype that women have limited skills, particularly as artists. That didn’t stop O’Keefe from doing what she wanted to do. Women can say no, just like how she stood up for herself to continue her passion for the arts. O’Keefe had cherished her independence, as she learned how loving a man can damage a woman’s peace of mind.
In her abstract work, Music, Pink, and Blue (1918), O’Keefe painted a floral subject with colorful petals to mimic the soothing effect of art similar to music. Her feminist works celebrated the female form, specifically in her floral paintings where the curves and folds were made similar to the female genitalia.
Frida Kahlo (Mexican, 1907-1954)
A portrait of Frida Kahlo by Guillermo Kahlo from Sotheby's via Picryl.
The groundbreaking artist was a fearless feminist who used art and fashion as a powerful platform to forward an important message about independence and equality. Celebrating her Mexican and European roots, she wears traditional Tehuana dress with poise just as she often says, “I am my own muse, I am the subject I know the best.”
Her paintings are seductive and confrontational. In one of her iconic works, The Two Fridas (Las dos Fridas) from 1939, Kahlo depicts her loneliness and vulnerability after her divorce from Mexican muralist Diego Rivera. She brought a powerful message to women suffering from a broken heart like her, which is to emerge stronger while being your best version without depending on men.
Louise Bourgeois (French, 1911-2010)
Louise Bourgeois, New York 1996 by © Oliver Mark/CC BY-SA 4.0.
While most women struggle against toxic masculinity, Louise Bourgeois fearlessly explored patriarchy as her subject in her feminist art. For Bourgeois, art is a tool to express and explore our subconscious. The Surrealist sculptor emphasized the power of women not as objects but as works of art. She was known for her human-like figures that were displayed at The Museum of Modern Art in 1982.
Her famous work is a bronze, marble, and stainless-steel spider that stands nine meters tall. She considers it an ode to her mother, “Like a spider, my mother was a weaver and she was very clever.”
Yayoi Kusama (Japanese, 1929)
Artwork by Yayoi Kusama by Susanne Nilsson via Flickr / CC BY-SA 2.0
The contemporary Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama is a female visionary who was the first woman to represent Japan at the Venice Biennale, a famous annual art festival in Italy. Pushing boundaries and inspiring women in the art and fashion world, Kusama’s extraordinary talent made her the polka dot queen, as shown in her famous artworks such as Infinity Mirror, Dots Obsession, and Infinity Nets.
One of her groundbreaking works, Narcissus Garden of 1966, is a reflective installation that symbolizes man’s relationship with nature. Kusama performed it on the world stage using 1,500 silver balls to create three-dimensional polka dots. She sold each silver ball to visitors at the Venice Biennale for only two dollars to revolt against art commercialism. And despite living with mental illness, she overcame childhood trauma by using art as a form of therapy.
Marilyn Minter (American, 1948)
A photo of Marilyn Minter by Jason Schmidt via MarilynMinter.net/bio
Addressing sexual taboos and modern beauty ideals, Marilyn Minter focused her art on more sensual subjects, particularly the female body. She was best known for her photorealistic works and enamel paintings with films processed in a dark room. Because of her explicit works, Minter received backlash but this paved the way for her to challenge conservative norms.
Her glossy and hyperrealist paintings feature painted lips, glamorous stilettos, and glittery eyelids. Some of her famous works such as Violet Bubble, Deluge, and Blue Poles explored the desire and intimacy of women as an irresistible power no other gender can possess.
Women Dismantling Art Barriers
The feminist art movement inspires and enrages in a way that transcends our limitations, molded by the male-dominated society. This Women’s Month, may we continue to slap societal expectations by leading and carving our own paths in whatever field or career we choose.
