Michaela Filipek, The Female Artists that Influence Art Today

Women have undoubtedly always played a role in creating artwork throughout all periods and cultures, however, they are constantly overlooked by traditional art history. Although, there are a handful of women that history simply cannot overlook due to their immense impact on the visual art world. Many artists today credit their inspiration to a few of these women including Artemisia Gentileschi, Frida Kahlo, and Mary Cassatt. These select women are among the most influential female artists in history and are the inspiration to both artists and people all over the globe every day due to the mark they have left in the visual arts forever.

Artemisia Gentileschi was a 17th century Baroque painter that created some of the most dramatic and dynamic artwork of her generation while presenting women in a new way, forever changing how women were portrayed in visual art. From a society that expected women to either be nuns or wives, Gentileschi became the most accomplished female painter of her time (O’Neill, 2002.) This is claimed by, not only the Smithsonian Magazine, but also by many people around the world. Gentileschi was a self-promoter that

was one of the first and only female artists to achieve success in her own lifetime; she was a “painter to dukes, princes, cardinals and kings, she was the first woman admitted to the prestigious Accademia del Disegno,” (O’Neill, 2002.) She still deserves far more recognition, however, for changing the role of women in artwork forever. Artemisia Gentileschi placed women and their stories at the center of all her images, while posing a new perspective on the cultural and social norms of the period. Rather than making women passive objects of the male gaze, she presents them in a way that allows them to possess a power, which was denied them by other artists before. Judith Slaying Holofernes is one of Gentileschi’s most brutal and dramatic masterpieces, as it depicts the popular biblical scene of the slaying of Holofernes with extreme realism and chiaroscuro (which is the use of strong contrast between light and dark to affect a whole composition.) It is a portrait of womens’ power as it portrays two strong women actively beheading a man instead of just existing as dainty objects with soft features and movements. It also acts as an assertion of Gentileschi’s own power as an artist. Another famous artwork of Gentileschi’s is one that depicts a scene from the Book of Judges. Jael and Sisera shows the moment in which Jael is about to kill Sisera where she drives a tent peg into his temple as he sleeps. Both Judith Slaying Holofernes and Jael and Sisera happened to be finished in the same year, and both depict women punishing or taking revenge on men (O’Neill, 2002.) This is a common subject in much of Gentileschi’s work, and a reason for why her work is so notable. Artemisia Gentileschi influenced artists such as Simon Vouet and Massimo Stanzione, as a result of her friendship with them and continues to be a major influence on artists today, such as Barabara Kruger and Caroline Walker (“Artemisia Gentileschi.”) She completely transformed the way an entire group of people were portrayed in visual artwork specifically. She dramatically shifted the role of women in art, and influences people today to alter and challenge the normal and acceptable perspective on certain things whether it be certain people or specific topics.

Mexican surrealist, Frida Kahlo, is celebrated and remembered for her attention to specifically Mexican and indeginous cultures and has created a legacy in art history that continues to inspire people’s minds and imaginations to this day. A major common theme in Frida Kahlo’s work is life experience and the depiction of the female experience and form (“Frida Kahlo and Surrealism.”) Kahlo suffered from multiple disabilities including polio as a child and spinal damage from a car accident. She painted her physical and emotional pain directly onto canvas. “Many of her works are self-portrait that symbolically express her own pain and sexuality,” (“Frida Kahlo The Complete Works.”) Kahlo’s Self-Portrait with Cropped Hair and The Two Fridas, which can be found on websites such as The Frida Kahlo Foundation, are both paintings created with very emotional motives.

Each painting was influenced by Kahlo’s tumultuous relationship with her husband Diego Rivera, and displayed her feelings toward her husband as they dealt with extramarital affairs (“Frida Kahlo and Surrealism.”) Frida Kahlo defied social beauty standards in her art by and showed people her resilience after overcoming all of her disabilities. Frida didn’t sell many paintings in her lifetime, however, her artwork sells for millions today, making her one of the highest selling women in art history (“Frida Kahlo and Surrealism.”) She is an inspiration to those with disabilities, bisexual women, and thousands of artists in general continuously (“Frida Kahlo The Complete Works.”) Many contemporary visual artists, like Hilda Palafox and Arantxa Rodriguez, along with graphic designers credit their inspiration to Frida Kahlo and her work. As a female Impressionist, Mary Cassatt rebelled against the expectations set for her as a woman as well as an artist and is now known as one of the foremost 19th century painters and printmakers. Cassatt studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts where she was met with the patronizing attitude of the male students and teachers every day. Female students were not granted the same opportunities and resources as the men, and she later said, ‘There was no teaching,” at the Academy (“Mary Cassatt The Complete Works.”) Very few women were considered serious artists at the time. She was invited by the widely known French Artist, Edgar Degas, to join the Impressionists, where she picked up open air painting with vibrant colors in numerous strokes. As stated in a biography written about Cassatt’s life, “Degas had considerable influence on Cassatt,” (“Mary Cassatt The Complete Works.”) Cassatt created artwork that generally focused on both the social and private lives of women, while also painting with “particular emphasis on the intimate bonds between mothers and children,” (“Mary Cassatt The Complete Works.”) Of all her astounding masterpieces, The Child’s Bath (1893) and Child Drinking Milk (1868) are two of her most prominent works. Her use of soft brush strokes and lack of harsh lines convey softness and gentleness in these specific works and in all of her portraits. The rest of the impressionists focused on landscapes and street scenes, allowing Cassatt to protrude from the crowd and make a name for herself. Cassatt spent much of her life working to change the traditional beliefs about women’s roles in society. “...she took up the cause of women’s suffrage, and in 1915, she showed eighteen works in an exhibition supporting the movement,” (“Mary Cassatt The Complete Works.”) Cassatt is an inspiration to women everywhere due to her efforts in changing societal beliefs. Mary Cassatt is one of the major influences on the Feminist Art movement and its founders, Judy Chicago and Mariam Schapiro (“Mary Cassatt.”) She is one of many who inspired women across the world to challenge the social norms and boundaries that female artists and women in general are chained to.

Artemisia Gentileschi, Frida Kahlo, and Mary Cassatt changed the visual art world forever in their astounding accomplishments. Each has influenced many other artists and people through their determination and drive to change the roles that women play both in art and in reality. These three women all created artwork that presented new perspectives on women. They broke boundaries in the fabrication of their physical art, as well as in their place in the art world. They challenged what society saw as acceptable. Gentileschi, Kahlo, and Cassatt all participated in drastically different artistic movements, however, all were able to successfully communicate their purpose and content, which was to change the role of women in art. There is no possible way for history to overlook these women and the effect they have had on visual art in our world.

Bibliography

“Artemisia Gentileschi.” The Art Story, The Art Story Contributors, 04 September 2018, https://www.theartstory.org/artist/gentileschi-artemisia/.

Accessed 10 March 2021.

“Frida Kahlo and Surrealism.” Frida Kahlo, https://www.fridakahlo.org/link.jsp.

Accessed 20 March 2021.

“Frida Kahlo The Complete Works.” Frida Kahlo Foundation, 2017, https://www.frida-kahlo-foundation.org/. Accessed 21 March 2021.

“Mary Cassatt.” The Art Story, The Art Story Contributors, 01 February 2017, https://theartstory.org/movement/feminist-art/. Accessed 23 March 2021.

“Mary Cassatt The Complete Works.” Mary Cassatt, 2017, https://www.marycasatt.org. Accessed 22 March 2021.

O’Neill, Mary. “Artemisia’s Moment.” Smithsonian Magazine, May 2002, https:// www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/artemisias-moment-62150147/.

Accessed 10 March 2021.