Fighting for the Canvas

How Has Female Strength Been Portrayed Throughout Art History?

A preliminary question before understanding how women have been portrayed in art is have women been portrayed, or even involved in, art? The short answer is yes! Woman have been involved in the world of art for centuries; in its creation, in its subject matter, in its inspiration. Historically speaking, however, women have been sidelined by the traditional understandings of the roles of men and women. This has caused the history of art (like most other histories) to be dominated by men. Luckily, there have been instances throughout the ages of art where women have shone through both as artists in their own right and as commanding subject matter. This exhibit ranges from the mid 1600s to 2018, showing works of women as successful, complex and sometimes even deadly. Most of the early examples of strong female compositions are depictions of stories, followed by the beginning of female artists taking matters into their own hands. There came a certain point where, when men wouldn’t do it, women did it themselves. The women presented in these works each have something to show the viewer, a reminder of what it is to be a woman and subsequently what it is to be human. To be a woman is not to be just beautiful or just tame or even just assertive. It is to take advantage of the full spectrum of human qualities, to pursue passions and virtues to endeavor to be a whole person in the fullest ways possible. These works dignify the talents, challenges and successes of women in art.

Massimo Stanzione, Judith with the Head of Holofernes, c. 1640, oil on canvas, 78 ½ x 57 ½ in. 59.40

This painting tells the story of Judith (found in the Roman canon) who seduced, intoxicated and beheaded the general of the Assyrain army. Stanzione’s depiction of the victor is just that- a picture of victory. Judith stands proudly, her weapon in one hand and the head of her victim in the other as the heavens open up behind her head. She is dressed magnificently, draped by glowing primary colors which emphasise her beautiful but severe face. Stanzione’s image demonstrates a unity between strength and femininity without sacrificing one or the other. He is not afraid to show a woman warrior, basking in her success all while being an image of virtue and beauty. This work does justice to the ferocity of women without falling out of womanhood.

Artemisia Gentileschi, Self Portrait as the Allegory of Painting, 1650, oil on canvas, 98.6 x 75.2 cm, Hampton Court Palace, UK

Artemisia was a female painter at a time in which women were stifled. She learned to paint from her father and quickly became an exceptional artist. There was a long tradition of painting Allegories as a personification of arts or sciences and became an easy tool in the elevation of the artist. The Allegories were always depicted as women, so as to avoid the controversy of particularity, and artists would then concoct clever ways to show themselves alongside the Allegory. Artemisia used this to her advantage and took it farther than any male artist could have. She painted herself as the Allegory of painting, playing off of the iconography of the tradition and asserting herself by becoming Art herself. This painting is simultaneously a technical masterpiece in its own right and the ultimate power move.

Rembrandt van Rijn, Bathsheba at Her Bath, 1654, oil on canvas, 142 x 142 cm, Louvre Museum, France

The story of David and Bathsheba is a scandalous Biblical story that has inspired many artists over the centuries. Rembrandt’s representation, however, sets a slightly different scene than many of the others and strays from the story. This work shows Bathsheba indoors with only her attendant, holding a letter from David. His portrayal of Bathsheba is firstly sexual, but secondly (and more importantly) contemplative. By staging her as the lone central figure with no David in sight, the viewer is forced into the position of the voyeur. The focus then shifts from nudity to the face of Bathsheba, in the midst of moral conflict. This brings the significance away from the idealization of the female body into the complexity of a real woman grappling with implications of her moral entanglement. The viewer now sees a full person as opposed to an object of lust.

Elisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun, Self Portrait, 1790, oil on canvas, 100 x 81 cm

Vigee Le Brun, a French female painter, gained renown for her work for Marie Antoinette and was known as an exceptionally skilled painter. In her self portrait, she reminds viewers of her skill both through the technical rendering of the work and through what she presents. She is seated at a canvas, brushed and palette in hand, in the process of working. Le Brun is beautiful, youthful, almost smiling at the viewer with an ease that reminds the audience of her skill. She is wearing an elegant black dress with a vibrant red ribbon which is eye catching and forceful next to the dark silk fabric. An embodiment of high French culture, Le Brun did not shy away from her talents her self portrait calls to the viewer with reminders that she is cultured, she is talented, she is lovely, and she is successful.

Mathew Brady Studio, Pauline Cushman, 1864, photograph, 35.6 x 27.9cm, National Portrait Gallery, D.C.

The subject of this photograph, Pauline Cushman, was an exceptional woman. Living during the Civil War, she gained fame as an actress and used her position to feign Confederate support, becoming a spy for the North. She collected information for the Union and was eventually caught, tried, and sentenced to hang. Fortunately, she fell ill and the hanging was postponed and she was retrieved by the North. When she returned home she was honored by President Abraham Lincoln and became an honorary major. In the photo she is shown returned from her escapades in uniform. She stands tall and firm, holding her sword with all of her pride. Cushman looks away from the viewer, with a face of determined severity and a reminder of her importance. Cushman used her position as a former female actress to gain access to information which then aided the North. She stands a hero.

Amy Sherald, First Lady Michelle Obama, 2018, oil on linen, 183.2 x 152.7cm, National Portrait Gallery, D.C.

Amy Sherald was the first African American woman to paint a First Lady portrait, and brought her passion for the incorporation of African American art to the table of American art history. She intentionally depicts Mrs. Obama as “confident and approachable”, seeing her as a woman other women can relate to. Sherald used a grey-scale as the skintone in the portrait to “exclude the idea of color as race”, doing away with issues of race to emphasize female power. In the portrait, Michelle Obama dominates the frame. She takes on an emphatic triangle structure, giving her strength and stability which is only supported by the mountainous dress she wears which is a beautiful work of pattern and color. The composition shouts out the intensity of a successful woman with visual reminders of femininity and grace.