An Art of One's Own: The Story of Women in Art

A century ago, Virginia Woolf stated that women need financial resources and their own space to succeed as writers. This idea also applies to women artists who require money, support from other artists, galleries, museums, and recognition for producing significant art. Historically, women artists were largely excluded from art history books until recently. This class discusses a diverse group of women painters, sculptors, fiber artists, potters, and photographers from the Renaissance to the present, covering various art categories like history, mythology, portraiture, landscape, domestic lives, self-reflection, protest, and abstraction. Artists include Artemesia Gentileschi, Angelica Kauffman, Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun, Kathe Kollwitz, Marie Laurencin, Berthe Morisot, Augusta Savage, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Frida Kahlo, Georgia O'Keeffe, Lee Krasner, Joan Mitchell, Helen Frankenthaler, Anni Albers, Carrie Mae Weems, Margaret Bourke-White, Gwendolyn Knight, Emmi Whitehorse, Maria Martinez, and Alma Thomas. We will also explore writers who have highlighted women artists such as Whitney Chadwick and Linda Nochlin, along with supportive museum or gallery curators. Join us for an enlightening experience recognizing these talented and memorable artists.