Woman in Art – why have there been no great woman artists?

artnews women in the artworld

Need some  art reading for June
here’s a good place to start
Women in the Art World

Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?
This essay written by Linda Nochlin  appeared in ArtNews in 1971
and is a good place to start in on feminist art history and art theory.
And will certainly give cause for thought and hopefully discussion and further
reading.

06_15_Why-retro_zoffany-studio

“What is important is that women face up to the reality of their history and of their present situation, without making excuses or puffing mediocrity. Disadvantage may indeed be an excuse; it is not, however, an intellectual position. Rather, using as a vantage point their situation as underdogs in the realm of grandeur, and outsiders in that of ideology, women can reveal institutional and intellectual weaknesses in general, and, at the same time that they destroy false consciousness, take part in the creation of institutions in which clear thought—and true greatness—are challenges open to anyone, man or woman, courageous enough to take the necessary risk, the leap into the unknown.”

Questions
Define Great
40 years on has anything changed?
What should I read next? Oh this Then and Now

 

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