The Renaissance: Were there only just men?
Hearing, seeing, and knowing about women’s achievements and impacts in art history is valuable knowledge that is overlooked.
In grade school, I remember sitting in history class thinking something was off. Whether it be how they discussed Columbus coming to America, how France expanded their empire, or information left out of our curriculum, someone always ended up slighted. Flash forward a few years to university, I now have access to much more information than my primary school textbooks. Today, it’s my professors who decide what and who is considered valuable to the larger scope of art history and its contemporary interpretations.
From the Renaissance to Impressionism to the Post-Modern period and further, there is an uneven balance of who is considered important. A survey done at Cal Poly Humboldt University found that students spent only 28 per cent of their entire degree learning about women artists. Yes, I understand the battle in deciding who gets the spotlight and yes, we must consider the socio-cultural constraints that stopped women from attending academies and gaining professional traction. However, the Renaissance is characterized by its educational enlightenment and the prevalence of artistic craftsmanship, meaning teachings should reach beyond the male figures that are so commonly put at the forefront of education. You have heard of Leonardo de Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo, but what about Artemisia Gentileschi or Sofonisba Anguissola? These are two women artists who have endured art history’s often forgetful curriculum as their talent is established amongst male counterparts of their time. And there are many more.
A nun in a Dominican Covent in Siena and a self-taught artist, Plautilla Nelli expressed her devotional occupation in her religiously thematic scenes. She painted large-scale artworks, including one of the first depictions of the Last Supper done by a female artist in 1570. While working out of the Covent, Nelli also produced illuminated manuscripts that were used for learning and record-keeping in an image-text format. Her creations show that women possessed talent without the inspiration or influence of male counterparts.
Lavinia Fontana’s reputation stands on her impressive portraiture of Bolognese noblewomen and families that connect the viewer and subject through her detailed psychological representations. She was also one of the earliest female painters to depict mythological and erotic scenes, in her painting Venus and Mars from 1595.
Apart from human and mythological subjects, Fede Galizia was a pioneer in the still-life genre. Her vivid paintings enlivened the objects she painted. Depictions of apples, peaches, and grapes in bountiful baskets fill much of her surviving works alongside her distinctly naturalistic portraiture commissions. Galizia’s style was oddly modernist, placing her among the old masters of the time.
Involving women artists in conversations about art history is, of course, necessary for the empowerment and recognition of female presence in history. However, women’s artwork also provides an important perspective. Rather than assuming truths from male artists that tend to misconstrue important stories and depict women from a sexual and domestic standpoint, including and comparing artwork done by women can create a more thorough version of history.
