Why It Was Difficult for Women to Establish Themselves as Artists - Assignment Example

? Essay on Art and Gender How the tradition of the Nude contributed to women being made into objects of the gaze, rather than becoming artists themselves Berger illustrates that women were the major subjects in the Nude tradition. The traditions of these oil paintings reveal how women have were viewed and judged as objects of the gaze. Berger clearly shows that the Nudes used the first story in the Bible about Adam and Eve as a sequence like those of cartoons. The most significant element in the Genesis story according to the Nudes is when Adam and Eve ate the apple, after which they saw each other in a different way from before. This meant that nakedness was in the beholder’s eye. Further, the woman was blamed for everything experienced and thus she was made a subservient of the man as a punishment (Berger 47). The idea of women being made as objects to be stared at was worsened during the renaissance period, where the moment of shame dominated. The Nudes directed the shame more at the viewer rather than at each other. With time, the shame was used as a display of some kind. Though secular subjects were in use, Nudes still maintained the implication that women were aware of being gazed at. Consequently, they were not naked in their personal right, rather as naked in the eyes of men. According to Jones, another factor of Western Modernity that made it difficult for women to establish themselves as artists is seen in Berger’s illustration of the average oil paintings of the Nude, where the key character was never painted; the male spectator of whom everything had been accomplished. The European convention of not painting women’s body hair was symbolic. To them, hair symbolized passion and power, yet males perceived that these were their features. This contributed to women’s sense of inferiority and thus they lacked the motivation to become artists (Jones 230). Other factors which made it difficult for women to establish themselves as artists in western modernity Linda Nochlin reveals the failure of art and how the Western male viewpoint affected the establishment of women as artists. She refers to John Stuart Mill’s concept of how he viewed male domination as a major source of social injustice. Nochlin bases her argument that white male subjectivity was a factor that undermined women progress. Since men perceived themselves as superior, they focused on more noticeable art works and disregarded any effort made by women. Research with talented women in art work demonstrates that internal barriers also limited women to establish themselves as artists. The way women were raised and the cultural biases they experienced led to such barriers and lack of developing the belief in self, essential for a determination to highly creative work. In fact, some women remained in the background, in undesirable positions, as enforcers of other people’s ideas (Johnson 245). Creative potential in a number of women may be associated to lower-profile work. As men produced great works of art, most talented women made unconscious or conscious decisions to implement such men’s work. Women with art potentials, who had the capability to capitalize on this prospective in their work always portrayed single-minded purpose, made hard choices regarding their lives, and lacked support systems to help them come out. Another limiting factor to women’s establishment was societal-based. Such factors influenced or became an obstruction to women development in art. Nochlin wonders why there are no great women artists. From her analysis of women achievements in art, she illustrates that great art by women was often underrated or disregarded in history (Nochlin 161). Further, research shows that though rational stimulation in homes tended to play a key role in the advancement of art, most women were not practically motivated or even permitted to involve in intellectual pursuits by their peers or families. They were traditionally offered less education than their male counterparts, and the society usually denied women access to particular cultural materials and educators. Prior to western modernity, culturally diverse women got little motivation, stimulation, and right to use tools essential for developing artistic work and come up with something of cultural value. In addition, they were perceived as less than men to utilize their painting skills creatively. How artists have challenged traditional representations of women in art Although women have been looked down upon in art history, several artists have emerged to challenge this traditional view by prospering in the same field. For instance, Rosa Bonheur came out as one of the most accomplished and successful woman artists of all time. Her work, despite the negative effects wrought upon it by alterations of tastes and a particular admitted insufficient variety, continues to be exclusive as an inspiring achievement to any person with interest in the 19th century art. Bonheur is a woman artist who, partially due to the extent of her reputation, all the numerous disputes, internal and external challenges and contradictions associated with her profession and sex, outshines in sharp relief (Ressler 48). The achievement of Rosa Bonheur strongly challenges the established traditional perceptions and firmly sets up the role of institutional change as an essential element for success in art. Bonheur took an initiative to become an artist, and on the other hand to have the weakness of being feminine; she prospered on her own in the 19th century, an era in which the conflict between traditional history art rather than less exaggerated and more freewheeling type of art, still-life, and landscape was won by the prior group hands down. Linda Benglis is recognized sculptor. There were often certain standards that traditions expected women to yield to (Ressler 49). However, Benglis fought against such concepts and her artistic woks and photography were viewed as a femininity threat. Her adverts dealt with disparity of the sexes in art as well as forcing viewers to admit the sexual messages in her theoretical sculptural pieces. Although Benglin’s photos and works of art did attract people to her, she intended to bring to attention and challenge the imbalance in the male-dominated art world. The most significant issue is that women should face up to the reality and avoid making excuses, but rather focus on shining in the world of art. Works Cited Berger, John. Chapter 3 in Ways of Seeing. Oxford: Penguin Adult. 1972. Print. Johnson M. Julie. The Memory Factory: The Forgotten Women Artists of Vienna 1900. New York: Purdue University Press, 2012. Print. Jones, Amelia. The Feminism and Visual Culture Reader. New York: Routledge, 2003. Print. Nochlin, Linda, “Why have there been no great women artists?” in Women, Art and Power. New York: Harper and Row, 1988. Print. Ressler R. Susan. Women Artists of the American West. New York: McFarland, 2003. Print. Read More