Megan Semulka
Modern Art in London
18 November 2015

How has the representation of women and female identity changed over the course of modern and contemporary art?

Women have always been a common subject of art not only created by male artists, but female artists as well. In the late 1960s, the feminist art movement emerged following the women’s suffrage movement. The art during this era included works that obviously dealt with the female body even if the artists did not fully establish themselves as feminists. On the other hand, there were artists, like Paul Gauguin, who represented women in a different way. He spent some time in Tahiti to change his inspiration for art and discovered different subjects that included young Tahitian women. His pieces were so different from the pieces during the feminist art movement because his art typically did not give a precise purpose or meaning. Feminist art was representing something so powerful that it almost always needed a strict meaning. Another piece of art that almost contradicts the feminist art movement is Olympia by Edouard Manet. Consisting of a nude woman, this painting could suggest the views of women by the artist and even their role in society. Looking at these three different types of art really helps understanding the difference of representation of women over the course of the years. The feminist art movement started in the 1960’s shortly after women gained the right to vote due to the women’s suffrage movement (Feminist art movement). These artists’ purposes did not just have to be representing women in a positive way. In my opinion, this movement represented the power of women and how the suffrage movement gave them that power. One of the most-known pieces of art, during this movement, is The Dinner Party by Judy Chicago. Today, this piece of art is a part of the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art in the Brooklyn Museum. It consists of a large banquet table with thirty-one different table settings. Each of these settings are reserved for famous women from history and mythology (Feminist art movement). The table settings are decorated with beautiful gold chalices and plates to represent the importance of these women. The settings are also unique to each individual woman appropriate to their achievements and views. Underneath the table are 999 tiles consisting of the names of other notable women (Feminist art movement). This piece of art was so important during the movement because its purpose was to re-discover the significant roles of these women. The Dinner Party also re-wrote the past that consisted of only successful men and recognizing that women were also just as important (Feminist art movement). Judy Chicago transformed this type of art of tiling and ceramic from women’s “low status work” to “high-class art” (Feminist art movement). It may look like a simple painting of a banquet table but its message is so powerful. I believe that the subtleness of this piece of art is the reason for it being the most known during the feminist movement. If I were looking at The Dinner Party, I would not think for a second that it had to with feminism and that is why I think it is important that a piece of art like this was created during the feminist movement. Women were and will always be less important than men in any situation. Today, feminism and equality is much better but learning about this made me realize how long it has been an issue and how some women are so passionate about the issue. This painting caused some controversy but does that surprise you? Anytime a piece of art, media, or music is created to represent a strong message of feminism it causes controversy. In 2007, there was an article that featured the writer, Rachel Beckman, visiting the piece along with Judy Chicago. When Chicago asked what she thought about it she stated, “I came clean and told her about my reaction . . . mostly. I told her that the obvious vaginal imagery made me squirm. But I chickened out and didn't tell her that "The Dinner Party" looked like a relic of stereotypical, bras-a-blazin' feminism”(Beckman, 2007). I found it interesting that a woman thought of her piece in this way, so I read further and realized why. The writer included to say that her father had told her a feminist was a “man-hater” when she was eight years old (Beckman, 2007). There are so many different opinions for feminism today and in Rachel Beckman’s situation, her upbringing had an effect on that could possibly keep that opinion the same from that moment until today and the rest of her life. Today, feminism art is definitely still a part of our society. In September of this year, an artist named Sarah Levy created a portrait of Donald Trump using her menstrual blood instead of paint (Stern, 2015). Naming the portrait Whatever, Levy was insulted by sexist comments said by Trump. During the Republican debate, he implied that the moderator Megyn Kelly was PMSing. He stated, “You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her wherever”(Stern, 2015) and this caused not only an outrage for this artist but an inspiration for her. During her next menstrual cycle, she collected her blood and used a tampon and a brush to create the portrait. As unusual as this technique is, its message is powerful and proves a point to Donald Trump. Although it might be a bit biased, I believe that creating something extreme like this had to be done to show how that could insult not just Sarah Levy but all women. In an essay that she wrote, she stated, “I think that an issue like menstrual shame is related to the overall body shame that many girls and women in our society are raised to feel as a matter of course”(Stern, 2015). It is interesting how different this piece of art is compared to The Dinner Party. The differences could suggest that art today could be more extreme, especially feminist art. Although this is pretty different from Judy Chicago’s The Dinner Party, I believe that it speaks the same message for women regarding respect and importance. Another artist that has caused controversy for women is Paul Gauguin. Being apart of the post-impression era, Gauguin commonly featured naked Tahitian women during his time living in Tahiti. He eventually got involved with and impregnated a thirteen-year-old girl there and used her as his model (Art and Architecture). Gauguin’s ways of life were extremely controversial but what he did put him in the right path of his success. In his painting Nevermore, a nude woman is lying on her side with an interesting look on her face. There are two people in the background of the painting so the look on her face could possibly be suggesting that she knows that they are present but does not know why they are. It is almost a look of the “loss of innocence” (Art and Architecture). On the other hand, these figures could be a part of her imagination. The background of the painting also includes a bird. It is known that this bird is being related to The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe. In the poem, a raven that utters only one word, Nevermore, menaces the author(Art and Architecture). Although the title has no specific meaning, this connection gives it enough importance for the viewer to understand. During Gauguin’s time in Tahiti, he was extremely disappointed. He expected the island to be primitive and cut off from other parts of the world but he was ashamed when he found out it was hindered and corrupted like most parts of the world (Art and Architecture). Gauguin wanted to experience the poverty, art, and lifestyles of Tahiti away from the traditions of his western world (Art and Architecture). He even abandoned his wife and children to attempt the achievement of some sort of culture shock. Therefore, it was believed that Nevermore was created to represent his disappointment with the island and his views of it. Even though he did not enjoy Tahiti, I think it is important that he created a painting to commemorate his time there. On the other hand, Gauguin was commonly known for creating art that did not represent the “external reality” and instead his “inner vision”(Art and Architecture). Therefore, the purpose of this painting could be quite confusing. In my opinion, this painting could be representing reality, but also denying it. Comparing this back to The Dinner Party shows how much diversity is in art. They both contain representations of women but in such different ways. Paul Gauguin represents this Tahitian woman in a way that is a bit confusing and misleading while Judy Chicago represents the numerous women in a way that is quite understandable. I believe this may have to do with Chicago representing feminism and Gauguin obviously not representing anything for women. And these diverse elements of art help me analyze and understand the different techniques artists use to express their views on a certain topic or even just their emotions. Looking at Nevermore with no information on the background could easily make it look like the woman is simply just representing sex. However, knowing Gauguin’s unique methods of representing his art and also being aware of his time in Tahiti could potentially help change those views instantly. As you can see, the subject of women in art is so diverse from looking at just three different pieces. Edouard Manet’s piece named Olympia can slightly compare with Gauguin’s Nevermore due to its subject matter of a naked woman lying on her side. However, there are some obvious differences. The most important difference is that the woman in Olympia is a prostitute. She is also looking straight at you, which, in my opinion, shows that she is in control. In this painting, Manet references pieces such as Titian’s Venus of Irbino, Goya’s Maja desnuda, and the theme of the odalisque with her black slave (Musée D’Orsay). Compared to Titian’s piece, both women are lying nude with their hand covering their genitals. Conversely, the prostitute’s posture is more casual instead of sensual. Her posture goes along with the look on her face basically saying, “Yes I am a prostitute and I am not afraid to say it.” Even though the look on her face could be puzzling and mysterious, I believe Manet created her look to suggest she was scandalous. Another yet less important difference is the animal modification. Titian includes a dog and Manet includes a cat. I am not really sure of the importance but I do know that a dog typically symbolizes fidelity and a cat symbolizes prostitution (Mthyoloke). Also, the woman’s look is very similar to the look in the woman represented in Goya’s Maja desnuda. Manet also kept the woman’s shoes on that could also suggest the fact that she is a prostitute. Depicting women this way was not common during this time and actually caused controversy. Women were only supposed to be represented through historical, mythical, or biblical themes (Mthyoloke). Also, French men were pretty frequent with prostitutes but did not want to be confronted with one in an art gallery. The black slave is handing her flowers, which is most likely a gift from one of her many lovers (Mtholyoke). The look on her face could also suggest that this is not the first occurrence with a gift of flowers (Mthyoloke). This type of action was also not generally portrayed in art. As you can see, Manet contained a few different elements of art that were not very accepted during his era. The way he used such opposite colors for the subject and the background draws all of your attention to the woman (Mthyoloke). The black slave also blends in with the background that could suggest a small element of racism. Comparing this to Gauguin’s Nevermore shows how different artists like to represent not only women, but also just any typical subject. Manet really goes for it in Olympia and contains a very controversial subject of a prostitute. When I really thought about why he used this subject, it made me realize that maybe he just wanted to be different from the typical themes and artists of his era. On the other hand, I think Gauguin used his unfortunate experience in Tahiti the reason for his confusing painting. He expected the island to be a huge lifestyle change but obviously did not receive that so he depicted his experience through this painting. Furthermore, the confused and unamused look on the woman could be representing his outlook on his whole encounter with Tahiti. Regarding both of these complex pieces, I think it is important to be aware of the connections and experiences to fully understand their meanings. Looking back at all of these pieces of art, it truly shows how different women can be identified and depicted through art. The everyday object Judy Chicago used in The Dinner Party is so different from the paintings by Paul Gauguin and Edouard Manet. I think it is really important to realize that Chicago was representing women in a positive way and did not include one body part of a woman. Gauguin and Manet used nude women so they obviously were not trying to positively promote women. And the more obvious fact is that Judy Chicago is a woman and the two other artists are men. After analyzing the pieces and tying in the obvious facts, the change of women in art is obviously displayed. I believe that connecting the artists’ experiences and views during their time extremely helped me in understanding each piece of art fully.

WORKS CITED
"A&A | Gauguin: Samuel Courtauld's Alter Ego?: Part 2: Suggestion Rather than Description." A&A | Gauguin: Samuel Courtauld's Alter Ego?: Part 2: Suggestion Rather than Description. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2015. http://www.artandarchitecture.org.uk/stories/cumming_gauguin/cumming_gauguin02.html

Stern, Carly. "Artist Uses Her Menstrual Blood and a Tampon to Paint a Portrait of Donald Trump in Protest at the Presidential Candidate's 'outrageous' and 'sexist' Comments." Mail Online. Associated Newspapers, 16 Sept. 2015. Web. 24 Nov. 2015. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3236927/Artist-fires-presidential-candidate-Donald-Trump-s-outrageous-sexist-comments-painting-portrait-using-menstrual-blood-tampon.html

Beckman, Rachel. "Her Table Is Ready." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 22 Apr. 2007. Web. 24 Nov. 2015. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/20/AR2007042000419.html

"Feminist Art Movement, Artists and Major Works." The Art Story. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2015. http://www.theartstory.org/movement-feminist-art.htm#important_art_header

"Manet: Olympia." Manet: Olympia. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2015. https://www.mtholyoke.edu/courses/rschwart/hist255-s01/courtesans/Manet-olympia.htm

"Edouard Manet Olympia." Musée D'Orsay:. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2015. http://www.musee-orsay.fr/en/collections/works-in-focus/search/commentaire_id/olympia-7087.html