Great Women Artists: from Lavinia Fontana to Barbara Hepworth

7 week course: 29th May - 17th July 2020

In 2019 a portrait by Elisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun (1755-1842) set a record for any female Old Master when it was sold at Sotheby’s for $6.1m. In the same year the Prado Museum in Madrid dedicated an exceptional and highly acclaimed exhibition to the 16th-century Italian artists Sofonisba Anguissola and Lavinia Fontana, and this year the National Gallery and Royal Academy celebrate the work of Artemisia Gentileschi and Angelica Kauffman in two major monographic exhibitions.

These are promising and inspiring steps towards the revival and recovery of the reputations of many great female artists who achieved fame and renown amongst their contemporaries, but whose lives became obscured over time and whose work was often attributed to their male counterparts, a disturbingly common phenomenon. There is still much to be done to redress the balance: in 2018 Sotheby’s sold just 14 works by female Old Masters, compared to 1100 male artists. The Prado’s exhibition was only the second in its entire history dedicated to a female painter. And the National Gallery’s collection of works by female artists represents just 0.5% of its total holdings. However, thanks to the efforts of a number of scholars and to many high-profile institutions attempting to redress gender disparity in their collections, less familiar names such as Sofonisba Anguissola and Clara Peeters are again rising to the fore. We will learn about many of them in our series of lectures.

Our new course looks at the fascinating and complex role that women have played as painters, draftsmen, photographers and sculptors from 1500 to the modern day. How were women such as Artemisia Gentileschi able to make a living in an essentially male-dominated industry, and why have they fallen into obscurity today? We then explore later centuries when major figures under discussion include Elizabeth Louise Vigée le Brun, Marietta Robusti, Rosalba Carriera,  Adélaïde Labille-Guiard, Berthe Morisot, Gwen John, Julia Margaret Cameron and Frida Kahlo. There will also be a special guest lecture celebrating the life and work of Barbara Hepworth.

Art History in Focus’s courses are characterised by a relaxed and entertaining learning environment, which often allows for lively discussion. Lectures last two hours with a break for refreshments, and the talks are illustrated by high quality digital images. A guest lecture by eminent author and art historian Dr Richard Stemp is included.

Lectures are on Friday mornings and run from 11.15-1.15; doors open at 11.00

Please note, July 17th will be an afternoon session from 2.30-4.30. There is no lecture on June 19th.

 

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