The issue of modernity, constructed by the social contexts of men and women in the late 19th century, translated into the imagery of art produced by Impressionists. Griselda Pollock's Modernity and the Spaces of Femininity discusses the social construction of art society that restricted representation of modernity as a male privilege. The subject matter and portrayal of the female artist, therefore, was inhibited and compromised by the standards of a patriarchal society. Apart from gender, issues of social class separated the areas inhabited by women. Pollock alludes to the Impressionist artists, Mary Cassatt and Berthe Morisot, to deduce the differences in space that women were limited to compared to that of their male colleagues and the influence …show more content…
The arrangement of different subjects and the perspective in which the painting has been made, forces the viewer to assume the position of the depicted person. In Gonzalès' painting, for instance, the man and woman are occupying the same space, fixed on the same horizontal line, however, there are defining features, particularly that of posture and gesture, that invoke the asymmetry of male and female social roles of the period. The woman is looking directly ahead of her, suggesting that she is entranced with the performance, carefully following the harmonies of the orchestra; the man, on the other hand, is disengaged, paying little attention to the actions on stage. Unlike women, as indicated by Pollock, men were granted freedom in the public realm; they had the right to exact their gaze, postures, and gestures as they pleased. Thus, the man's body language recalls the detachment and dignity of the flâneur, or "impassive stroller," who represents the covetous gaze of modernity. Women, by contrast, were not permitted to intensely observe their surroundings – rather, they were intended to be the objects of the flâneur's gaze themselves. The spatial construction of the image, therefore, provides commentary about the gender roles ingrained in society; the man occupied with his general surroundings, while the woman takes a more contemplative …show more content…
A Box at the Italian Theater is analogous to Renoir's La Loge; the setting for the two paintings is nearly identical, the most conspicuous difference, however, is the presentation of the female protagonists. While Gonzalès' image depicts an attentive woman who is mindful of her own presentation, Renoir illustrates a woman catered for the masculine spectator; a captivating but vulnerable woman, distinguished by an absence of elegance, with unruly hair and an overwhelming striped dress that envelops her presence. Representation in the art of the Impressionists entailed women as subjects of the voyeuristic male gaze, reducing them to nothing more than sexual commodifications. Gonzalès' figure avoids this notion, as she deliberately distances the woman from the foreground and arranges her hair in a tidy cut, asserting that she is not an object for male consumption. Another work to which A Box at the Italian Theater makes a direct allusion to is Manet's painting Olympia. The bouquet set in the lower corner of the box evokes the bouquet offered to the nude courtesan by her maid in Manet's painting. In a sharply contrasted setting that draws attention to the female subjects, it can be hypothesized that Gonzalès sought to compare her bourgeoisie woman with Manet's prositute. Instead
Carol Armstrong begins her essay by pointing out the two main points that come about when discussing A Bar at the Folies-Bergere. These two points are the social context of the painting and its representation of 19th century Paris, and the internal structure of the painting itself with the use of space. She then goes on and addresses what she will be analyzing throughout her essay. She focuses on three main points, the still life of the counter and its commodities, the mirror and its “paintedness”, and the barmaid and her “infra-thin hinge” between the countertop and the mirror.
There, the inmates attended an art class, and created these red plastic flowers, found in Poblet’s art-piece, out of recycled materials. It is known that one is very limited supplies in prison, so Poblet was moved by just how creative the women there were. The inmates were affected in Simplemente Bellas, as Poblet found inspiration in these women. They were her motif in Simplemente Bellas, because they showed such creativity. This is what makes her work so much more appealing to the eye. Simplemente Bellas caught my interest over all the other art pieces throughout the museum. Poblet was moved by the hard-work these women put into producing those red plastic flowers. Poblet uses symbolism here, as the female inmates represent the many flowers in Poblet’s work, while the flowers symbolize beauty, as well as identity and freedom. This was the theme, or idea, that she was trying to portray to her viewers. The face of the women in the art-piece is said to depict one of the inmates Poblet had met during her visit. This gave me a better understanding about Mabel Poblet as a person as well as an artist. She saw those women as more than just captive inmates. If someone can see beyond another’s flaws and mistakes, they must be a very kind-hearted person. It is considered a baroque, as it is an art piece that appeals to our emotions. Understanding the muse behind Simplemente Bellas, has led me to love this work of art even more. It also caused me to be interested to learn more about Mabel Poblet Pujols as an
Contextual Theory: This painting depicts a portrait of life during the late 1800’s. The women’s clothing and hair style represent that era. Gorgeous landscape and a leisurely moment are captured by the artist in this work of
The painting depicts a mother and her four children, who are all leaning on her as she looks down solemnly, her tired, despondent expression suggests she felt trapped in her roles as being a mother and a wife. The woman and her children are clearly the focal point of the artwork as the bright colours used to paint them stand out impeccably against the dull, lifeless colours of the background. This painting appears to be centred around the ideology that women are home-keepers, whose main role is to satisfy and assist her husband while simultaneously minding the children and keeping the home tidy and ready for his return. The social consequences of this artwork could have been that the woman could have been berated for not taking pleasure out of being a mother and raising her children, as a woman should. She could have been made redundant as her husband may have felt as though she is no longer useful if she couldn’t adequately adhere to her roles as a mother and a
For example, Griselda Pollock is another prominent feminist art historian who studied women and social structure in relation to art and what that tells us. In her book Vision and Difference (1988) she reminds the reader that the omission of women in art history was not through forgetfulness, or even mere prejudice, but rather structural sexism that contributed to the perpetuation of the gender hierarchy (p. 1). She does not want to reinforce the patriarchal element of art history and often calls for purging biography and gender from art works to level the playing field. Other writers such as Laura Mulvey, who used psychoanalysis and film studies to explore the concept of the gaze in visual relationships (viewer, subject, artist) and Mary Garrard, who also utilized psychoanalysis and other criticisms to put forth a gender-based
Aristotle once claimed that, “The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.” Artists, such as Louise-Elizabeth Vigée Le Brun and Mary Cassatt, captured not only the way things physically appeared on the outside, but also the emotions that were transpiring on the inside. A part no always visible to the viewer. While both artists, Le Brun and Cassatt, worked within the perimeters of their artistic cultures --the 18th century in which female artists were excluded and the 19th century, in which women were artistically limited-- they were able to capture the loving relationship between mother and child, but in works such as Marie Antoinette and Her Children and Mother Nursing her Child 1898,
Prior to the 20th century, female artists were the minority members of the art world (Montfort). They lacked formal training and therefore were not taken seriously. If they did paint, it was generally assumed they had a relative who was a relatively well known male painter. Women usually worked with still lifes and miniatures which were the “lowest” in the hierarchy of genres, bible scenes, history, and mythological paintings being at the top (Montfort). To be able to paint the more respected genres, one had to have experience studying anatomy and drawing the male nude, both activities considered t...
The flaneur is a man who strolls through the streets with a nonchalant ease and appears to observe the city and its inhabitants. These men can walk through the streets and not be worried that they will be faced with someone who has ill intent aimed towards them. When a woman walks with the gait of a flaneur she has to be careful that she is not perceived as a streetwalker instead for it is only by her gait that a woman can be distinguished from a streetwalker and a woman merely walking the streets. Once Doris becomes the surrogate wife of Ernst she is able to become a flaneuse or a female flaneur. She exercises this social power by walking through the streets without Ernst in order to get groceries. Doris was once thought to be a streetwalker where she was accosted but she was able to defer the unwanted attention by informing t...
Edna seeks occupational freedom in art, but lacks sufficient courage to become a true artist. As Edna awakens to her selfhood and sensuality, she also awakens to art. Originally, Edna “dabbled” with sketching “in an unprofessional way” (Chopin 543). She could only imitate, although poorly (Dyer 89). She attempts to sketch Adèle Ratignolle, but the picture “bore no resemblance” to its subject. After her awakening experience in Grand Isle, Edna begins to view her art as an occupation (Dyer 85). She tells Mademoiselle Reisz that she is “becoming an artist” (Chopin 584). Women traditionally viewed art as a hobby, but to Edna, it was much more important than that. Painting symbolizes Edna’s independence; through art, she breaks free from her society’s mold.
The article Artists Mythologies and Media Genius, Madness and Art History (1980) by Griselda Pollock is a forty page essay where Pollock (1980), argues and explains her views on the crucial question, "how art history works" (Pollock, 1980, p.57). She emphasizes that there should be changes to the practice of art history and uses Van Gogh as a major example in her study. Her thesis is to prove that the meaning behind artworks should not be restricted only to the artist who creates it, but also to realize what kind of economical, financial, social situation the artist may have been in to influence the subject that is used. (Pollock, 1980, pg. 57) She explains her views through this thesis and further develops this idea by engaging in scholarly debates with art historians and researcher, and objecting to how they claim there is a general state of how art is read. She structures her paragraphs in ways that allows her to present different kinds of evidences from a variety sources while using a formal yet persuasive tone of voice to get her point across to the reader.
When first approaching this work, one feels immediately attracted to its sense of wonder and awe. The bright colors used in the sun draws a viewer in, but the astonishment, fascination, and emotion depicted in the expression on the young woman keeps them intrigued in the painting. It reaches out to those who have worked hard in their life and who look forward to a better future. Even a small event such as a song of a lark gives them hope that there will be a better tomorrow, a thought that can be seen though the countenance by this girl. Although just a collection of oils on a canvas, she is someone who reaches out to people and inspires them to appreciate the small things that, even if only for a short moment, can make the road ahead seem brighter.
Throughout this essay it will be discussed how female representations affects society, what has changed, if has changed during the years. Representations of women were a crucial subject of discussion especially in the concepts of the gaze that often refers to women as objects of the active gaze. The gaze establishes relationships of power, representing different codes such as dominance and subjugation, difference and otherness (Sturken and Cartwright 2009: 111).
At this point, a question must be asked: Is Cindy Sherman a feminist artist or not? Does Feminist art theory provide insight into her work? Through observing past writings about the artist as feminist as well as by looking at her more recent work and commentary, I argue that Cindy Sherman is not a feminist artist. The interpretation of her work as feminist was placed on her by art historians and critics rather than what she had intended of her work in the first place and distracts from the works inherent
Christina Rossetti's poem, “In An Artist’s Studio”, explores how men foster a need for control by creating unrealistic expectations for women through their fantasies. Through the use of repetition, contrast of imagery, and symbolism, Rossetti guides us through the gallery inside of an artist’s mind, portraying the fantasies that give him a sense of control over the women he creates.
The roles of women have been dynamic throughout history. Artists during the 19th century frequently noticed the changes in the lives of women during their time. Authors, including Henrik Ibsen, and painters, such as Edgar Degas and Gustave Caillebotte depicted the broad changes in women’s lives due to the beginnings of modernity. In Henrik Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People, Petra represents the modern woman through being independent and free thinking, and the women in the paintings of Edgar Degas and Gustave Caillebotte tell a different story of being defined by their class and gender despite everyone walking along the same streets.