Women, Art, and Society

Women, Art, and Society

Whitney Chadwick. 243 illustrations, 50 in color

The place of women in the history of Western art – as the

,prodcers of major paintings, sculptures and craft items

and as the sbjects of the work of others – remains

controversial. In this brilliant study, Whitney Chadwick

re-frames and re-presents the issues relating to the

conditions under which women have worked as artists

from the Middle Ages to the present. Drawing on twenty

,years of research by feminist scholars and art historians

Professor Chadwick identifies the aesthetics and ideology

that have shaped women's relationships to the visual arts

and to art history, exploring the way that ideas about

.representation intersect with notions about femininity

Applying art historical methodology – but also

challenging its assumptions in the light of critical feminist

,discourse – the author provides an accessible

comprehensive and inspored look at ten centuries of

,women's involvement in the fine arts. "A well written,

accessible book that can also serve as a valuable tool for further

research." (San Francisco Chronicle) "A compact, valuable

feminist history." (Publishers Weekly)

Thames and Hudson