25 Women Artists to Know

March is Women’s History month and I have seen several museums via social media ask people to name five women artists.  Unfortunately most people cannot name five women artists, so I have compiled a list of 25 women artists for you to become familiar with from several different eras. 


I have specifically chosen to focus on the 16th through early 20th century as people tend to be less familiar with artists from that period and more familiar with modern and contemporary artists. 


Let's look at five women artists each from the Renaissance, Baroque, 18th Century, 19th Century in America and also in Europe and the early 20th Century.



First let’s look at the work of five Renaissance women artists from the 16th century-




Catarina van Hemessen (1528-1565), she was a Flemish Renaissance painter who worked in Antwerp and Spain.  Catarina painted primarily portraits though she also painted some religious paintings.





Portrait of a Lady, Catarina van Hemessen, c. 1551. Bowes Museum, Durham.

 



Levina Teerlinc (c. 1510-157), was a Flemish Renaissance miniaturist who worked in England.

Portrait of Elizabeth I, Levina Teerlinc, c. 1565

Sofonisba Anguissola (c. 1532-1625), was an Italian Renaissance painter who worked in Spain, she was very well known in her own lifetime and produced dozens of works.  While in Spain she worked for the Royal family.
 

Family Portrait, Minerva, Amilcare and Asdrubale, Sofonisba Anguissola, c.1559

Lavinia Fontana (1552-1614), was also an Italian Renaissance painter.  She was from Bologna, she also worked in Rome later in her life.  She was also very well known in her lifetime and fully supported her large family through her painting.

Portrait of a Lady with a Lap Dog, Lavinia Fontana

Marietta Robusti (1560-1590), was a Venetian Renaissance painter and daughter of Tintoretto.  Unfortunately she died quite young and only a few paintings are confirmed as being by her since she was active in her father's workshop.


Next let's look at the work of 5 women artists from the 17^th century Baroque period.




Artemesia Gentileschi (1593 – c. 1656), was an Italian painter who worked in Rome, Florence, Naples and England.  She was the daughter of a painter, Orazio Gentileschi, who she trained with.  Artemesia is perhaps the most widely known female painter from the Early Modern era.  Her own style was influenced by Caravaggio who also worked in Rome and Naples.

Judith and her Maidservant, Artemesia Gentileschi, 1625- Detroit Institute of Arts

Clara Peeters (active from 1607-1621), was Flemish Still-life painter, little is known about her personal life including her exact dates of birth and death.  However during her life time she painted dozens of extremely realistic still-lives.

Still Life with Cheeses, Almonds and Pretzels, Clara Peeters, c. 1615, Mauritshuis

Giovanna Garzoni (1600-1670), was an Italian miniaturist and still-life painter who worked for the Medici.

Plate with White Beans, Giovanna Garzoni, ca. 1650–1662. Galleria Palatina, Florence

Judith Leyster (1609-1660), was a Dutch painter of genre scenes.

The Proposition, Judith Leyster, 1631

Mary Beale (1633-1699), well known English portrait painter who created many works in her lifetime.

Self-Portrait, Mary Beale, circa 1675-80

During the 18^th century women artists started getting more opportunities to practice art, here are five 18^thcentury artists.

Rachel Ruysch (1664-1750), she was Dutch still-life painter who worked in the late Baroque.  She was known for her dramatic and exquisite paintings of flowers.

Vase with Flowers, Rachel Ruysch, 1700, Mauritshuis

Rosalba Carriera (1675-1757), was an internationally known Venetian pastel portraitist.  She was an early user of the new pastel medium and created a huge body of work during her career.

Cardinal Melchior de Polignac, Rosalba Carriera, Accademia, Venice

Angelica Kauffmann (1741-1807), was Swiss Neoclassical painter who lived and worked in England.  She was a founding member of the Royal Academy of Arts in London.

Self-Portrait as the Muse of Painting, Angelica Kauffmann, 1787

Anne Vallayer-Coster (1744-1818), was a French still-life painter who studied with Chardin.

Attributes of Music, Anne Vallayer-Coster

Élisabeth-Louise Vigée-Lebrun (1755-1842), was a French portrait painter.  She was very well known in her life and created hundreds of portraits.  She worked for the French Royal family and fled France after the Revolution.  She then lived in Italy, Russia, Austria and Germany before returning to France.  She had a very long career as an artist.

Marie Antoinette and her Children,Élisabeth-Louise Vigée-Lebrun, 1787, Palace of Versailles

In the 19^th century, the amount of women artists grew even more, here are five American women artists-

Mary Cassatt (1844-1926), was from Philadelphia, she was an Impressionist painter who worked in Paris.  She painted alongside Degas and is perhaps one of the most famous women painters from the 19th century.

The Bath, Mary Cassatt, 1891-92

Edmonia Lewis (c. 1844-1907), from Ohio, was a Neoclassical Sculptor.  Lewis was also the first woman of African-American and Native American heritage to be an internationally renowned artist .  She moved to Rome where she worked and lived for most of her life.

Hiawatha, Edmonia Lewis, marble,1868, MET, NYC

Jennie Augusta Brownscombe (1850-1936), came from Pennsylvania, she was a popular painter of realistic genre scenes.

The Homecoming, Jennie Augusta Brownscombe, 1885

Cecilia Beaux (1855-1942), from Philadelphia, was a painter famed for her portraits.  She was well known in her life both in Paris where she lived for a time and in America.

Sita and Sarita, Cecelia Beaux, 1893-94, Musee D’Orsay

Violet Oakley (1874-1961), was a painter and illustrator from New Jersey.  Oakley was the first American woman to receive a public mural commission which was for the Pennsylvania State Capitol.

Penn meets the Quaker, Violet Oakley, 1903, mural from the Pennsylvania State Capitol

 

In addition to all the women artists coming from America let's look at European women artists from the 19^thcentury.

Julia Margaret Cameron (1815 - 1879) was a British photographer who was born in India and spent much of her early life there.  When she turned 48 she received a camera as a birthday present and she began to experiment with artistic photographic portraits.  Cameron made dozens of these portraits during the decade she worked as a photographer.  She was one of the first artists to use the relatively newly invented camera to create art.

Portrait of Julia Jackson,Julia Margaret Cameron,1867, Albumen silver print photograph

Rosa Bonheur (1822-1899), was a very successful French painter who specialized in painting animals.  She had created several large scale works such as the painting below and also her famous work, The Horse Fair. Bonheur was well known and highly thought of in her lifetime.

Ploughing in the Nivernais, Rosa Bonheur, 1849, Musee D’Orsay

Berthe Morisot (1841-1895), was a French Impressionist painter who exhibited with many of the well known painters of this movement.  She specialized in portraits and in outdoor scenes, she was also the sister-in-law of Manet and was a model in a few of his paintings.  Morisot painted many works in her painting career.

The Pink Dress (Albertie-Marguerite Carré, later Madame Ferdinand-Henri Himmes, 1854–1935), Berthe Morisot, 1870, MET, NYC

Marie Spartali Stillman (1844-1927), was a British painter of Greek descent who was part of the Pre-Raphaelite movement.

Love’s Messenger, Marie Spartali Stillman, 1885

Anna Ancher (1859-1935), was a Danish painter who was part of the well known Skagen group.

Sunlight in the Blue Room, Anna Ancher, 1891

We'll now end with five women artists who were all creating work in the early 20^th century-

Hilma af Klint (1862–1944) was a Swedish painter, she was the first to work in a non-representational style though she asked that those works not be publically exhibited until after her death.



Svanen (The Swan), No. 17, Group IX, Series SUW, Hilma af Klint, 1914-1915

Georgia O'Keeffe (1887 –1986) was an American painter who was very prolific and well known throughout her long life and career.  She spent much of her life living in the Southwest and has become very well known for her close ups of flowers.

Red Canna, Georgia O'Keeffe, 1919, High Museum of Art, Atlanta

Augusta Savage (1892 –1962) was an African American sculptor who was working in a figurative and realist tradition.  She was part of the Harlem Renaissance movement.  Originally from Florida she later lived in New York and for a time she studied sculpture at the Cooper Union school in New York City and also in Paris.  While in New York she worked as a laundress to earn money.  However later her talent as a sculptor was recognized.

Augusta Savage posing with her sculpture Realization, created as part of the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project c-1938

Dorothea Lange (1895 –1965) was an American photographer and photojournalist.  She documented the hardship of the Great Depression while working for the Farm Security Administration (FSA).  The photograph called Migrant Mother, shown below is one of the most iconic images of the Depression.

Migrant Mother, (Florence Owens Thompson, and her family), Dorothea Lange, c. 1936

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) was a Mexican painter and one of the most famous 20th century women artists.  She painted many portraits and self-portraits in a very unique style that was similar to Surrealism or Magical Realism with many references to Mexican history and culture.  Kahlo has continued to be an influential figure in the 21st century.  She had a long relationship with the mural painter Diego Rivera (they were married twice).

Frida Kahlo, Guillermo Kahlo, (gelatin silver print), 1932

Note- Kahlo’s own paintings are not yet in the public domain.

The women artists in this post are only the tip of the iceberg as far as women in the arts go, but this post should hopefully give readers an overview of some of the most talented and influential women in the arts from the 16th through early 20th centuries.  Now you will easily be able to name five women artists and hopefully more.