Women and Beads

Beads have been significant in almost every culture and they have been worn as talismans and amulets to protect the wearer or to bring good fortune and wisdom. In the past beads have also been used as currency. Today beads are still used as amulets to bring wisdom and good luck and as talismans to protect the wearer from ill fate.

The word bead means to pray (bidden) or prayer (bede) and is an Anglo Saxon word. Prayer beads are known worldwide and are used to keep track of the sequence and number of prayers being recited. Worry beads are also common around the world and are used to assist in making decisions and keeping the hands busy during times of uncertainty.

Women from around the world have been crafting beads for centuries and for some cultures beads have been used as a form of communication by utilizing specific colors and shapes to send messages. The Zulu women of Africa have been practicing this form of communication for eons.

In our contemporary times most of the traditional symbols used in beadwork are predominately made for sale rather than personal use. Traditional techniques and designs are still being used in bead craft, but many women throughout the world make beads as a means for survival to support themselves and their families.

Wearing beads is a wonderful way of celebrating yourself or honoring a rite of passage into womanhood, motherhood, or cronehood. Beads can also be worn to acknowledge other life-transforming experiences and for their beauty alone.

 To see a Kirra Multi Row Jace Bracelet click on image:

 Kirra Multi Row Jace Bracelet - Brown X No Size

Sculptress

Sculpture is three-dimensional art created by shaping and/or combining materials such as: clay, metal, glass, stone, wood, plastic, textiles, polymers and found items. The term sculpture has now been extended to works that are comprised of light, text and sound.

For many women sculpture is a valuable form of art because it permits them to discover who they are and reflect on their life’s journey; the triumphs in a woman’s life and struggles a woman faces with her body image, as a woman in the world, and in the workplace, etcetera, etcetera.

Sculpting is one of many art mediums that is multi-sensory and can be very therapeutic for the sculptress and the viewer. Through sculpting a woman can overcome self-hatred and experience empowerment through acceptance and self-love.

To see creating with polymer clay click on image:

  Creating with Polymer Clay Bk & Kit

The Value of Women Artists

Why is it that most women artists do not receive the same pay and are not provided with the same opportunities and recognition as their male counterparts? Women have been creating art since the beginning of time just as men have and the feminist art movement created more opportunities not just for women, but also for men with regards to new and different art mediums.

What is it in our global culture that indoctrinates men and women to believe female artists are not entitled to the same dignity as male artists? In general women are not valued and rewarded for their vital contributions to society, so how can women be held in the same esteem as men?

Maybe the first step is to examine why society is not questioned regarding our value. There are more women in the world, more women in the workplace and more women who are head of their household. How do women arrive at a balanced partnership with men in our society, where women are valued equally as men?

There are more female artists than men who create art from countless mediums and yet most art created by women receives little acknowledgement if any. With this said, I would like to recognize a few of my women artist friends now.

Ruth Barrett who is an incredible musician, Falcon River who is a remarkable artist of many talents, Jane E. Ward who is an amazing painter and multimedia artists, Kerry Krittell an astonishing metal smith, Fern Mary Pinecrone who is an unbelievable film artist, Darcelle Foster who is a great wood worker and Pam Stern who is an awesome sculptor.

To see Viva La Charra by Kathy Sosa click on image:

Viva La Charra by Kathy Sosa, 22x28

Women At The Forefront Of The Baroque Era

There were just as many Baroque women artists as there were during the Renaissance period. Most Baroque female artists came from artist families, who were trained in their father’s workshops and worked along side their fathers on commissioned pieces.

Women artist of this period changed the way women were depicted in art. Female artists during the Baroque era were not permitted to train form nude models because all nude models were male, but they were very familiar with the female body. Therefore, they created images of women as conscious beings rather than detached muses.

Still Life emerged as an important genre during the Baroque era and women were at the forefront of this painting trend. Since women could not train from nude models, Still Life was particularly suited to them because they could easily access the materials for still life.

The high point of painting during this era was history painting, particularly large-scale compositions with groups of figures depicting historical or mythical situations. To create such paintings, artists studied casts of antique sculptures and drew from male nudes. Women were limited or had no access to academic learning and as such, there are no large-scale history paintings by women from this period.

Some women made their way, as artists through other genres by creating portraits and other women were innovative in their ability to compensate for their lack of training, by painting allegorical scenes they were able to sell.

Women artists of the late 18^th century had made important strides forward by being accepted into academies and being permitted to showcase their work in exhibitions. Once again, women were being accepted as academic students.

To see a Baroque Art Print Poster click on image:

Baroque I by Ahava 24"x24" Art Print Poster

Renaissance Women Were Artists, Poets, Musicians and Scholars

The rise in women artists during the Renaissance period was due to a major cultural shift. Female artists gained international reputations during this era.

A shift towards humanism, a philosophy affirming dignity for all people, which was central to Renaissance thinking and assisted in raising the status of women. 

 

During the Renaissance there were stories of allegorical cities where independent women lived free from slander of men. Real women artists were included in these stories and some texts led to increased education for women. Popular works stated men and women should be educated in the social arts, which made it acceptable for women to engage in visual, musical and literary arts.

Many female artists depicted themselves in self-portraits not just as painters, but as musicians and scholars, thereby highlighting their well-rounded education.

With the rise of humanism there was a shift from craftsmen to artists. Artists, unlike earlier craftsmen were expected have a viewpoint and be educated in mathematics, ancient art and the human body.

In the late Renaissance the artist’s training began to shift from the master’s workshop to the academy; this began a long struggle for women to continue to have access to education and training as artists until the late 19^th century.

It was essential for an artist’s to study the human body and this required working from male nudes and corpses. Women were usually barred from this training; therefore they were excluded from creating scenes that were required for the large-scale religious compositions, which received the most prestigious commissions.

Usually the few women who experienced small success as artists during the 15^th and 16^th century were nuns or children of painters, which permitted them to gain training from their fathers workshop. 

To see the Seated Woman I art print by Lanie Loreth click on image:

Seated Woman I PREMIUM GRADE Rolled CANVAS Art Print Lanie Loreth 12x12

Medieval Period Documented Women Artists

Clearly demonstrated examples of women at work in the arts during the medieval period are documented in the manuscript illuminations, embroideries, jewelry, carved capitals, and other forms of art created during this historical period. Women also worked as brewers, butchers, wool merchants and ironmongers (metal merchants). 

Female artist during this era were from a small subset of society, whose status permitted them freedom from more strenuous types of work. These women artists were often from two literate classes, either wealthy aristocrats or nuns. Nuns often created embroideries and textiles.

Women have been creating jewelry from seashells, stones, found items, semi-precious stones, precious stones, metals and other materials for more than 100,000 years.

Isn’t interesting women have been creating art since the beginning of time just as men have and yet most female artist are not acknowledged as professional artists. Why is this???

To see a Norma Jean design click on image: 

Festive Bead Necklace with Orange Quartz Diamond Shaped Stone

Women in Art

Women have been involved in creating art since the beginning of time despite the difficulties experienced in receiving training, trading their work and gaining recognition.

The best period for women artists was during the Middle Ages. It was later introduction of drawing from life models that made it harder for women to obtain specialized training, which became a requirement to be known as a professional artist due to reasons of decorum.

During the latter part of the twentieth century, historians have made an effort to rediscover the artistic accomplishments of women and give female artists their due place in narrative of art history.

There are no records of who the artists of the prehistoric eras were, but studies of many early ethnographers and cultural anthropologists show that women were often the principal artisans in the cultures considered as Neolithic and Paleolithic, creating pottery, textiles, cave paintings, baskets, jewelry and music. Collaboration on large projects by women during these eras was common.

To see a Minoan Snake Goddess click on image:

Minoan Snake Goddess Statue from Knossos Palace