[Who does she think she is?] is a documentary by the same filmmaker who did 'Born in Brothels.' The subject here is women artists, from many medias, and how their work impacted their marriages, child rearing and creative output. I thought it was an interesting look at quite a variety of women and the price they paid for what they felt it crucial to do as creative women.
I had not realized how few women artists actually get shows in museums or are able to make a living from their art. The ratio is like 10 women (at the best) to over 100 men for having their work in museums. Is it possible that's because women aren't as good? Unlikely. In many cases, with top museums, the ratios are even less for work in their collections. Why would this be?
Men complain every time women bring these things up as though this is all about nature for men to be so far in the front; and women are being bitches to even mention it. The evils of feminism was painted as hatred of men instead of looking for fairness or even for understanding why something is as it is. Can we really blame men for the way it is or do women share in the blame by both their acceptance and possibly even encouragement of the status quo?
It is not that a woman cannot have a job. Certainly they can and most women at least in America must work-- married or not. The problem comes when a woman is in a career that doesn't stop after eight hours. Art is one of those, and it is even more complicated if the work is little rewarded financially. You receive money for something, and it has value. No money equal no value in the eyes of many people.
Some of the husbands in this film were proud of what their wives did; but others were threatened by what it demanded and it led to failed marriages. These were all women who had decided to have children. I think it is particularly difficult for women who want to be in a relationship and have children while also earning respect and a living in the arts where they have to fight harder to gain recognition than a male would have to do.
The documentary is on Netflix, and I do recommend it for the art it displays but also the stories of these women and the price they have paid in terms of broken marriages and sometimes children who don't have as much of mom as they might wish. It is about real people and not the artists on the top of the heap like a Georgia O'Keeffe but those who are struggling in the ranks.
13 comments:
Julie said, I've seen it. The Mormon mother and artist was the most interesting interview to me. There is a preview of the movie at whodoesshethinkssheis.net
I am putting this on my Netflix Queue as soon as I leave here. This sounds like a wonderful, all-be-it, discouraging Documentary. As an artist myself, I would say The "ART WORLD" is worse than Show Business, which is pretty bad in terms of everyone--man or woman-- but really brutal for women....The Art World seemingly ignores women, and it sounds like this documentary really shows---through the eyes of women artists---what an uphill battle it all is.
Thanks Soooo much Rain, for the Heads-Up!
Well in a way it was encouraging for the strength of the women, their dedication to their art. Seeing what they were creating and their inner vision through their lives, that was very rewarding. It's hard to see why it is that way for women artists but often even women do it to each other.
King5.com has an article: Cyberbullying Growing Among Adult Women. The author of Mean Girls Grow Up, Dr. Cheryl Dellasega said, "I hear about adult women retaliating a lot more and in really vicious ways to the point where sites get shut down and people drop off sites". I've seen this behavior on arts and crafts blogs.
Women can and do make it alone as artists without moral, emotional or financial support but it sure helps to have someone in your corner to root for you whether it is a spouse, family or on-line friends.
Hope you include more blog posts about women artists. -- Julie
hi Julie. I would be happy to do that if people read such articles, let me know and I'll check them out. I suspect I miss a lot of good ones.
I am going to watch another tonight which this time is a foreign film-- Artemisia based on actual events, the struggles of a woman artist in the 17th century. This problem of women being penalized for being artists, their work taken from them or even calling them insane or witches is certainly not new to our culture. We've come a long way but it just seems wrong that work of any sort that is in the arts is not judged for being what it is and instead is political or part of networking.
And Naomi, with your depth of involvement in both theater arts as well as fine arts, you have a strong voice to contribute to this conversation from the inside and actual experience
I will incidentally be writing a lot more about the creative process where it comes to writing in my new blog-- Romance with an Edge which currently is in the blog list alongside here, but which I hope will eventually be a button below my profile if I can figure out how to make a link there look like more than a URL. I want it to link from here to there where any books I am ePublishing will have links to the sources to buy.
I will put a blog up here when we actually get the first book out there. It's close but there are so many complications which I might write more about here or there.
We've also had a busy month with marketing livestock which always makes this a difficult season not to mention the things that come up unexpectedly with a small ranch operation.
There are two other movies about women artists that I enjoyed. Frida which is about Frida Kahlo, the Mexican artist. I've read Hayden Herrera's book about Kahlo's life and work, Frida Kahlo, The Paintings. And, I enjoyed watching the movie Camille Claudel, about the young female sculptor who worked with Auguste Rodin.
Wikipedia can be researched for both artists. I will appreciate Naomi's input about the art and entertainment industry especially in relationship to women artists. She has a great blog, too!
Rain, I used to visit your painting blog. Is it down now? -- Julie
I have seen those and watched quite a few documentaries on artists. I also have a lot of books on Kahlo and O'Keeffe as I admired both. I should do a blog on the movies I have liked enough to buy that are on the subject of the arts. I include in that movies where cooking is shown as an art form as I totally believe it can be. I'll go looking for the ones I have particularly enjoyed enough to want to own.
Oh and my art site should still be there and working. I haven't done much with it this summer as it's all been about writing or cover art for the books. I did though put up a link there to two of my experimental slideshows with music and the covers-- although the covers keep being updated as I think that isn't working right or doesn't match the characters as well as I'd like
http://rainsgallery.blogspot.com/
Rain, I certainly would like to see you write a blog with reviews about art and cooking movies.
Best wishes on your writing projects. I'm learning a lot from those posts about writing, too.
Julie
thanks for the recommendation on the film. I'll watch it on Netflix!
I'll look into this film, Rain. Thanks for mentioning it.
It's just incredible that after nearly forty years----seventy, considering the suffragette movement that this ridiculous argument of merit based on biological sexuality is still being waged. Except for feminist treatises written by both sexes the old regressive forces of male dominance still taint the narrative. The creative process, which naturally derives from our experiences transcends in its finest moments the limitations of even our sexual natures.
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