The past decade has seen increased recognition of the role women artists have played in art history, but often this is identified through gaps in the dominant narrative – narratives shaped by white men who have become gatekeepers and taste-makers.
In her talk at the ‘Faith, Emotion and The Body in the Baroque’ Symposium held at Hamilton Gallery in conjunction with the Emerging From Darkness: Faith, Emotion and The Body in the Baroque exhibition in December, Dr Esther Theiler said that men in the 16th and 17th centuries long ‘neglected the ambition, fortitude and aptitude that was displayed by some women of the period in all areas of the arts and sciences’.