Women have made tremendous contributions to the world of art over the centuries, but their names in history are not nearly as well known as those of Monet, Picasso and other famous male artists. The Long Beach Museum of Art in Long Beach, California, has one of the largest collections of works by women in the nation—almost 25 percent of its inventory. The average American museum devotes only six percent of its collection to female artists.
Several prestigious museums across the United States are currently featuring the works of women in their 2010 exhibits, providing wonderful opportunities for the art enthusiast to see both contemporary and historical art created by women.
The Long Beach Museum of Art is ending its 60thanniversary celebration with A Light in the Shadow—Decades of Art by Women. The exhibit will feature 60 works of art by women from the museum’s permanent collection. The exhibit will run through January 2, 2011.
The Museum of Modern Art in New York City ran its first women-artists-only exhibit in 1995 when a female photographer was in charge of an “Artist’s Choice” series. The demographic of the museum has changed dramatically since then. The MoMA is currently running two exhibitions featuring female artists—one, through March 21, 2011, titled Pictures by Women: A History of Modern Photography and Mind and Matter: Alternative Abstractions, 1940 to Now, which runs through August 16, 2010.
The Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia, will be exhibiting Women of Chrysler: A 400-Year Celebration of the Arts through July 18, 2010. Admission to this show—featuring paintings, sculptures, photographs, silver works and more—is free.
You can go to the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C., anytime to see more than 3,000 works of art by women in its permanent collection. This summer NMWA is featuring several female artists, with works ranging from those of contemporary artists to the engravings of a fifteenth century French woman. The NMWA is the only museum in the world that shows the work of female artists exclusively.
Lee Bontecou. Welded steel, porcelain, wire mesh, canvas, wire, and grommets. 2010 Lee Bontecou. Currently on display at the MoMA.