Women in the Picture: What Culture Does with Female Bodies
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- Create Date：2022-01-12 09:51:24
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Catherine McCormack
- ISBN：0393542084
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Summary
Venus， maiden， wife， mother， monster—women have been bound so long by these restrictive roles， codified by patriarchal culture， that we scarcely see them。 Catherine McCormack illuminates the assumptions behind these stereotypes whether writ large or subtly hidden。 She ranges through Western art—think Titian， Botticelli， and Millais—and the image-saturated world of fashion photographs， advertisements， and social media， and boldly counters these depictions by turning to the work of women artists like Morisot， Ringgold， Lacy， and Walker， who offer alternative images for exploring women’s identity， sexuality， race， and power in more complex ways。
Reviews
Melissa
，
This covered Venus （who I will never look at the same again）， Mothers， Maidens， and Monstrous Women。A few takeaways。。。the author asked "Are women deriving pleasure from nude female paintings & are we viewing them at our own expense？ As a woman is Venus really our standard of beauty or something that has been projected on us by the patriarchy？ Venus is depicted as 'motherless' and was formed by the severed genitals of her father。 Goddess of love and beauty？ Give me a break。 Who tells the story g This covered Venus （who I will never look at the same again）， Mothers， Maidens， and Monstrous Women。A few takeaways。。。the author asked "Are women deriving pleasure from nude female paintings & are we viewing them at our own expense？ As a woman is Venus really our standard of beauty or something that has been projected on us by the patriarchy？ Venus is depicted as 'motherless' and was formed by the severed genitals of her father。 Goddess of love and beauty？ Give me a break。 Who tells the story gets to decide who the monster is。 Less than 10% of artists at The Met are female。When most pictures hung in art galleries are by men， for men - what is the story women get to tell？This book gave me a great appreciation for Sirani， Gentileschi & the other female artists who are being acknowledged in today's art world & will make me question the real story behind women in paintings。 。。。more
kate
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This book makes me wish I were part of an art history book club。 There is so much to discuss with the themes the author has presented。
Mark
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LJ 146 （12）， December 2021 Best Books 2021
Sara
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One of my favorites。 Very good！
Lynn
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Each Chapter a Run On Sentence This a long winded book about women depicted in art throughout history。 It’s like one big long run on sentence in each chapter。 Long winded ideas about women depicted as virgins or rape victims and regarded as below males。 Needed editing
Devann
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A very informative book although definitely a lot of heavy subject matter and a bit hard to get through at times。 I really liked how she looked at a broad range of different kinds of art ranging from classic paintings to present things like photography and advertisements and always took into account whether the women were being represented by men or by other women。 Unsurprisingly， there is a lot of discussion of rape in this book - both in the art that's being talked about and in real women's li A very informative book although definitely a lot of heavy subject matter and a bit hard to get through at times。 I really liked how she looked at a broad range of different kinds of art ranging from classic paintings to present things like photography and advertisements and always took into account whether the women were being represented by men or by other women。 Unsurprisingly， there is a lot of discussion of rape in this book - both in the art that's being talked about and in real women's lives - so definitely be prepared for that if you're going to pick this up but I think it's an excellent read if you're in the right headspace。 。。。more
Svenja
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Phenomenal， clever， insightful
Jeremy
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Fantastic journey through art history through the eyes of women。 I knew some of the mythological stories or historical facts， but not the connection to real life struggle and strife。 I felt many times through this book that I stepped back， reread a paragraph， and had to take a moment to realize the power of what women have been through throughout history。 Will be recommending to every person I can。
Chelsea Stone
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Obsessed。 Please read so we may discuss。
Julia Anne
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This was an amazing read。 It truly made me rethink the way that I view myself as a woman， and clearly explains the basis for the Eurocentric misogyny that pervades western society。 Highly recommend！
Kate
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This book was a revelation。 Catherine McCormack illuminates the pervasive archetypes that women are portrayed in art and social media。 Also discussing “gazes and what it means to see and been seen， and the privilege and power behind who is allowed to look”。I loved every single page。
Hannah
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Eye-opening and at times confronting to read about the extreme misogyny in the classic art of the past and how it continues to be visible today in its original form hanging in galleries & displayed in public spaces （with seemingly little or no analysis of the misogyny portrayed） but also reflected in modern images on Instagram， and in advertising， music clips etc。And fascinating to discover the bold and original work of women artists who have critiqued the old images and offer alternative ways o Eye-opening and at times confronting to read about the extreme misogyny in the classic art of the past and how it continues to be visible today in its original form hanging in galleries & displayed in public spaces （with seemingly little or no analysis of the misogyny portrayed） but also reflected in modern images on Instagram， and in advertising， music clips etc。And fascinating to discover the bold and original work of women artists who have critiqued the old images and offer alternative ways of seeing women and their bodies。I had to take my time reading due to my limited knowledge of the art and history referred to in the book but it was worth it。 I think the writing style and the occasional personal reflections of the author dispersed throughout the book helped make it a more accessible read than it might have been if it was written as straight， academic， non-fiction text。 。。。more
Katie Sergeant
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easiest five stars ever， absolutely fantastic
Megan
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Amazing。 Has made me want to do a PhD。
Ana
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I received a free eARC from the author/publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 Women in the Picture is a clear， accessible introduction to feminist analysis of art throughout history。 It explores how women have traditionally been depicted in art， primarily by， and for， white male consumption。 It talks about the theory of the "male gaze" which objectifies women， and robs them of their humanity， by presenting women as archetypes - the maiden， the mother， the Venus， and the monste I received a free eARC from the author/publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 Women in the Picture is a clear， accessible introduction to feminist analysis of art throughout history。 It explores how women have traditionally been depicted in art， primarily by， and for， white male consumption。 It talks about the theory of the "male gaze" which objectifies women， and robs them of their humanity， by presenting women as archetypes - the maiden， the mother， the Venus， and the monster。 These depictions still inform the way women are presented in the media today， in ads and on Instagram， for example。 This book looks at female artists who were historically overlooked， as well as how women are taking old tropes and infusing them with new meaning， and giving women power over their own images。 It also explores the ways in which white women and women of colour were portrayed differently across history， and how that robbed those women of power and subjectivity twice over - through sexism and racism。 Women in the Picture is a well researched and easy to read introduction to the feminist aspects of art theory with plenty of examples， and a number of illustrations。 It shows us the importance of critically analysing and engaging with art， looking at both modern theories and art in its own time， as well as starting important conversations about depictions of women。 。。。more
Allyson
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（I received an advance reader’s copy of this book from NetGalley and W。W。 Norton in exchange for an honest review。）With Women in the Picture McCormack creates a beautifully written， broad-ranging survey of feminist concerns in Western art history that serves as an entry point to feminist art history for general audiences and enriches enthusiasts’ understanding of the field。 McCormack investigates the work of big names--Botticelli， Michelangelo， Morisot， Gentileschi， Ringgold， Beyoncé--as well as （I received an advance reader’s copy of this book from NetGalley and W。W。 Norton in exchange for an honest review。）With Women in the Picture McCormack creates a beautifully written， broad-ranging survey of feminist concerns in Western art history that serves as an entry point to feminist art history for general audiences and enriches enthusiasts’ understanding of the field。 McCormack investigates the work of big names--Botticelli， Michelangelo， Morisot， Gentileschi， Ringgold， Beyoncé--as well as that of more niche figures like Mierle Laderman Ukeles and Leonor Fini， to explore four major archetypes of womanhood in art history and visual culture: Venus， the mother， the damsel， and the monstrous woman。 Within this four-archetype structure， McCormack also takes time to specifically address the implications these archetypes have for Black women’s bodies and how they are portrayed， a welcome and necessary element， given art history’s tendency to focus primarily on white， Western images， bodies， and artists。 The relationship of the four archetypes to queerness， transness， and non-binary identities is occasionally discussed， but I think the book would have benefited from a little more engagement with this （for example， the “monstrous women” chapter seems like a perfect opportunity to discuss the current cultural tendency to characterize trans women’s bodies as “monstrous” or “deceptive。”） Overall， I’d love to see even more broad-ranging and intersectional analysis in this book， not because there’s any great lack of it， but because I enjoy McCormack’s analysis and want to see how far she can take it and what interesting images she can bring in for discussion。Women in the Picture is a great addition to art lovers’ personal libraries， with elegant prose and insightful， well-supported analysis， not just of the art historical canon， but of contemporary visual and pop culture。 There are some points which may be a little difficult for general readers to penetrate， and possibly some missed opportunities for further analysis， but I’d absolutely recommend this book regardless of one’s art education level。 。。。more
Giovanna Walker
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Insightful， thoughtful， educational & made me think。 All I want in a book。 McCormack takes us on a journey through archetypes （their origins and continued influence）， artists， and ways of looking。 Helped explain why I've looked at paintings in full public view （often in buildings of 'power & influence' eg courts， government etc） of naked women in distress and felt uncomfortable。 Who is allowed to look a certain way， and women who don't follow the 'rules' and how they're demonised。 SO much to unp Insightful， thoughtful， educational & made me think。 All I want in a book。 McCormack takes us on a journey through archetypes （their origins and continued influence）， artists， and ways of looking。 Helped explain why I've looked at paintings in full public view （often in buildings of 'power & influence' eg courts， government etc） of naked women in distress and felt uncomfortable。 Who is allowed to look a certain way， and women who don't follow the 'rules' and how they're demonised。 SO much to unpack， written concisely and engaging。 I also felt I learnt a LOT about art。 All good！ 。。。more
Reene Lim
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phenomenal。 purely phenomenal。 the amount of detail and research and effort put into this book is so incredibly inspiring， that it makes me hopeful and truly see the world in a new perspective， both for the good and evolvement of the society we are living in。not only does this condense a lot of the feminist themes into art history， catherine mccormack includes a conversational tone of her past experiences as well。 this makes me feel like i am part of her lecture， someone whose guiding us through phenomenal。 purely phenomenal。 the amount of detail and research and effort put into this book is so incredibly inspiring， that it makes me hopeful and truly see the world in a new perspective， both for the good and evolvement of the society we are living in。not only does this condense a lot of the feminist themes into art history， catherine mccormack includes a conversational tone of her past experiences as well。 this makes me feel like i am part of her lecture， someone whose guiding us through the these difficult but important topics。i love how she sees both ends of the spectrum， acknowledging how and why women are oppressed and how there isn't a unanimous opinion even between feminists。 but she also actually SUGGESTS possible solutions to such topics， and how we should go about to educate the wider public and other women about how race， gender inequality， people of colour oppression and even motherhood。this book is just remarkable。 i know i will constantly be coming back to this book for reference and / or looking up her footnotes and reading / researching them as well。5 / 5 shining stars ✨ 。。。more
MookNana
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This was a hard book to read， even though I'm glad I did。 It's a thorough， thoughtful exploration of how women are portrayed in art， from renaissance standards to Beyonce。 It highlights tropes， reductions， stereotypes， sexualization， objectification， infantilization， racism。。。and also how artists are actively working against this， and how critics， historians， curators， and even thoughtful consumers are holding museums/galleries/publications to account。 I'm sure there were good reasons why it was This was a hard book to read， even though I'm glad I did。 It's a thorough， thoughtful exploration of how women are portrayed in art， from renaissance standards to Beyonce。 It highlights tropes， reductions， stereotypes， sexualization， objectification， infantilization， racism。。。and also how artists are actively working against this， and how critics， historians， curators， and even thoughtful consumers are holding museums/galleries/publications to account。 I'm sure there were good reasons why it wasn't possible， and the author did an excellent job of description， but it would have been so helpful to see more of the works discussed。 I wound up keeping a browser tab open as I read so I could look up images。 I had to take breaks， sometimes due to anger and sometimes to really ponder a point made， but I came away from this with new perspectives and ideas and for that I'm happy。Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review！ 。。。more
Margie
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Ok - so maybe no one should step foot into another art museum until they read this book？ Because yikes， it’s even worse than I thought！
Hannah
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To most people it will not come as a surprise that historically， most famous artists were men， that women were not allowed to study the fine arts， and that the few female artists that existed received little if any attention。 The well-known exceptions are Artemisia Gentileschi and Berthe Morisot。 Yet seeing art historian Catherine McCormack list these societal misgivings and thus missed opportunities to celebrate brilliant female artists is daunting to say the least。 While traditional explanatio To most people it will not come as a surprise that historically， most famous artists were men， that women were not allowed to study the fine arts， and that the few female artists that existed received little if any attention。 The well-known exceptions are Artemisia Gentileschi and Berthe Morisot。 Yet seeing art historian Catherine McCormack list these societal misgivings and thus missed opportunities to celebrate brilliant female artists is daunting to say the least。 While traditional explanations are fine， a more socially enlightened explanation and interpretation should be available alongside it， so that particularly impressionable school children understand the art from within the time it was created and are conscious of historically antiquated values， while considering today’s society。 It has mostly been men who decide the restrictive roles women are assigned， confining them to be Venus， bride， wife， mother， child， or monster。 Interpretations of classical art would be so much stronger if debate had previously been encouraged rather than dismissed。 Debate about interpretations of classical art should be advocated not only in art history classes， offering a modern interpretation and view of the subject alongside viewing through the lens of the place and time during which it was created。 This book will not stop the misogynists who long for the discriminatory values of yesteryear。 But it might provide hope that people develop a more encompassing understanding of art。 Many thanks to NetGalley， Icon Books， and Catherine McCormack for this ARC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Shannon
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This was a really interesting read， based on a series of lectures McCormack gave on art and feminism Women in the Picture looks at how women are represented in art and also in the art that women make。 She breaks it down into Woman as Venus， Woman as Monster and Woman as Mother， three very standard representations of woman in art history and uses various examples to show the standard （i。e rich， old， middle aged white man） view， she then goes on to propose that these views shouldn’t necessarily be This was a really interesting read， based on a series of lectures McCormack gave on art and feminism Women in the Picture looks at how women are represented in art and also in the art that women make。 She breaks it down into Woman as Venus， Woman as Monster and Woman as Mother， three very standard representations of woman in art history and uses various examples to show the standard （i。e rich， old， middle aged white man） view， she then goes on to propose that these views shouldn’t necessarily be thrown out but that we look at these works differently。 She also widens her net by throwing it out into the wider world and uses modern examples of women both in art and creating it to show how old ideas can be used to make a new statement。 She also has a massive crush on Beyoncé but who doesn’t。 I thoroughly enjoyed this and am pretty sure my brain expanded in the reading of it which is what we aim for。 It’s very readable and accessible， I never felt overwhelmed by or bogged down in academia but it’s got enough weight to make its point and encourage different ways of seeing。 💪 。。。more
Andréa
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Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss。
Parker Lunsford
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3。75 stars
Jessica Robinson
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This book looks at art history and its way of shaping contemporary constructions of femininity， female bodies， and sexuality。 The first chapter "Venus" looks at the creation of Venus as the idealisation of femininity and the intrinsic ‘purity’ of her creation being independent of female reproduction （she was born from the cut off testicle of her father Uranus）。 She is the model of beauty with her poses being emulated to this day in Instagram posts and media。 Her depictions are of voyeurism and t This book looks at art history and its way of shaping contemporary constructions of femininity， female bodies， and sexuality。 The first chapter "Venus" looks at the creation of Venus as the idealisation of femininity and the intrinsic ‘purity’ of her creation being independent of female reproduction （she was born from the cut off testicle of her father Uranus）。 She is the model of beauty with her poses being emulated to this day in Instagram posts and media。 Her depictions are of voyeurism and the ‘male gaze’ as well as the erasure and dehumanisation of non-white bodies。 The second chapter looks at mothers and the construction of motherhood through appearance （a mother who looks beautiful is a good mother）。 Not to mention iconic imagery of the ‘Madonna and Child’ and depictions of the Virgin Mary being in only two instances: the piety of Jesus’ birth and the grief of his death。 This chapter also looks at the ‘angel of the house’ in which mothers care for everyone but themselves unless paid or enslaved workers take over the role。 Mothers are then un-autonomous machines with no sexual availability as it highlights women as organic （unlike the inorganic venus） unless fetishised （e。g MILF's）。In "Maidens and Dead Damsels" McCormack looks at rape culture， the ‘pretty sad girl’ in pop culture， and the damsel in distress。 This is explored through characters such as Ophelia who literally drowns in self-pity after getting rejected by a man， with this instance considered her most beautiful and perfect state。 This is because a dead woman essentially encapsulates the patriarchal idealisation of femininity: one that is silent， submissive， and doll-like。 This encourages violence towards women， especially in the plentiful scenes of women being raped and then shamed for it， as distress and suffering become synonymous with female beauty。 The final chapter looks at "Monstrous Women"， which is used to depict women who display any sense of autonomy， intelligence， and authority。 Women with power are the witches， the Medusa’s， the Lilith’s， the Sphinx’s because in the patriarchy a woman’s self-worth comes from youth and beauty and once those are taken away they are nothing。 "The woman who looks at the world is a monster， while the man who does it is an artist"。 。。。more
Nore
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"They made us believe that the woman who looks at the world is a monster， while the man who does so is an artist" "They made us believe that the woman who looks at the world is a monster， while the man who does so is an artist" 。。。more
Julia Evie
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one of the most important and eye-opening books I’ve ever read
Flora
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Feminismus und Kunstgeschichte - eine Kombination， von der ich nicht wusste wie ich sie brauchen würde <3 Ich habe so viele interessante Gedanken und Inspirationen aus diesem Buch enthalten und ein gutes Drittel markiert。
Juli Rahel
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The female form pervades art。 Female bodies are consistently on display and have become a political， social and religious battleground。 Whether it is Instagram banning female nipples or female characters appearing shaved， coiffed， and made-up in post-apocalyptic films， the way women are presented is always full of meaning。 In Women in the Picture， McCormack addresses this clearly。 Thanks to Icon Books and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review。 The The female form pervades art。 Female bodies are consistently on display and have become a political， social and religious battleground。 Whether it is Instagram banning female nipples or female characters appearing shaved， coiffed， and made-up in post-apocalyptic films， the way women are presented is always full of meaning。 In Women in the Picture， McCormack addresses this clearly。 Thanks to Icon Books and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review。 The concept of the "male gaze" was first introduced by art critic John Berger， but the one who really "coined" it， and introduced it to a wider audience， was Feminist film critic Laure Mulvey。 Her critique clearly analyzed how women， in art and film specifically， are consistently viewed in a way that highlights their desirability to a male audience。 Once you see it， you can't unsee it。 Whether it is classical art， paintings， photography， film and sometimes even theatre， women are displayed as objects， meant to be ogled， not understood as human beings。 In Women in the Picture McCormack addresses the way in which women are posed， the way in which Women of Colour are judged and mocked， and how certain trends have evolved over time。Women in the Picture starts with Classical Art， discussing statues of Venus and paintings by Titian and Botticeli。 The way in which she is posed， hip cocked， one hand gently covering the vagina， eyes far away， she becomes an object。 From there McCormack tracks trends through different centuries， looking at how female artists have tried to reclaim the female body， to infuse it with actual life， to have women represent a female experience and not a male desire。 It is not an overly academic book， but strongly founded in McCormack's scholarship。 While some of the connections or comments made in Women in the Picture didn't entirely resonate with me， I gained many new ideas and considerations from this book。Catherine McCormack's writing is clear and uncomplicated， which means that Women in the Picture is accessible to a wide audience。 Her intent is to inform and to start a conversation， to discuss how classical art influences everything from Instagram influencers to shaving commercials， how it directly impacts how young women see themselves。 While there is no answer， per se， on how to "solve" this issue， since that requires much more than a single book， McCormack understands the importance of starting a conversation， of raising awareness， and Women in the Picture does that brilliantly。 Her highlighting of the difference in which Women of Colour， and specifically African（-American） women， are portrayed， compared to white women， needs to be understood by everyone and I'm glad it was laid out as clearly as it was。 I would have loved to see more images since so many amazing paintings and photographs are mentioned。 However， I do appreciate that due to rights etc。 it may have been difficult to include all of them。Women in the Picture is a very informative and， despite its difficult topic， enjoyable read。 For anyone interested in understanding the connection between art， culture， self-perception， race and much more， this is a crucial starting point。URL: https://universeinwords。blogspot。com/。。。 。。。more
Toria
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