Historic women artists are enjoying a surge of interest, with many museums seeking to redress the imbalance in their collections. Alongside the ‘rediscovery’ of forgotten artists, we are beginning to understand some of the particular challenges that women faced in their journey to becoming professionals.
In this day school, we will explore the lives and works of women artists in Britain, setting them against the historical context of the Georgian and Victorian eras. From Angelica Kauffman, founder member of the Royal Academy to popular watercolour artist Helen Allingham, we will consider the challenges women artists faced and the strategies they adopted to overcome these barriers.
We will investigate women artists’ involvement in and exclusion from the leading art academies and societies, and their participation in the great exhibitions of the nineteenth century. We will examine the lives and output of women printmakers in England, revealing that they were a significant and growing presence within the London print trade, and explore how women artists who painted in watercolour fought against the odds to establish successful commercial careers. The final lecture will highight the work of pioneering Victorian artist and curator, Henrietta Rae.
Please note: this event will close to enrolments at 23:59 GMT on 11 March 2026.