Women have made prolific contributions to the medium of print for centuries: from noble women learning a new skill to amuse their friends, to women using print as a means of income, to women painters experimenting with a new medium. In a clear reflection of both the lack of and the skepticism toward women artists in the 16th century, the Renaissance artist and biographer Giorgio Vasari included only a handful of women in his 1568 edition of the Lives of the Artists. Among these Diana Scultori, known as Diana Mantovana (1547-1612). Another celebrated female etcher in 17th century was the Bolognese Elisabetta Sirani (1638-1665), who won the favor of the biographer Carlo Cesare Malvasia (1616-1669). Sirani continued to help elevate other women artists, opening what is considered to be the first art school in Europe for women.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, printmaking was seen as an acceptable way for women of noble birth to engage with the arts. Two examples are Madame Pompadour (1721-1764) and Queen Victoria (1819-1901). While women of noble birth were producing prints for entertainment and pleasure, women of lower rank in society were using printmaking as a means of income. Utilizing the skills that they had at their disposal, often acquired from their schooling in drawing, these women were able to create, publish, and sell prints to generate revenue. Many female printmakers were introduced to the medium by the men around them. Often already established in the field, this tutorage and association with their male peers allowed them a head start in the industry.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, women such as Angelica Kauffman and Maria Cosway became household names as painters, and their contributions to the medium of printmaking were extensive. Their fame among the upper classes was carefully cultivated, allowing them to thrive in the profession while retaining their feminine sensibilities.
In the 20th century, female artists became more common, and some of them began to turn to the art of printing. The most famous was the American Mary Cassatt (1844-1926), often mistakenly credited as the first female printmaker. But there were others, such as the French Berthe Morisot (1841-1895), the English woodcutters Gwen Raverat (1885-1857) and Clare Leighton (1898-1989). In Italy we remember the etcher Federica Galli (1932-2009), but there were many women who practiced the art of printing in the first half of the twentieth century; among these Bice Ferrari (1841-1922), Marta Granchi (active in the 1930s), Nina Ferrari (1878-1926) and Ottavia Lina Pogliaghi (1891-1974).
Today, the popularity of printmaking is in decline. If the 20th century had already seen a decline in interest due to the mistaken idea that it could only be a reproductive technique, today the spread of increasingly pervasive and bombastic visual media makes it even more difficult to cultivate the sensitivity necessary to appreciate the subtle refinements of this art.
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