When it comes with famous artists, we tend to think of people like Pablo Picasso, Leonardo da Vinic, and Michaelangelo – all of which are men. In fact, most of the world’s most well-known artists tend to be men, mostly due to the fact that it’s been a man’s world for the last few thousand years. Regardless, there are just as many brilliantly talented female artists from history that, while not quite as popular, produced art that was equal to and sometimes better than their male counterparts.
Fede Galizia
Galizia was creating art around the same period as da Vinci, and is often recognised as a pioneer of the still life genre. The painter had been trained from a young age by her father, and by the time she was twelve years old, she had already garnered the praise of a number of critics. Much of her work is based on the naturalistic traditions that could be found in Italy at the time, and she had received a number of commissions by the local churches within her area. So far, a total of 63 of her works have been catalogued.
Marianne North
North was a botanical artist and biologist that lived during the prime of the Victorian era. She had originally been trained as a vocalist, but her voice ultimately didn’t prove to be enough to find success, so she devoted her life to painting the flowers and plants that she loved. North travelled often with her father, and after he died, she would spend a number of years travelling around the world and visit every continent except one. Her influence was so profound in the botanical world that a number of plants have been named in her honour, which includes an entire genus of plants called Northia.
Caterina van Hemessen
Born during the Renaissance and long before you could play Keno now online, Hemessen was a Flemish painter that is known for being one of the first painters in the world to create a self-portrait of an artist painting at their easel, a popular style that would be mimicked by many more artists in the future. While she didn’t create a large number of works, she did become well known for her female portraits, along with a few pieces that were related to religion. It’s believed that she stopped painting around 1544, not long after she had gotten married to her husband.
Clara Peeters
Another popular still life painter, Peeters was part of the Dutch Golden Age, and is considered one of the greats of her time. Peeters went to great lengths to keep her private and work life a secret, but it’s clear that she lacked the knowledge of human anatomy, so instead she focused on painting still subjects, such as food. She created many popular traditional Dutch artwork, known as breakfast pieces, which featured simple and plain food items and the vessels they came in.
