If we looked back, we would see that women have always struggled to reserve a place in society, to be recognized and seen as something more than a potential housewife. This can be proven if we ask you to think about very famous artists, most of the time, your first idea will be a masculine name. Men are overrepresented in comparison to women. But should art’s perception be dependent of its creator’s gender?
Even when several women were pioneers to many new forms of art, in the best case scenario their work would still be attributed to men, or would end up in archives with a big “unknown” written all over it. All because it was considered scandalous for women to appear in such an industry. Because of that, not many of us know that, in the 20th century, the first to work her magic, and actually succeed to make the first ever narrative fictional film, was Alice Guy Blanché.
Now back to the present. A lot of progress took place in the field regarding the issue. However, women still do have to work harder, run faster, and jump higher than any man in competition to be considered. Speaking of, did you know that the median price for female artists’ work in Europe is $4600, and the males’ is $6200? That’s according to research done by the sociologist Taylor Whitten Brown on the artistic works created after 1999.
For that, many people who have a form of platform, contribute to make this gap disappear. To set an example for the next generations and be a role model to many kids chasing their dreams. The British actress and ambassador of the “HeForShe” movement, Emma Watson is that perfect role model. In moments of doubt, we must all remember her words and repeat; “If not me, Who? If not now, When?”.
By Aïda Zaher.
To go further, on our March file dedicated to feminism, you can read our Society and International Relations sections' articles on our blog.
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