Women in Painting: Celebrating Underrated Female Artists

For a long time, I thought the history of painting was mostly made by men. Not because I believed women weren’t capable of greatness—but because no one ever taught me otherwise. Every art textbook I opened, every museum wall I stared at, every lecture I listened to seemed to echo the same names: da Vinci, Rembrandt, Picasso, Van Gogh, Pollock. Brilliant, yes. But overwhelmingly male.

It wasn’t until I started digging deeper that I realized how many incredible female painters had been left out of the spotlight. Some were celebrated in their time, then forgotten. Others never got the recognition they deserved to begin with. Their stories—and their paintings—are just as powerful, just as daring, and just as essential to the story of art.

Today, I want to share some of those stories. This is not a complete list (not even close), but rather a celebration of a few of the many remarkable women in painting whose work has inspired me—and who deserve a brighter place in the history of art.

1. Artemisia Gentileschi (1593–c.1656)

I still remember the first time I saw Judith Slaying Holofernes. It was brutal. Bold. Beautiful. And it was painted by a woman in the 1600s.

Artemisia Gentileschi was a Baroque painter who took the dramatic style of Caravaggio and infused it with a distinctly female gaze. Her subjects were often powerful women—Judith, Susanna, Cleopatra—not portrayed as passive or decorative, but as strong, decisive, and complex.

Her story is heartbreaking. As a teenager, she was raped by her painting instructor, endured a humiliating trial, and still managed to forge a successful career in an era when women weren’t even allowed to join painting guilds. For me, she represents not just artistic talent, but resilience.

2. Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun (1755–1842)

Vigée Le Brun’s portraits are soft, elegant, and radiant—but her career was anything but delicate. She became the official portraitist of Marie Antoinette and was one of the few women admitted to the prestigious Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture in France.

What I admire most about her is how she painted women as women. There’s an intimacy to her work—a sensitivity that you don’t often see in male portraits of the time. Despite political turmoil, exile, and criticism, she continued to paint, leaving behind hundreds of portraits that tell the story of an era from a rare female perspective.

3. Rosa Bonheur (1822–1899)

If you’ve never heard of Rosa Bonheur, you’re not alone. But in her day, she was famous—one of the most celebrated female artists of the 19th century. Known for her powerful animal paintings, Bonheur broke conventions in every way. She wore pants (illegal for women at the time), lived openly with her female partner, and built a career on her own terms.

Her painting The Horse Fair is massive, muscular, and full of movement. When I saw it in person, I couldn’t believe it had been done by someone completely self-taught. She reminds me that breaking the rules is sometimes the only way to create something truly great.

4. Hilma af Klint (1862–1944)

Hilma af Klint blew my mind.

For years, I thought Kandinsky was the first abstract painter. But af Klint—who was creating large-scale, non-representational works in the early 1900s—predates him by years. Inspired by mysticism and spirituality, her paintings are vibrant, symbolic, and deeply intuitive.

What’s even more astonishing is that she believed the world wasn’t ready for her work. She kept most of it hidden and requested that it not be shown until 20 years after her death. Today, she’s finally getting the recognition she deserves, and it’s changing how we understand the roots of abstract art.

5. Loïs Mailou Jones (1905–1998)

Jones’s career spanned seven decades, and yet she was largely ignored by major institutions during her lifetime—because she was both a woman and Black.

But that didn’t stop her. Her work evolved through many phases—from Impressionism to African-inspired abstraction—and she played a crucial role in the Harlem Renaissance and the global recognition of African-American artists.

What stands out to me about her work is its vibrancy and pride. Her paintings don’t just sit on the canvas—they sing.

6. Leonora Carrington (1917–2011)

I fell in love with Carrington’s work before I even understood it. Surreal, mythical, and layered with symbolism, her paintings feel like stepping into a dream—or a spell.

Carrington defied easy categorization. She rejected traditional gender roles, fled an arranged life of privilege, and immersed herself in the avant-garde art world of Paris and Mexico. Her surrealism wasn’t just quirky—it was political, psychological, and deeply personal.

She once said, “I painted for myself… I never believed anyone would exhibit or buy my work.” And yet today, she’s celebrated as one of the most important Surrealist painters of the 20th century.

7. Kay Sage (1898–1963)

Another Surrealist who rarely gets the spotlight, Kay Sage created haunting, architectural dreamscapes that echo with loneliness and longing. Her work is often compared to Giorgio de Chirico or Tanguy, but it stands on its own—rigid yet poetic, eerie yet elegant.

There’s a quiet power in her brushwork that speaks to isolation and identity. For me, her paintings feel like visual poems—full of silence and space.

Why Weren’t These Women in the Textbooks?

That’s the question I keep coming back to.

The answer, unfortunately, lies in centuries of exclusion. Women were often barred from academies, life drawing classes, and professional guilds. Even when they succeeded, their stories were downplayed or erased.

But that’s changing. Museums are beginning to re-examine their collections. Scholars are digging up forgotten legacies. And platforms like ArtMagazine.com are helping tell the stories that were silenced for too long.

What These Artists Taught Me

Every time I discover another female painter who defied the odds, I feel both inspired and angry. Inspired because their work is extraordinary. Angry because I had to dig so hard to find it.

But more than anything, I feel grateful. These women didn’t just paint—they pushed. They pushed against barriers, against expectations, and against invisibility. Their brushstrokes carried strength, courage, and vision.

They taught me that talent is not limited by gender—but opportunity often is. And that part of loving art means expanding who we include in its history.

Final Thoughts

There are hundreds—thousands—more women I could have included here. From Mary Cassatt to Alma Thomas, from Berthe Morisot to Faith Ringgold, the world of painting is filled with extraordinary women whose stories deserve to be told.

If you’re just starting to explore their work, I encourage you to do what I did: read, research, wander through museums with new eyes. Look past the plaques and the “masters.” Ask who’s missing—and why.

Because when we make space for these artists, we’re not just rewriting history. We’re enriching it.