Women in arts: Does being a female artist impact your work?

Being an artist, and that too a female artist, is something that holds a lot of meaning. In this day and age, we cannot ignore people’s identities anymore and pretend that it doesn’t play a part in their professional lives. For a long time, marginalized people such as POC and women have fought hard just to be heard. While the world is becoming more inclusive with each passing day, we still have a long way to go, and therefore we have to acknowledge how a person’s identity can have an impact on their day-to-day life.

Arts to Hearts Project is a platform that especially focuses on women empowerment and female creatives. We strive hard to give a platform to women as they already face their fair share of discrimination. On our Instagram (@artstoheartsproject), we asked our female followers if their identity as a woman impacts their art.

When we talk specifically about art itself, each individual has his or her own creative expression. It’s fascinating to see how every person’s artistic expression is also affected by their life experiences. This is something that our female followers also responded with, as a majority of them thought that their female identity does impact their work.

And we can’t agree more with @alana.the.artist! Let’s look at some of the responses we received on our question sticker.

What it means to be a female artist

@loriwritesandpaints says what’s in our mind, that being a woman is something that cannot be separated from your art. As female artists, the way we experience the world and interpret it has a huge impact on our craft. After all, art is a reflection of us. It is all of our stories merged together, and when you look at a certain piece, you can almost see through the artist themselves.

For @loriwritesandpaints, it’s pretty much the same where her female identity affects her color choices, the images she is drawn to, and the way she approaches her subjects. All of it, in the end, is made up of her own experiences as a woman in this world.

As women, we have our own challenges. @silverarrowart sheds light on this aspect and shares how she feels that being a male artist would definitely be easier than being a female artist. For starters, as a woman, you must have noticed that we are often not taken seriously. Whether we are going about our day, voicing our opinion in our workplace, or running a business, people are still not used to seeing women in positions of power or as leaders. What ends up happening is that we have to work even harder to make sure we are heard and respected.

For @silverarrowart, her experience while selling art justifies her stance that even in the art world, women are not seen as capable as men, and we are positive that there are plenty of other women who will resonate with these anecdotes.

For @the.equinox.photography, the experience is pretty much the same where she feels that her work is not always taken seriously. Being a photographer, her experiences have led her to constantly look for balance even in her work.

@monaleisa2 thinks that while being a woman has not impacted her art, it has impacted her art practice. Artists in general need to run their own art business as well because they have to promote their art, showcase it, price it, and sell it. Doing all of these things is not easy, and when you are a woman, you need to adopt different strategies to make sure that people take your work seriously and your art practice runs as smoothly as possible.

There are also artists like @serendipitylili who feel that being a woman does not affect their art, however, she does not hesitate to point out that this perspective comes from a place of privilege. It’s true that not every female artist will have a similar experience, however, it is also pertinent that we take into account the privilege that may play a role in it as well. Artists such as @serendipitylili are lucky to have found that place in the world, where they have amazing female role models to look up to, and have never been held back because of their gender, and honestly, we are happy that these women are able to do what they love!

If you as a female artist feel that your identity has impacted on your art, you are not alone. The purpose of sharing these responses is to make sure that all the other struggling female artists out there feel seen and heard. The best way to go about it is by reaching out to other female artists and being part of a community of likeminded people where we can support each other and learn from each other!

You can always leave a comment on our Instagram and let us know about your  experiences as a women artist and if it has any say in your artistic expression. You can always read more articles where our ATH community comes together to engage with each other!