Womens movement and emergence into Art in the 1920's (Art/History)

"IN THE 1920s WOMEN STARTED TO EMERGE AS A SIGNIFICANT FORCE" Discuss this statement

In the 1920's women started to emerge as a significant force. Before the 1920's, women rarely found jobs in male-dominated fields because of their status in Victorian and Edwardian societies. However all this had changed in the 1920's. Women became more involved in visual arts as more than a hobby, new lifestyles were promoted, women were given a chance to play a role in political issues and women began to have some say in the direction of their lives. This all happened due to two reasons. One was the thinning of the male population due to World War I and two, the continuing awareness of the feminist movement.

Before World War I, women had not been involved with visual arts very much. If they were involved with it, it was mainly as a hobby. By the 1920's, women started to take art more seriously.

Women at work on bomber, Douglas Aircraft Company,...

Woman aircraft worker, Vega Aircraft Corporation, ...

Beautiful Mannequin Woman

This was due to the "all electric" household, which allowed women more time to explore their interests. Many women began to make a career out of art, although they were seen as non-conformist and eccentric. Women introduced modern painting into Australian art during the early twentieth century. Women became recognised as talented artists, and their paintings were slowly accepted into society. Some examples of these women are, Grace Cossington-Smith, Grace Crowley Margaret Preston and Thea Proctor. These women influenced many other women to pursue art as a career, which is strange because it was the prospect of a woman being a full-time artist was socially questionable.

Secondly, women's magazines promoted new lifestyles for women. It introduced the alternative by one using birth control, and how to play an active role in political issues.

Organisations such as the National Councill of...