The Essential Problem:
The Role of Gender in the Careers of Helen Frankenthaler and Miriam Schapiro
In the spring of 2020, I completed my art history thesis, where I explored the different ways that gender affected the careers of American women artists during the late sixties. I am interested in how gender was utilized by women artists, and how it affected critics’ reception of women artists. I found that the careers of Helen Frankenthaler and Miriam Schapiro exemplify two different routes through which women artists found success during the late sixties: through either the subduing or accentuation of gender as a crucial part of their work and identity. To explore these prospective routes, I compared the artists’ work and intent, examined their approaches to taking up space, and evaluated essentialism in critical responses to their work. I hope that this critical examination will yield a more thorough and empowering reevaluation of the histories of Frankenthaler and Schapiro and inspire my readers to be critical in the historical documentation of all women artists.