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The Mirror and the Palette: Rebellion, Revolution and Resilience: 500 Years of Women's Self-Portraits
Jennifer Higgie
History of art / art & design styles, Society & culture: general, Feminism & feminist theory
A dazzlingly original and ambitious work of art history, intertwining biography and cultural history, and packed with tales of rebellion, adventure, revolution, travel and tragedy
'Reveals an until-now hidden history of women's self-portraiture. A gift that keeps on giving' ALI SMITH, NEW STATESMAN, Books of the Year
'A fascinating survey . . . Extraordinary' DAILY MAIL
'A bewitching, invigorating history' OLIVIA LAING
'Grips from the opening pages' FINANCIAL TIMES
'Important and brilliantly accessible' VOGUE
Until the twentieth century, art history was, in the main, written by white men who tended to write about other white men. The idea that women in the West have always made art was rarely cited as a possibility. Yet they have - and, of course, continue to do so - often against tremendous odds, from laws and religion to the pressures of family and public disapproval.
In THE MIRROR AND THE PALETTE, Jennifer Higgie introduces us to a cross-section of women artists who embody the fact that there is more than one way to understand our planet, more than one way to live in it and more than one way to make art about it. Spanning 500 years, biography and cultural history intertwine in a narrative packed with tales of rebellion, adventure, revolution, travel and tragedy enacted by women who turned their back on convention and lived lives of great resilience, creativity and bravery. This is a dazzlingly original and ambitious book by one of the most well-respected art critics at work today.
More books by Jennifer Higgie
Praise for The Mirror and the Palette: Rebellion, Revolution and Resilience: 500 Years of Women's Self-Portraits
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A bewitching, invigorating history of women artists, the work they've made and the impossibly hard conditions in which it was produced. I can't think of a more satisfying riposte to anyone who asks why there have been no great women artists than to present them with this incandescent book
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An uplifting and dazzling tour through history . . . a breakout book that shifts the spotlight onto the names that the art world has painted over. It's illuminating and essential reading - STYLIST
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Joyous . . . As Jennifer Higgie argues in this fine, haunting book, women have always made art, despite the discouragement lobbed in their path. The Mirror and the Palette is a redress, and vividly done - so much so that it rustles with the women's presence. You feel them standing behind you, expectant . . . A revelatory study - SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
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Jennifer Higgie puts female artists centre stage with this fascinating biography looking at 500 years of self-portraits - THE i NEWSPAPER
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A fascinating survey of women's self-portraits from the Renaissance to the 20th century. . . Extraordinary - DAILY MAIL
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This engrossing book sheds new light on forgotten and disregarded female artists throughout history - and about time too . . . an absorbing story of women's art made in the European tradition - EVENING STANDARD
Jennifer Higgie
JENNIFER HIGGIE is a writer who studied painting at art school in Australia before moving to London. Previously the editor of frieze magazine, she was also the presenter of Bow Down, a podcast about women in art history. She is a screenwriter, the editor of a collection of writings on art and humour, The Artist's Joke, a novel, Bedlam, a children's book, There's Not One, and The Mirror and the Palette: Rebellion, Revolution and Resilience - 500 Years of Women's Self-Portraits.
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