Of the Three Artists—Frida Kahlo, Meret Oppenheim, and Judy Chicago—Who Had the Most Significant Impact on Feminism, and Why

Abstract

From the middle 19th century, the beginning of the first wave of the feminist movement, the feminist movements contributed to the stimulation of the appearance of female artists and the ascend of their status in society. At the same time, the existence and artwork of these female artists also promoted the development of feminism and helped spread feminist ideas. This dissertation compared three representative female artists related strongly to feminism, Frida Kahlo, Meret Oppenheim, and Judy Chicago, to know who had the most critical influence on feminism development and why. By analyzing data, mainly qualitative, gathered from the previous research and interviewing a scholar specialized in feminist art, this research first explains the connections between the three artists and feminism. Following, the research compares the three artists’ influences on feminist development, using four criteria: the embodiment of feminist pursuits in personal experiences, the representation of feminism in the artist’s work, the use of works for feminist propaganda, and the circulation of their works. Depending on these criteria to compare the three artists reciprocally, among the three artists, Judy Chicago might be the artist who influenced the development of feminism the most.