Women Looking Back

Women's self-portraits carried additional weight. Sofonisba Anguissola painted herself at the easel — proving she was a professional, not an amateur. Artemisia Gentileschi painted herself as an allegory of Painting itself — claiming not just competence but embodiment of the art.

In the 20th century, Frida Kahlo's 55 self-portraits turned the genre into visceral autobiography — pain, identity, and politics fused in every canvas. For women who were frequently the objects of male gaze, painting themselves was an act of reclaiming the power to define their own image.