Strength in unity: post-war sculpture in the Women’s International Art Club, 1950–1970

Abstract

Despite women’s art clubs and societies being the most consistent aspect of women’s exhibiting culture in the twentieth century, they have seldom been included in the history of art. This article aims to expand art historical narratives by examining how women-only exhibiting organizations afforded women sculptors agency by providing a platform, often denied elsewhere, to exhibit their work, further their artistic careers, and forge formal and informal networks. The focus of the article is the Women’s International Art Club (WIAC), but it also makes reference to the Society of Women Artists. The WIAC held annual exhibitions in London throughout the twentieth century, attracting recognized female sculptors, including Barbara Hepworth, Gertrude Hermes and Elisabeth Frink. However, this article will focus on those sculptors who exhibited with women’s groups and achieved success in their lifetime but have since been overlooked, leaving a gap in art’s histories.