ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book addresses a variety of influences, achievements, and frustrations that shaped women artists' careers, as well as the reception of their works in critical discourse and their place in the larger politics of contemporary art communities. It argues that scholarship has expanded the horizon of attention to women artists' contributions and laid the groundwork for further art historical interventions. The book presents a complex account of women artists' social, cultural, intellectual, and political interests and the challenges they battled during decades when gender-biased criticism frequently derailed understanding of their goals. It anthology contribute to the production of a more balanced account. While clearly situating individual women's choices within a matrix of socially constructed tensions and opportunities defined by stereotypical conceptions of gender difference.
