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From drawing manual to academy. The training of Brussels 19th-century female amateur artists pertaining to the nobility

Notes de la rédaction

This is the press release related to the article from Wendy Wiertz, published on 7 March 2022. Read the article.

There have been many representations in literature and cinema about the pastimes of young girls from the nobility in the 19th century, who all seemed to devote themselves – and were more or less forced to do so – to the practice of embroidery, watercolour and drawing. These scenes reflect the importance of the artistic education of upper-class women, of whom very few names and works are known to this day. By examining the artistic training of female amateur artists among the Brussels nobility in the 19th century through numerous private archives, art historian Wendy Wiertz (University of Huddersfield, UK) depicts a still unknown dimension of the cultural scene of the time, made up of professional opportunities for masters and countless obstacles for female pupils.

The combination of educational methods seems to have been the rule in the cases presented in the 166th issue of Brussels Studies. Girls usually began their training in drawing and decorative arts with their mothers or a governess. The artistic economy adapted to this particular market, as drawing and painting materials of good quality were specially produced, as well as drawing manuals for young girls. Here, the motifs of nature and the rudiments of portraiture dominated: the propriety imposed on women of the nobility excluded the study of nudes, which was an essential part of academic art education. In 1889, when the Brussels Academy of Fine Arts opened its doors to women, the mixed nature drawing workshops lasted only a short time and instead specific courses were introduced for the “fairer sex” (and even separate entrances). Other training opportunities lay in apprenticeships at boarding schools and in ateliers libres, where recognised artists such as Navez and Blanc-Garin provided training to the children of some of their patrons. In these young women's circles, building a social network was an important learning experience for their future lives, much more so than mastering artistic techniques which, for most pupils, would later become a sitting room activity. In addition to the frustrations of all those who did not find pleasure in these imposed artistic measures were the frustrations of the talented young women whose efforts would remain unfulfilled, as their peers and the artistic milieu multiplied the obstacles to the development of female professional careers.

Today, the situation has changed but the issue of women artists continues to question the recognition of women in certain professional spheres, especially at the highest levels. Although female students are now in the majority in Brussels art schools, disparities continue to exist in the genres practised, which are less recognised in the art market. The presence of women fades over the years, due in particular to the difficulty of reconciling the practice and precariousness of artistic professions with a family life, which often begins at the same time as professional achievement, and which is still largely the responsibility of women.

References
Wiertz, Wendy, “From drawing manual to academy. The training of Brussels 19th-century female amateur artists pertaining to the nobility”, Brussels Studies [Online], General collection, No 166, 7 March 2022. URL: https://journals.openedition.org/brussels/5980
Contact
Tatiana Debroux, Editor in chief:
tdebroux[at]brusselsstudies.be

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