In Plain Sight: Representing Girls in Art History and Public Art Museums

Abstract

Over the past twenty years, the emergence of girls as research subjects in various disciplines has established the relatively new field of girls' studies. Yet, art history, even from a feminist perspective, has largely overlooked girls as subjects. For centuries, girls have been active in cultural production as models, performers, and artists. But firsthand accounts from their own perspectives are scarce. Because of this absence from the traditional historical records, and despite their numerous depictions in art, girls are consistently excluded from art history and curatorial discussions.

This dissertation addresses girls' marginalisation and their absence in art historical discourse and museum practices by exploring the question, "What is the place of girls in art history and museum practices?" This research highlights the neglect of girls in art history and argues that the perceptions and assumptions of adults have overshadowed their identities and narratives. In doing so, it addresses a significant gap, one that is a product of systemic sexism, misogyny, and adultism within the discipline.

To investigate these issues, this study develops and utilises a girl-centred theoretical framework that draws from feminist art history and girls' studies. Through this framework, the research uncovers and critiques layers of patriarchal privilege and learned misogyny that have contributed to the denial of girls' agency in art. It examines how girls are represented and discussed in art history and museum contexts, proposing ways to recover their voices and narratives.

This study adopts a mixed-methods approach to answer the research question, combining traditional and innovative art historical and museological methodologies. Through document and visual content analysis, it evaluates selected artworks from the sixteenth to the early twentieth centuries in Anglo-Euro-American art history. It uses case studies of girl models from late nineteenth-century French artworks to show ways of recovering their stories. Semi-structured interviews with art historians and curators are conducted to understand their attitudes and perceptions towards girls' representations in art. The study employs an empathy walk tracing the path of girl model Marie van Goethem and gallery walks to quantify girls' presence in several European art museums.

This dissertation argues for the expansion of feminist art historical discourse to acknowledge girls as valuable participants in cultural production and to include them in broader discussions and analyses of artworks. The evidence collected in this study reveals how art historians and curators view girls in art history and how they interpret them in public art museums. Despite the lack of scholarship on girls, they are ubiquitous: present in artworks, archives, art collections, and on gallery walls. This study offers new methods and analytical tools for application in art history and museum practice. Its findings contribute to emerging research on girls' representations in art, girls' studies, and child history. Show more