Feminist International Relations Theory Addresses Sexism in the Arts

Nearly a century ago Virginia Woolf addressed a group of women scholars in England, positing the idea that in order for women to create they must possess money and a room of their own. Modern ideas in feminism, the arts and international relations have no doubt evolved much since then; but how is a female artist’s experience today different than those of, say, Emily Dickinson, Mary Cassatt or Woolf? Unfortunately, the story of the posthumously discovered street photographer Vivian Maier seems to suggest that some of the same issues that plagued female artists of the past still persist, and are affecting their lives, artwork and legacies today. The research done for this presentation and paper explores what happens when women are marginalized, specifically in the arts. The cases previously mentioned are examined and explained through the perspective of Feminist International Relations theory, which attempts to gain insight into the workings of our world through the social construct of gender