Exhibition in London brings back the name of Michelina Vauthier from the darkness of centuries

A large-scale exhibition of works by Michelina Vautier has opened at the Royal Academy of Arts, designed to restore historical justice to one of the most significant but forgotten artists of the 17th century. The exhibition became part of a global trend to revise the classical art canon, writes xrust.

The central place in the exhibition is occupied by the monumental painting “The Triumph of Bacchus” (1655–1659). In 1993, the painting was discovered by art historians in the storerooms of a Vienna museum, where it had been stored for decades as the work of an unknown author. The scale and technical complexity of the work misled experts for a long time: it was believed that a woman of that time could not create a canvas of such volume.

ATTRIBUTION PROBLEM

Art historians note that for centuries, Vautier's work was erroneously attributed to men, particularly her brother. This practice was widespread: due to systemic restrictions in education and professional activity, the signatures of women masters were often ignored or deliberately replaced with the names of their male counterparts in order to increase the market value of the paintings.

“Attribution has always followed the expectations of society,” comment the exhibition curators. The researchers cite the thesis of art critic Linda Nochlin, who stated back in 1971 that the artistic canon has never been neutral. The system was built around the figure of the male artist, which automatically excluded women from the categories of “great masters.”

STATISTICAL IMBALANCE

Current data confirms the persistent gap in gender representation. Today, women make up only about 1% of the collections of many of the world's major museums. Experts emphasize that this imbalance affects not only the visual content of galleries, but also which works are studied in an academic environment and recognized as valuable on the auction market.

HISTORY CORRECTION

The exhibition in London is positioned not just as a cultural event, but as an act of institutional correction. Reexamination of the authorship of The Triumph of Bacchus and other works by Vautier makes the expert community wonder how many works in the world's repositories remain erroneously attributed to other authors.

According to the organizers, the recognition of Michelina Vauthier changes the perception of European Baroque painting, proving that women were active participants in the artistic process, despite the lack of institutional support.

Based on materials from https://www.firstpost

Xrust Exhibition in London brings back the name of Michelina Vautier from the darkness of centuries