Scan barcode
Reviews
Broad Strokes: 15 Women Who Made Art and Made History (in That Order) by Bridget Quinn, Lisa Congdon
lowells's review against another edition
3.0
2021 Popsugar Reading Challenge - A book about art or an artist
megjoyeclark's review against another edition
funny
informative
inspiring
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
toniclark's review against another edition
5.0
I love my Kindle, but I’m so glad I opted for this gorgeous hardcover book. (Yes, Marie, it sparks joy — even to hold it in my hands, even to look at the cover, knowing now what is within.)
I knew of Artemisia Gentileschi, Vanessa Bell, and Louise Bourgeois (though not their whole stories) and had heard of a couple others, but many of the artists in this book were new to me. I learned so much and in such an enjoyable and moving way. (I kept exclaiming, “Wow” and insisting that my husband listen to me read a couple of paragraphs.) I especially loved the chapters about Artemisia, Judith Leyster, Adelaide Labille-Guiard, and Marie Denise Villers. But they are all engaging and I loved tracing the similarities in all of these lives across the centuries. The work of Kara Walker and the life of Susan O’Malley hit me hard, moved me to tears.
Also, I thoroughly enjoyed Quinn’s style — informative but casual, like listening to a friend tell me about amazing women artists. I’d probably read anything by Quinn. Her thoughts on the role of women artists through the ages, her musings about what these women must have felt balancing their roles as wives, mothers, and artists, and her own philosophy about living an artful life (whatever that means to you) are inspiring. I can’t say enough good things about this book. I devoured it. I will return to it again and again, to read, to study the photos, and I’ll look for more books about women artists.
I knew of Artemisia Gentileschi, Vanessa Bell, and Louise Bourgeois (though not their whole stories) and had heard of a couple others, but many of the artists in this book were new to me. I learned so much and in such an enjoyable and moving way. (I kept exclaiming, “Wow” and insisting that my husband listen to me read a couple of paragraphs.) I especially loved the chapters about Artemisia, Judith Leyster, Adelaide Labille-Guiard, and Marie Denise Villers. But they are all engaging and I loved tracing the similarities in all of these lives across the centuries. The work of Kara Walker and the life of Susan O’Malley hit me hard, moved me to tears.
Also, I thoroughly enjoyed Quinn’s style — informative but casual, like listening to a friend tell me about amazing women artists. I’d probably read anything by Quinn. Her thoughts on the role of women artists through the ages, her musings about what these women must have felt balancing their roles as wives, mothers, and artists, and her own philosophy about living an artful life (whatever that means to you) are inspiring. I can’t say enough good things about this book. I devoured it. I will return to it again and again, to read, to study the photos, and I’ll look for more books about women artists.
sleeperchris's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
slow-paced
4.25
margueritestjust's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
3.5
While it was certainly a good introductory book to those who may not be aware of a number of female artists, this book was not necessarily anything special. A number of other reviews state this, but I'll also add it, as I found these issues to be my biggest problem with the work.
The author often references in her own experiences and injects her own judgements in a way that detracts from her credibility - as it is, the book sometimes come across as more of an op-ed than an actual art history from someone who studied art history. Another issue is that she would reference things that to someone with very little art education, which seems to be the target audience, would not get, and while you can obviously search up these things yourself nowadays, it feels a bit rude for the author to tell you to Google something that she could very well take some time to talk about herself (you may think I'm exaggerating here, but no, this literally happens).
It took me a ridiculous amount of time for me to finish this book compared to its length and relative brevity of subject matter. I finished most of it while bored at work one day.
Still, the artists that are covered are interesting and undoubtedly this book will inspire people to learn more about some of the women covered between these pages. Quinn's personal experiences sometimes even added to the book, rather than detracted from it (particularly in the case of her studies regarding Adélaïde Labille-Guiard). While I don't think that the book spends enough time arguing its case that these women have made history due to the brevity of this book, it's not a complete write-off.
The author often references in her own experiences and injects her own judgements in a way that detracts from her credibility - as it is, the book sometimes come across as more of an op-ed than an actual art history from someone who studied art history. Another issue is that she would reference things that to someone with very little art education, which seems to be the target audience, would not get, and while you can obviously search up these things yourself nowadays, it feels a bit rude for the author to tell you to Google something that she could very well take some time to talk about herself (you may think I'm exaggerating here, but no, this literally happens).
It took me a ridiculous amount of time for me to finish this book compared to its length and relative brevity of subject matter. I finished most of it while bored at work one day.
Still, the artists that are covered are interesting and undoubtedly this book will inspire people to learn more about some of the women covered between these pages. Quinn's personal experiences sometimes even added to the book, rather than detracted from it (particularly in the case of her studies regarding Adélaïde Labille-Guiard). While I don't think that the book spends enough time arguing its case that these women have made history due to the brevity of this book, it's not a complete write-off.