"The answer was always understood, that there are no women artists because women artists don't have the golden nugget of genius. The whole point of my article was to show that it was a much larger issue, that women hadn't been permitted into the academies to learn how to make art, they were treated servile, their work was criticized very dismissively. In other words, it wasn't just genetic, it wasn't just that genius was born into some people who happen to have penises and not born into people who have breasts and vaginas." - Linda Nochlin

 

Titian and Giorgione. The Pastoral Concert. c. 1508.
Fred S. Kleiner and Christin J. Mamiya, Gardner's Art Through the Ages. Twelfth ed. Vol. 1. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 2005. 2 vols.

Rogier van der Weyden. Portrait of a Lady. c. 1460.
Stokstad, Marilyn. Art History. Revised Second ed. Vol. 2. New York:
Prentice Hall Inc., and Harry N. Abrams Inc., 2005.

Women historically not allowed similar education as men

Use of linear perspective required knowledge of mathematics, something women were viewed as incapable of understanding

Realism demanded an intimate, anatomical knowledge of the body. Women were considered too "delicate" to handle seeing naked strangers let alone understand the complexities of anatomy.

Professional artists were expected to travel frequently, but numerous restrictions prevented women from ever traveling

Women not allowed same exhibition /professional opportunities

Cosimo Tura and Francesco Cossa. The Triumph of Minerva. c. 1470.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/Del_
Cossa_Triumph_of_Minerva_March_Needlework_detail.jpg

The value of media was categorized
with paint being superior to all other media

Women were often only allowed to work in media
not traditionally considered "fine art"

Women often worked in media that were not typically signed

Women often worked in perishable media

Numerous works by women remain falsely credited to male artists

Where

When

The three most recognized Florentine Renaissance artists...

Sofonisba Anguissola. Self-Portrait. c. 1552.
Stokstad, Marilyn. Art History. Revised Second ed. Vol. 2. New York: Prentice Hall Inc., and Harry N. Abrams Inc., 2005.

While Humanism may have opened doors for Sofonisba, it more often than not hindered women's participation in the arts during the Renaissance

medallion reads: "The maiden Sofonisba Anguissola, depicted by her own hand, from a mirror, at Cremona."

Domenico Ghirlandaio. Giovanna Tornabuoni nee Albizzi. 1488.
http://www.forumtime.it/Forum/index.php?showtopic=234

inscription on Ghirlandaio's portrait:

Domenico Ghirlandaio.
Giovanna Tornabuoni nee Albizzi. 1488.
http://www.forumtime.it/Forum/index.php?showtopic=234

Sofonisba Anguisola.Portrait of the Artist's Mother,
Bianca Ponzoni Anguissola. c. 1557.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_0n9IExEpmh8/S00khyfWgMI/AAAAAAAANyQ/ZerSaLclGfo/s1600-h/Portrait+of+Bianca+Ponzoni+Anguissola,+the+artist%27s+mother,+c.+1557.jpg

virtuosa = a talented, attractive and properly behaved woman. A woman endowed with masculine abilities.

Sofonisba Anguissola. Self-portrait. 1561.
http://academic.evergreen.edu/curricular/italrenaissance/images/italian%20ren04wk8.jpg