As early as 600 B.C.E., Chinese women’s roles in society were primarily centered within the home. These roles were informed by Confucianism, which promoted their view of a harmonious societal order, elevating men as the household authorities and assigning women to domestic roles. As a result, women’s contributions to society were largely overlooked.

However, art depicting women and fashions created by and for women underscore their crucial impact as tastemakers in visual culture from the 1100s to 1800s. Early works like shinühua (painting of gentlewomen) portrayed women as exemplary models of beauty and femininity. Artists later revamped this tradition to illustrate women as provocative seductresses in popular Chinese stories. By the 1800s, women used fashion and accessories to transform themselves from muted muses to fashionable trendsetters in Chinese society.

By looking closely at visual clues and symbolism embedded within these works, we can learn more about women’s lives, their beauty ideals, and their overall influence on art and culture. Viewed together, we see how women impacted Chinese art and culture much more fully than what we know from written history.

Organized by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Generous support provided by the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation.