Independent Spirits

Patricia Trenton

Brilliantly illustrated with more than 100 color plates, this book is a rich compendium of Western art by women, including those of American Indian, Mexican, African, and Asian heritage. The essays examine economic, social, and political forces that shaped this art over years of profound change. The dynamic growth of the West altered the role of women and opened new opportunities within the dominant culture, beginning in the late nineteenth century. In contrast to the East, the West was less constrained by tradition and social hierarchy: Western women had more freedom than their Eastern counterparts in almost every sphere of creative endeavor. In most Western states women had the vote before 1915, five years before the passage of the 19th Amendment. By 1924 the West had sent the first women to the U.S. Congress and had elected two woman governors (Wyoming and Texas) and a woman mayor...

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