Art in the women's suffrage movement in the United States
[2] Suffragists succeeded in their effort to receive voting rights on August 26, 1920, when the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified by state legislatures.
[4] The United States women's suffrage movement was represented largely by the colors gold and yellow.
[15] The theme also was linked to the idea that if women are trusted to mother future voters, why can't they themselves vote?
[19] Portraiture was one of the most prolific forms of fine arts among suffragists, with portraits of Susan B. Anthony the most popular woman depicted.
"[22] In a different vein, a 1914 work by Theresa Bernstein showed an anonymous women's suffrage speaker silhouetted by "feverish light" which captured the "intense mood of the moment.
[23] Anne Whitney showed four portraits of famous women at this event, including a bust of Lucy Stone.
Harriot Stanton Blatch convinced Louisine Havemeyer to loan part of her arts collection for shows at New York City's Knoedler Gallery in April 1912.
[25] In 1915, an art show was held at the Macbeth Gallery to raise money for the women's suffrage campaign in New York state.
[27] The Greenwich Equal Suffrage League auctioned off work by Elmer Livingston MacRae as a fund-raiser.
[16] The themes that were used in women's suffrage propaganda in the United States often featured appeals to justice and reform.
[32] By the 1890s, suffragists were finally able to effectively distribute pro-suffrage imagery around the country through the use of press committees and professionals.
[33] The women's suffrage journal, the Woman Voter, had a dedicated art editor, Ida Proper.
[34] During the last twenty years of the movement, suffragists emphasized the idea of women's suffrage being a benefit to society.
[50] Commercial publishers responded to public demand and their printed images often had greater emotional appeal in their suffrage arguments.
[51] The popular poem turned song "Battle Hymn of the Republic" written by Julia Ward Howe and later put to the tune of "John Brown's Body" was adapted to many causes, including the cause of women's suffrage.
[52] Music is often powerful, catchy, and persuasive so it played a notable role in furthering the women's suffrage movement.
[54] They were popularized mainly by Suffragette leaders Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Lucy Stone.
[54] Eventually, the popularity of Bloomers became a distraction to the main purpose of the suffrage movement, so women wore them less and less often.
[57] As motion pictures, nickelodeon theaters, and other ways to create and share films became popular, these methods were most commonly used by anti-Suffragettes.
[63] Cartoons that depicted men and women in roles that are stereotypically held by the opposite gender were also a popular form of criticism of the movement.
This may be due to the strategy of the suffragettes to appeal to men and white supremacists, whom may have opposed to the participation of colored women.
This drawing shows a woman standing tall and holding a banner with the word victory written on it.
[76] Other notable artists who produced women's suffrage work include Blanche Ames Ames, Theresa Bernstein, Nell Brinkley, Katherine Dreier, Abastenia Eberle, Laura E. Foster, Anna Hyatt Huntington, Rose O'Neill, and Alice Morgan Wright.
