Chloé Pelletier: "Ladies to the Front: A permanent collection activation"

Women make up less than 1% of the named artists in the MMFA’s collection of historical European paintings, sculptures and works on paper. Most have rarely if ever been on view at the Museum. A new exhibition project looks at why that is in order to spark conversations around what – and who – defines great art. This talk offers an overview of the exhibition and introduces the museum’s evolving collection of historical European women artists, including discoveries from storage and new acquisitions. The talk will also give a behind the scenes look at the challenges curators face in exhibiting and acquiring works by women despite the major advancements that have been made in the field since Linda Nochlin published her watershed essay “Why have there been no great women artists?”

About the speaker: Chloé M. Pelletier is Curator of European Art (before 1800) at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. She earned her PhD from the University of Chicago and has held positions at cultural institutions across North America including the National Gallery in Washington, D.C. and the Art Institute of Chicago. Her current project on women artists in the Museum’s permanent collection will be on view from March - June 2024 in the Museum’s Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace.