Museum volunteer Delaney Brown (an art history student at the University of St Andrews) tells us about the current exhibition in the Tower Foyer Gallery which she curated in association with the University of Dundee Museums.
The female body has long been a powerful tool for storytelling in art, embodying themes of beauty, morality, identity, and power. The exhibition Reframing the Muse in the Tower Foyer Gallery at the University of Dundee explores the ways in which women have been depicted across time, questioning traditional portrayals that often render them passive subjects while celebrating works that reclaim the female body as a site of agency and self-representation.
Bringing together historical and contemporary perspectives, the exhibition challenges viewers to reconsider how artistic representations of women influence broader cultural understandings of gender and autonomy. Through themes of performance, identity, and domesticity, the selected works reflect both the constraints imposed upon women and their resistance to these limitations.
One of the earliest pieces in the exhibition, St Mary Magdalen, attributed to Sir John Baptiste de Medina (c.1690s-1700s), exemplifies the tension between sanctity and sensuality that has long shaped portrayals of women in religious art. Often depicted as both a sinner and a saint, Mary Magdalene’s image has been repeatedly reshaped to align with evolving cultural ideals. The painting invites viewers to consider how historical narratives have defined women’s roles within moral and aesthetic traditions.
Moving into the 20th century, Rebecca Crompton’s Spirit of the Future (1937) presents a strikingly modern vision of femininity. This wool-embroidered panel reimagines traditional women’s crafts through a bold, minimalist aesthetic. The stylized female figure suggests progress and transformation, challenging the division between art and craft and celebrating embroidery as a form of contemporary expression. Created at a time of shifting social roles, Crompton’s work embodies a hopeful vision of women’s evolving place in society.
Themes of identity and societal expectations take centre stage in Lisa Murphy’s Judgement (1995), a self-portrait that confronts the intersections of religion, gender, and personal belief. Depicted in masculine attire against a backdrop of religious iconography, Murphy’s work challenges viewers to consider the pressures of conformity and the complexities of self-definition. By questioning traditional notions of femininity, Judgement encourages reflection on the expectations placed upon women by both religious and cultural institutions.
Caroline Jenkinson’s Untitled (1987) offers a surreal yet poignant critique of domesticity. A female figure, her head obscured by a basket, is surrounded by symbols of household labour, illustrating the often unseen and undervalued nature of women’s work. Through its dreamlike yet unsettling imagery, Jenkinson’s piece speaks to the isolation and constraints of traditional domestic roles, making a powerful statement about gendered labour and societal expectations.
Contemporary perspectives on gender and artistic representation come to the fore in Kirstin Mackinnon’s A Painter Worth Taking Seriously? (2023). In this self-portrait, Mackinnon dons a false beard while holding a painter’s palette, humorously and defiantly challenging the historical marginalisation of women artists. By subverting traditional representations of the ‘serious’ male artist, Mackinnon reclaims her place within the art world, inviting viewers to question the ongoing gender imbalances in artistic recognition and institutional support.
Each of these works contributes to the exhibition’s broader dialogue on how women have been represented, objectified, and reimagined throughout art history. Reframing the Muse encourages visitors to reflect on the layered narratives embodied within these pieces and to consider how artistic portrayals continue to shape contemporary understandings of gender, identity, and power. In doing so, the exhibition not only revisits the past but also looks toward the future, challenging and expanding the ways in which women’s bodies and voices are acknowledged in art and society.
Reframing the Muse runs until 28 March, open Monday-Friday.