Art in the United States

American Jewish women have made major contributions to the art world as artists, photographers, gallery owners, museum curators, art critics, art historians, and collectors at least since the beginning of the twentieth century. In general, two major influences caused American Jewish women artists to reaffirm their Judaism. The first was the Holocaust, the second relates to general cultural and social trends related to identity within American society. Many early female Jewish artists were involved with The New York Society of Women Artists, a professional, avant-garde, and radically feminist group, founded in 1925. The number of American Jewish women artists rose in the 1930s, and their activities expanded from painting into sculpture. This growth of Jewish women artists continued into the 21st century.