For centuries, women have been conditioned to be muses, not makers, supporters, not leaders. History is replete with women who have refused to get in line, often to their own detriment. Among the most notable examples is Camille Claudel, a sculptor whose genius rivalled (and sometimes surpassed) that of her mentor and lover, Auguste Rodin. She is one of the women Muses I meet in my forthcoming book Conversations with Remarkable Women.

Born in 1864, Claudel broke into the field of sculpture despite the massive hurdles confronted by women in the discipline. Sculpture was considered unfitting for women, calling for physical strength and technical mastery. But Claudel’s genius was indisputable. She was hired as Rodin’s apprentice, but although society praised her as his muse, it was slow to accept her as an equal.

Her work was visceral, lyrical , and deeply original. Many of the works, like The Waltz and The Mature Age (see right), had a rhapsodic emotional intensity that sometimes outshone Rodin’s. But in the end, Rodin was another cog in a male-dominated machine that couldn’t see her for what she was. One critic ascribed her genius to Rodin’s influence, and the art world turned her commissions away despite her work’s obvious brilliance.

Claudel’s tale turned tragic. Her breakdown was made of financial problems, professional rejection and personal treachery. In 1913, her family, ashamed of her defiance and unwilling to foster her independence, placed her in an asylum. She remained there for three decades, beyond when doctors said she was prepared to go home. She died in 1943, largely forgotten, and her work was overshadowed by Rodin’s.

Claudel’s story is a cautionary tale about what happens when society denies women a place as makers. Her life was one of brilliance and struggle, and ultimately erasure. But her legacy — buried — has been unearthed. Her work has enjoyed a resurgence of interest in recent years, and exhibitions have reclaimed her place in art history. The tragedy in her life has become a rallying cry: Women should not have to choose between genius and survival.

But had she lived a century later, might her fate have been different?

Women today have more opportunities to lead, create, and innovate than during Claudel’s time. But even in the 21st century, those who dare to break free from traditional moulds provoke a backlash. Despite many advances, this fight against deeply embedded bias is still ongoing.

When Angela Merkel was elected Germany’s first female Chancellor in 2005, it was jarring not only politically but culturally, shock that a woman could be the leader of a country so dramatically defined by male power structures. Pet named Mutti (Mother) in a bid to demean her authority, Merkel spent 16 years demonstrating that governance is not gender or skill; it’s resilience. Her exit in 2021 left a leadership hole that few could fill, a voters’ tribute to her political legacy.

The same was true for Kamala Harris when she became the first female Vice President of the U.S. in 2021. Observers were fascinated more with her gender and race than her policies. She, like Merkel, had assumed a role historically held by men, and society was still calibrating. The conversations about her leadership have often been less about her policies than her identity, illustrating the tension between recognition and resistance frequently at play for women in power.

Women are still being held back in areas where pure talent should be enough. Frances Arnold, the first American woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (2018), confessed she spent much of her professional life underestimated. Despite compelling evidence to the contrary, the misconception that boys are inherently better at maths and related subjects continues to dominate assumptions about gender and the brain.

Before Mary Barra became the chief executive of General Motors, she had to break the glass ceiling in a male-dominated field and convince everyone that a woman could lead such a traditional sector. None of this uncertainty was  considered around her male predecessors, reflecting deep-seated biases within leadership positions.

Only to some extent is the world different from Claudel’s time. The past lingers. Women in the arts, sciences, and politics continue to fight for the ability to be seen not as muses or symbols but as creators and leaders. The challenges are still there, but their work isn’t as quickly brushed away now, and their leadership is not so quickly scorned anymore.

Conversation With Remarkable Women by Andrew Leigh is available on Amazon and at www.andrewsbooks.ste

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