Women at Sport and Leisure

Women at Sport and Leisure not only examines how women’s leisure time was represented to the public during the first half of the 20th century but also introduces how women used that time to interact with American sport. Artworks on display include paintings by John Lagatta, J.C. Leyendecker, Walter Granville Smith, Charles Dana Gibson, Jessie Willcox Smith, Clara M. Burd and Alice Barber Stephens.

American illustrators captured women’s enthusiasm for sports from a variety of perspectives: as fashion statements, as a show of support for male athletes, as a natural extension of the beauty of the outdoors, and as truly competitive participation. The artworks showcasing more traditional examples of female leisure reference a diverse set of skills in which many women of the time were already proficient: quilting, dancing, gardening, singing, playing musical instruments, swimming and horseback riding for pleasure.