Despite there being hundreds of commercial galleries in China’s cities, art by women is hard to come by, yet female Chinese artists most definitely exist.

Whilst art in China was virtually non-existent until the late 80s, it has now become a powerhouse industry, which has created a pantheon of multimillionaire celebrity artists, with one thing in common – they are all men.

In a unique celebration of women artists from China, Drexel University is holding an historic exhibition of contemporary Chinese female artists, titled “Half the Sky: Women in the New Art of China”.

From Friday, September 23, 2011 until Saturday, November 12, 2011, the show will be presented at Drexel University and will be free to attend.

Half the Sky: Women in the New Art of China has been co-curated by the Leonard Pearlstein Gallery of the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design at Drexel University and the National Art Museum of China (NAMOC).

Featuring more than 60 works by 22 female Chinese artists, the exhibition, which is the first of its kind to be held in the United States, will display paintings, videos, sculptures, photography and installations.

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‘Haute Couture’ is a concept designed for the world’s most privileged. ‘Haute Couture’ is the French word for the highest and most exclusive work a big fashion house produces – but is it art? In the 20^th century, cinema became commonly known as the seventh art.

Although Haute Couture, as we know it today, was born in Paris, when an Englishman called Charles Frederic Worth opened a Couture House in 1958, it has not been until more recent years that Haute Couture, or made-to-measure tailoring, has emerged as a major form of artistic expression, and has been dubbed as being “the eighth art”.

Today there are approximately 30 Couture Houses in existence that present Haute Couture collections, although only 11 are official members of the ‘Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture’.

These members are: Chanel, Adeline Andre, Dominique Sirop, Givenchy, Anne Valerie Hash, Stephane Rolland, Jean Paul Gaultier, Christian Lacroix, Maurizio Galante, Franck Sorbier and Christian Dior – all of whom provide tailor-made outfits to Haute Couture clients from around the world, of which only about 200 are regular ones.

Increasingly, Haute Couture is being the subject and focus in art exhibitions, such as the Blue Wrap Project, an installation of Haute Couture held at the Portland Public Library’s Lewis Gallery earlier this year.

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