See ‘Shattered Glass: The Women Who Elevated American Art’ in Canton

In her massive 1977 painting “Marilyn,” Audrey Flack magnified photorealistic objects like lipstick and jewelry, playfully examining actress Marilyn Monroe’s public image. It’s one of many works by female artists on display in “Shattered Glass: The Women Who Elevated American Art,” at the Canton Museum of Art, running Nov. 25 through March 1, 2026.

“The title is in reference to the ‘glass ceiling’ metaphor,” says Christy Davis, curator of exhibitions at the Canton Museum of Art. “It features American women artists who have confronted a number of different barriers, challenges, roadblocks and persevered.”

The exhibition spans all of the museum’s galleries and features over 120 pieces by 76 female artists from across the United States, ranging from the 1780s to present day. The show spotlights underrecognized female artists like Claude Hirst, who was born in 1855 as Claudine and shortened her name to be judged more fairly alongside her male counterparts. She painted still-life images in the male-dominated trompe-l’oeil style.

“[The style] depicted items that men use frequently, like tobacco, pipes, newspapers, cards,” says Kaleigh Pisani, curator of collections and registrar at the Canton Museum of Art. “But [Hirst] also included items that were very feminine, like books by feminist authors [and] ceramics.” 

That same theme of resistance recurs throughout the exhibition. Sister Corita Kent’s “Circus Alphabet” print series uses bright pop art images to push back against the Catholic church. Elsewhere, a photograph features female model and combat photographer Lee Miller taking a bath in Adolf Hitler’s abandoned apartment on April 30, 1945, the day the dictator and his wife, Eva Braun, took their own lives in a Berlin bunker.

“I hope people come and realize how underrepresented women have been throughout art history,” Davis says. “It’s not because they make lesser art. It’s just that they’ve been omitted from the books.”

1001 Market Ave. N., Canton 44702, 330/453-7666, cantonart.org

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