How the Work Came About

Mireille Miller developed the plan for Women Leading the Way, her painting series, when she realized that the long roster of women who had made important contributions to our world was largely omitted from the public mind. Many significant women were either under-recognized or, in some cases, completely unknown in spite of their notable achievements. Her determination to contribute a work of art, which would help correct the historical record, led her to hundreds of hours of preparatory research and investigation.

From the first stroke of charcoal on canvas, twenty years ago, the mission of Women Leading the Way was clearly defined: it would instruct, inspire and bring greater awareness of the vital contribution made by women around the globe to advance the cause of Human Rights in the last 200 years.

This grant-assisted project began with Leading the Way: A Tribute to Women of the 20th Century, a visual chronicle of women's achievements in the last hundred years.

Women Leading the Way: Suffragists & Suffragettes followed, which portrays the women leaders of an international suffrage movement and provides an essential record of their extraordinary struggle to secure voting rights for all women. Their accomplishments are particularly remarkable considering that, oftentimes, these women had to fight simply to be counted as citizens in their respective countries.

Through visual representation, Women Leading the Way, the series, intends to bring out of the shadows these women who helped shape history worldwide, from the 18th century onwards, and seeks to contribute a fresh perspective on our collective history and humanity.

ART FULFILLING ITS MISSION +