Art historian Dasal draws generously on letters, memoirs, and contemporary reports to recover the history of the American Girls’ Club, which opened in 1893 as a home base for American women studying art in Paris. Those aspiring artists faced challenges in the U.S., where society frowned upon women wanting to make a career in art, and where parents were reluctant to allow their daughters to travel abroad. Many, nevertheless, had studied at prestigious American art schools, and they considered further instruction in Paris as “the last step toward professionalism.” Once they managed to make their way there, they faced new challenges: living on a strict budget, finding a hospitable atelier, and learning to navigate in a new milieu. The Club, then, met a real need for a growing number of women, which by 1888 had reached more than 800. It was established by two Americans, Helen Newell, a minister’s wife, and Elisabeth Mills Reid, the wife of diplomat Whitelaw Reid who had fond memories of studying in Paris as a teenager. Started as a small gathering space where women could stop in for a cup of tea, the Club expanded into a full residence two years later, offering bare-bones but comfortable housing for some 40 residents, a reasonably priced restaurant, an English-language library, a social space, and free daily afternoon tea. “The ability of Club-goers to speak a common language, both literally and metaphorically,” Dasal writes, “eased the pain of adjusting to an unfamiliar land and culture and thus provided women with a near instant social circle.” Dasal brings to light a cast of talented, courageous women whose lives, and art, defied expectations; her engaging history pays homage to the singular space that nurtured them.
A fresh look at female artists.
The Club: Where American Women Artists Found Refuge in Belle Époque Paris by Jennifer Dasal will be published in the English language by Bloomsbury in July 2025.
Jennifer Dasal is the creator and host of the ArtCurious podcast, which has been featured in multiple local and national publications and websites, including O, the Oprah Magazine, PC Magazine, ArtDaily, NPR, Salon and more. She is also the author of ArtCurious: Stories of the Unexpected, Slightly Odd, and Strangely Wonderful in Art History. She holds an MA in art history from the University of Notre Dame and a BA in art history from the University of California, Davis. Dasal is the former curator of modern and contemporary art at the North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, where she worked for thirteen years. She lectures frequently on art both locally and nationally. Dasal lives in Wendell, North Carolina with her family.