Chicago Stars Presents: Women Who Shine
6 artworks from 6 artists across 6 galleries
The tour is ordered to begin from the Michigan Avenue entrance. If you are starting in the Modern Wing, simply do your tour in reverse order.
At Chicago Stars FC, we celebrate women who inspire and rise to the occasion. Our tour spotlights stars and groundbreakers in their fields.
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Judith
Jan Sanders van Hemessen
Gallery 207, second level, Arts of Europe: Painting and Sculpture Galleries
According to the biblical story, the widow Judith saved her people from being slaughtered by the Assyrian army by infiltrating the tent of the enemy general, Holofernes. She then seduced and beheaded him. Jan van Hemessen's life-size interpretation reflects men's ambivalence toward female agency in 16th-century Netherlands. It celebrates Judith's physical and moral strength but also foregrounds the sexuality that enabled her triumph."To a 21st-century audience, Judith’s portrait exemplifies raw strength, definitive victory, and superior cleverness—all used to protect her people. Our players are much the same, striving for peak athleticism and domination."
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Young Spartan Girls Challenging Boys
Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas
Gallery 226, second level, Arts of Europe: Painting and Sculpture Galleries
This picture takes its subject from the life of Lycurgus. The legendary ninth-century BCE Spartan lawgiver made many social reforms including physical training in which adolescent girls competed on an equal footing with boys, exercising nude in public. Degas would have worked up this monochromatic sketch with layers of color had he completed it, but he left it unfinished when he began a second version of the subject."Equity for women’s sports is a right we will always fight for. From these young Spartan women to modern-day female sports legends, women and girls have always risen to the challenge of their peers and societal expectations in sports."
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Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra
Harriet Hosmer
Gallery 171, first level, Arts of the Americas Galleries
Zenobia was queen of the Syrian city of Palmyra in the 3rd century and ruled it after her husband’s death. Harriet Hosmer portrayed Zenobia at the moment of her defeat by the Roman emperor. Rather than depict a scene of heightened drama, the sculptor opted for a sense of grandeur, remarking, “I have tried to make her too proud to exhibit passion or emotion of any kind; not subdued, though a prisoner; but calm, grand, and strong within herself.”"“Not subdued . . . grand, strong within herself”—all words that describe our players too, in victory or defeat. Like Queen Zenobia, we cheer loud when we win but always play with respect, strength, and command."
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Dorothea and Francesca
Cecilia Beaux
Gallery 273, second level, Arts of the Americas Galleries
Here, Cecilia Beaux explored the line between portraiture and figure painting by focusing less on the individuality of the sitters and more on their coordinated movements. Beaux was the rare woman artist competing for portrait commissions in the male-dominated art market of her time, and she fared exceedingly well. She was also an influential teacher and became the first woman to secure a faculty position at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts."Beaux excelled in a male-dominated field and culture. The focus of sport has long been a man’s game, but Chicago Stars FC are making strides for women across the soccer landscape, working hard on and off the pitch for equal pay, recognition, and respect."
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Plaque Depicting a Queen or Goddess
Ancient Egyptian
Gallery 50, lower level, Arts of Ancient Egypt Galleries
This plaque shows a queen or goddess in profile. Pharaohs and queens of this era, even if of Greek origin, used Egyptian markers of royalty and divinity to indicate their status. Here, she wears a headdress in the form of a vulture, and her beaded necklace is embellished with lotus blossoms and flowering papyrus umbels—plants indigenous to the Nile River valley—further indicating her close affinity with Egypt."Women in leadership positions have the power to transform culture and uplift each other. As leaders in soccer, we champion women’s equality, well-being, and visibility in our sport. We empower women to imagine—and create—a female-forward future."
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Still Life Reviving (Naturaleza muerta resucitando)
Remedios Varo
Gallery 396, third level, Modern Galleries
This painting—Varo’s last—showcases the unique style the artist developed, blending early panel painting techniques with surrealist automatic methods and combining mystical and scientific themes. Here, the traditional still life transforms into a supernatural scene. Set in a Gothic tower, a table for eight begins to levitate. Above it, fruit orbits like planets in a solar system, while below, the fruits' dropped seeds are growing into new life."Like Varo, our players are always looking to mix things up and push beyond expectations. They're never content to color inside the lines. Players think creatively on the pitch, find their rhythm, and strike with confidence. No permission needed."
