Arts

30 incredible women to inspire you with art this International Women's Day

From filmmakers to painters to dancers, meet some of the amazing artists doing empowering work that we can't get enough of.

From filmmakers to painters to dancers, meet amazing artists doing empowering work that we can't get enough of

CBC Arts Celebrates International Women's Day

7 years ago
Duration 0:26
Happy International Women's Day

With all of the extraordinary female artists we feature here at CBC Arts, every day can feel like International Women's Day. But since today is the real thing, we're celebrating by highlighting a diverse collective of women who are making their voices be heard. From filmmakers to painters to dancers, meet some of the amazing artists doing empowering work that we can't get enough of!

TiKA

Making music lifted her out of depression, and now she wants to bring that same light to others​
 

Eve Saint Jean

'My artwork made me comfortable with being queer': How creating can lead to self-acceptance
 

Jen Mann

What it means to be in love in full colour
 

DJ O Show

'Diversity makes beautiful music': This DJ strives to be a role model for marginalized youth
 

Santee Smith

Who needs dance class? We're bringing this Indigenous choreographer to you for a personal tutorial
 

Melody Hansen

Melody Hansen makes viral illustrations out of your most difficult feelings
 

Nalo Hopkinson

Afrofuturism, sci-fi and why 'it is a radical act for Black people to imagine having a future'
 

Niti Marcelle Mueth

'I live my life. I do what I love.' For designer Niti Marcelle Mueth, that's all that matters
 

Arlene Webber

Making tiny paintings is especially difficult for this artist — that's why she does it


KALLITECHNIS

Feeling vulnerable? For this musician and dancer, that emotion is her secret power
 

Anoush Moazzeni

Meet the concert pianist who's collaborating with her own robots
 

Annyen Lam

719 days and counting: This artist has been cutting paper with tiny blades every day for two years
 

Shereen Ladha

'Growing up, I wanted to be white': How Bollywood dance helped this artist embrace her culture
 

Nerissa Bradley

​Art helped her with depression and anxiety — and then it opened up a whole new career
 

Camille Jodoin-Eng

Meet the sculptor creating otherworldly optical illusions that let you look into infinity
 

Chantel Riley

From one Nala to another: Chantel Riley shares her (totally necessary!) advice for Beyoncé

Dainty Smith

'Black thighs save lives': How Dainty Smith is empowering women of colour through burlesque
 

Ella Cooper

These photos of nude black women in the Canadian landscape are here to question our assumptions
 

Enza Anderson

How trans icon Enza Anderson has made Toronto a better place — just by being who she is
 

Hana Shafi

The anti-troll: This artist is making social media a safer space one illustration at a time
 

Hovak Johnston

Why getting her first tattoo is so meaningful for this 74-year-old Inuit elder
 

Karolina Kuras

This breathtaking photography will make you wish you were a ballet dancer
 

Vivek Shraya

How Toronto Pride Grand Marshal Vivek Shraya found her own identity through exploring her mother's
 

Kathleen Merritt

'Not Inuk enough to be Inuk, not white enough to fit in': This musician is carving her own identity
 

Matea Radic

Meet the artist drawing a 'naturally unnatural' world in contrast with her war-torn childhood
 

Angela Miracle Gladue

Meet A Tribe Called Red's secret weapon: the pow wow dancers electrifying their shows
 

Lindsi Beth Hollend

Depression made her see the world differently...so she picked up a camera
 

Sharon Lewis

In dystopian science fiction, one thing is clear: it doesn't end well for women or people of colour
 

Tamara Lee-Anne Cardinal

Meet the designer making wearable art that comes out of Indigenous teachings and culture
 

Deanna Bowen

This lost 1956 CBC show about race is as relevant as ever — so a Toronto artist is reimagining it