Seeing is Believing

Images of Powerful Women in Public Spaces Matters

Vassar's Thompson Library features Elena Cornaro Piscopia

Story by Gardiner Morse:

The discussion in your book of the impact of images of men and women in orgs (such as portraits in boardrooms) reminded me of an important image in my experience. I went to Vassar College, where my daughter now goes. It had just gone co-ed a few years before I arrived. The dominant feature in the wonderful gothic Thompson library is the stained-glass window pictured below. It celebrates Elena Cornaro Piscopia, a Venetian scholar who attended the University of Padua and is said to be the first woman to be awarded a PhD. You’ll notice in the lower image that she is surrounded by men, all looking up towards her.
 
I spent countless hours in this library and I always loved this window. Reading your book, I suspect this image influenced my (and thousands of other students’) thinking.

(Photo found here) (Photo from Vassar College)

 

Submitted by:

Gardiner Morse

Senior Editor, Harvard Business Review