Final answer:
Gloria Steinem's work as a feminist journalist in the 1970s, including co-founding Ms. Magazine, challenged traditional roles of domestic arts and advocated for women's rights and empowerment,
marking a cultural and social shift in the perception of women's roles in society.
Step-by-step explanation:
The domestic arts, as embodied by figures like Martha Stewart, have often been juxtaposed with the feminist movements of the 1970s, which sought to broaden women's roles beyond traditional domestic spheres.
Gloria Steinem, a journalist and feminist, played a pivotal role in this shift by advocating for women's rights and co-founding Ms. Magazine, which deliberately avoided conventional homemaking content, favoring articles on women's empowerment and rights instead.
Steinem's efforts alongside others like Dorothy Pittman-Hughes to address serious journalism subjects and to found a magazine that showcased works of accomplished women, as well as tackled issues such as domestic violence and sexual harassment, marked a significant cultural shift.
In breaking the myth of the traditional housewife's role, activists like Steinem and Barbara Ehrenreich reshaped the expectations and opportunities available to women, challenging the image propagated by figures like Donna Reed and June Cleaver.
The evolution of women's representation in media and arts, with contributions from other female figures like artist Judith Leyster and portrait painter Marion Hasbrouck Beckett, further exemplifies the shifting landscape in how women's roles and contributions have been perceived and celebrated throughout history.