The phoenix rises from eros, not ashes: creative collaboration in the lives of five impressionist and postimpressionist women artists.

Women yearn to express themselves through their affiliative bonds and professional goals. Historically, it has been difficult for women to find and maintain close affirmative ties with men while they also strived to advance their careers. The lives of five impressionist and postimpressionist women artists in fin-de-siècle Europe permit a glimpse into the possibilities and pitfalls of relationships in career development. When mentors or supportive partners are available to women, their creative productivity flourishes. In contrast, when the male partner seeks greedily to control or enviously to attack the woman's aspirations, her creativity wanes, and her life may be ravaged. Yet the keystone of any creative partnership is the ability to reckon with the potential sources of destructiveness within one's self that may lead to disparagement of the other. The lives of men and women may be enhanced when neither partner disavows or seeks to denigrate the talents of the other. Creative partnerships that support the emotional and productive intensity of both members of the dyad can lead to great personal expansion and enrichment for the culture at large.