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This paper is part of an ongoing research that aims to understand the role of gender in the composition of the Portuguese visual arts field and the possibilities and limits to the success of artistic professional trajectories. Analyzing the figures, between 2012 and 2019, regarding the activity of a significant sample of galleries, fairs, auctions, and art awards in Portugal, it was possible to verify that there is a notorious underrepresentation of women, whose proportion rarely exceeds one third. Despite some positive signs of change in the cohorts of younger female artists, the results show that women occupy, in relation to men, peripheral positions of recognition and legitimacy in the field. Thus, it is concluded that they may also face greater difficulties in accessing and developing their professional careers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we trace a conceptual roadmap aimed at reconciling a life course perspective with the sociology of class and social inequality. We begin by presenting the life course perspective, reflecting on the central role it grants to processes of institutional regulation. Taking stock of critiques to both atomist explanations of agency and structural determinisms, we advocate for a longitudinal reading of how inequalities shape individual and collective trajectories, mobilizing concepts advanced by Pierre Bourdieu. We then demonstrate the potential of this approach to discuss how life course trajectories unfold in late modernity, drawing on recent research on Portugal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]