The term has also been used to refer to female artists who excel in a particular field and whose achievements, in contrast with political first ladies, have nothing to do with their spouse.

• Ruth Saint Denis was often referred to as “The First Lady of American Dance”—as she greatly influenced the development of this art form in the U.S.
• Another example is Ella Fitzgerald, who is often referred to as “The First Lady of Song”
• “The death of a great artist marks the moment when they pass into art history, the moment when their significance begins to crystallize for future generations. In the case of Betty Goodwin, that legacy is unusually rich. She was Canadian art’s first lady of soul, a painter, printmaker and sculptor whose work expressed aspects of our national character (our collective experience of cultural diaspora, our terror of landscape, our humanism and pacifism) in ways that were unprecedented and powerful.”—Sarah Milroy, “Death and loss defined artist as Canada’s first lady of soul; Painter, printmaker and sculptor explored the phenomenon of absence to become an artist’s artist who reshaped figurative painting in Canada and revealed much about our national character,” The Globe and Mail, December 6, 2008
• “Born in Brussels, Peellaert first came to public attention in the French-speaking world in 1966 through his early work as a comic artist in a pop art vein with his character Jodelle…Jodelle was modelled on the singer Sylvie Vartan, widely viewed as her generation’s first lady of ye-ye in France. Pravda was based on Francoise Hardy, the icon of cool French pop.”—Ken Hunt, “Obituary: Guy Peellaert: Belgian artist most famous for his rock dreamscapes,” The Guardian (UK), January 29, 2009
• “Another project with a question mark over it is a proposal for an ‘eco-town’ in Stratford-upon-Avon. The nationwide scheme was announced by the Prime Minister in 2008, but Gordon Brown quickly found himself under attack by the first lady of acting: Dame Judi Dench. Joining thousands of other residents in opposing the proposed 6,000-house development in the area, she said: ‘There can be very few places in the world of such cultural significance…It is folly to put this at risk.’ The town was not among the first four eco-town sites announced in July.”—Stuart Parson, “Small towns 1, big business 0,” The Times (UK), October 14, 2009.

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