|
Reflections
on the 2001 Feminist Art Symposium (Continued)
By Karen LeCocq
The last full day of the symposium began with a panel discussion of feminist art history moderated by Gina Strumwasser, professor of art history, CSU Fresno. Laura Meyer, professor of art history, UCLA spoke on "From Finish Fetish to Feminism, or How Judy Chicago and 15 Young Women at a Rural California Campus Changed The Course Of Art History," contrasting the slick art of L.A. in the '60's with the softer, more exposed art of feminism in the '70's. She presented examples of Judy Chicago's graduate work at UCLA in the 1960's, showing how she had to tone it down and make it "macho" to fit into the L.A. art scene at the time and contrasted it with her feminist work in the 1970's. Likewise, she presented slides of Miriam Schapiro's work in the 1960's, her hard edged Ox paintings, and contrasted them with her softer images in the '70's. On the same panel, Gloria Orenstein, professor of comparative literature, University of Southern California, told of "Salon Women of the Second Wave: Honoring the Great Matrilineage of Creators of Culture."
|
In the first of the afternoon sessions there was a panel concerning feminist art and the community with visual artist Yolanda Lopez speaking on "Explorations: Feminism, Art, Citizenship". The last panel of the symposium concerned feminist performance art with Suzanne Lacy, internationally known performance artist whose work deals with social themes and urban issues. Lacy spoke about her large scale performance pieces and showed video clips of Crystal Quilt, a piece involving 430 older women performed on Mother's Day, 1987, in the Crystal Court of the IDS Building [a corporate headquarters - ed.] in downtown Minneapolis.
 |
|
|
The women were dressed in black and seated four to a table. Each table was covered with black cloth which the women removed, revealing either a red or yellow tablecloth. When viewed from above, the design created by the bright squares of cloth gave the illusion of an immense quilt, a pattern designed by Miriam
Schapiro. The power of the piece was heightened by choreographed hand movements and an audio tape by Susan Stone consisting of nature sounds and excerpts of conversation by women as they told their experiences with aging.
|
|
|
The symposium was a success in many ways. It demonstrated the lasting significance of Judy Chicago's original feminist art program and the legacy it brought to future generations of women artists. Also, was attended by people from a wide range of disciplines, not only in art, women's studies or history, and it was attended by people of both genders. Everyone was brought together and information was shared. To a new generation of artists, the symposium provided a window to what the women before them experienced and how they managed to accomplish what they did despite the odds against them. It also provided a connection, or a reconnection in some cases, with women seeking the support of like minds and as one of the women put it, "It reaffirmed our place in history."
|
For me, it was amazing to be in the presence of so many vibrant and knowledgeable women from my past and reaffirm the bonds and beliefs that brought us together some thirty years ago. The experience brought back a little of the my former feelings of "that group strength, support, the sharing of ideas, the acceptance and the absolute permission to do the outrageous."
|
|
