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WHAT IS FEMINIST ART?

We can find at least a hundred definitions for what is feminist art is, such as “Art by women artists made consciously in the light of developments in feminist art theory since about 1970.” or “Art that seeks to challenge the dominance of men in both art and society, to gain recognition and equality for women artists, and to question assumptions” or even “Feminist art is a category of art associated with the late 1960s and 1970s feminist movement. Feminist art highlights the societal and political differences women experience within their lives.”. And they will be absolutely correct. It is a magical compilation of many things beautiful and ugly, but all that make womanhood what it is, and shows what it shouldn't be.

PUBLIC AND NOT SO MUCH....

Why this has such a heading is because feminist art since the beginning of it was made to be public in order for voices to be heard, but that voice was always silenced even thought art forms. It was deemed as inadequate and to loud, “Since the beginning of the women artists’ movement an important theme of feminist work has been the conscious assertion of the self as “Other,” to use Simone de Beauvoir’s term. Furthermore, the work—as feminist art—has asserted itself as the practice of the (insurgent) Other; that is, as a form of guerrilla activity.”. It was a time when women found a way to speak with no words but were still being silenced and told that this form of art is unfit simply because of people not wanting to change their standards and views.

Specifically focusing on the west coast work, women used “performance” as a way of art and expression. This was one of the widely chosen ways of art due to lack of materials. The main focus was to use women's anger and emotions to provoke emotions from the viewers, “Anger was put to positive use in the redirection of energy formerly invested in the “forced labor” of domestic maintenance. In burlesquing and overstating the passive, dependent, and depressive roles—represented by restrictive or emblematic clothing such as aprons, as well as by physical bearing—the performers signaled their taking of control.”.

HISTORY

The WOMEN'S BUILDING was a non-profit arts and education center located in Los Angeles, California. The Woman's Building focused on feminist art and served as a venue for the women's movement and was spearheaded by artist Judy Chicago

he Woman's Building Archive

THE FEMINIST ADVOCACY FOR WOMEN REPRESENTATION IN THE ART SCENE

Though the Feminist Art movement has manifested itself all over California, however Feminist Art Spaces in the city of Los Angeles have thrived since the 1970s. Though the Feminist perspective of history might not always be viewed through a feminist lens, with that in mind, Ruth E. Iskin has been closely monitoring and documenting the Feminist Art Movement throughout Los Angeles.

Unsurprisingly, the patriarchal culture we live in further promotes the marginalization of women not only in the art scene, but in other facets of society as well. However, within the recent decade, Iskin has found that conditions for feminist art have vastly improved, with opportunities for feminist art to thrive in the near future. Despite these drastic changes, An LA Times article in 2013 provided research in regards to “Los Angeles art institutions, both LACMA and MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art), as well as comparing their statistics to those of UCLA’s Hammer Museum. Out of the three, LACMA’s percentage of women artists of solo exhibitions was the lowest, sitting at 18%, while MOCA’s was 28% and the Hammer Museum’s shows were 50% women.”

Though these statistics are not great by any stretch, they do bode to the growth of feminist art and woman representation in the Art industry. Iskin has helped monitor the movement and continues to actively work to find new opportunities to further feminism and art in California.

CALIFORNIA FEMINIST ORGANIZATIONS AND ARTIST

1. Arlene Raven
2. Lucy Lippard
3. Womanhouse project
4. Joyce Kozloff
5. Sheila de Bretteville

FEMINIST ART COALITION

(FAC) is a platform for art projects informed by feminisms*. FAC fosters collaborations between arts institutions that aim to make public their commitment to social justice and structural change. It seeks to generate cultural awareness of feminist thought, experience, and action. The Feminist Art Coalition (FAC) was conceived by Apsara DiQuinzio in early 2017 in response to the 2016 presidential election and was inspired by the Women’s March that took place worldwide on January 21, 2017, a day after the U.S. presidential inauguration. DiQuinzio reached out to colleagues in the field who then began informally meeting to conceptualize a nationwide collective initiative that would highlight feminist practices in the arts. Feminist Art Coalition

EXHIBITIONS TO VISIT IN CALIFORNIA

Witch Hunt October 10, 2021 - January 9, 2022

"Sixteen critically acclaimed artists employ feminist, queer, and decolonial strategies to explore gender, power, and the global impacts of patriarchy."

Chicago: A Retrospective August 28, 2021 – January 9, 2022

"Organized on the heels of the 40th anniversary of Chicago's landmark installation, The Dinner Party, in San Francisco and opening in conjunction with the 100th anniversary of women’s right to vote across the United States, Judy Chicago: A Retrospective pays homage to an artist whose lifelong fight against the suppression and erasure of women’s creativity has finally come full circle."