The Feminist Art Movement In America

Inspired by the women's movement and rebelling against the male-dominated art scene of the 1960s,

The feminist movement began in the 1960s, as women’s groups searched for equality in the workplace. The movement resulted in the increased participation of women in the paid workforce, and

The media also played a role in the Women’s Movement. For starters there were now shows on television about women who were unmarried with careers, one particular show was called “That Women.” Prior to the Women’s Movement you would of never seen a show revolved around a women’s career path, but instead the typical family where the man of the house goes to work, and comes home to a clean home and dinner on the table that the woman slaved

My favorite era is the Contemporary Era. In history, the Contemporary Era is a time that had profound changes the modernized the identity of the development of many new cities. In the early modern era, people and cities grew through the spirit of modernism throughout all over the world. People were going away with cultural traditions and starting a new civilization future for the twentieth century. The founding on new discoveries cause new foundation trends to be expressed with a new understanding in believing and living.

During the late 1980’s and early 1990’s two groups emerged within the Houston art scene. On one side of the spectrum you had the Houston Gorilla Girls who based themselves off of the global movement of Guerilla Girls, which had started in New York City. These girls strutted around in gorilla suits, in order to protect their identities, and fought for the rights of not only women artists but artists of color as well. They took out “hits” on many popular art galleries and even museums around Houston that they felt did not do enough to represent female artists, drawing mass publicity and attention. They were revolutionaries in their approach to the art scene, they were not happy with the way that women were being represented as there were so few

During, the 1960s and 70s American Feminist Movement, women had begun to protest for the same human rights as men. The main areas of protest in The United States of America were Boston, Los Angeles, and New York City. There were many ways to protest, including writing, art, and organizations. There were many writers who wrote about feminism during this time, some include Betty Friedan, Robin Morgan, and Kate Millett. Art also encouraged feminism, specifically the paintings by Judy Chicago and Miriam Schapiro. There were many feminist groups that protested for equal rights, some of which were The National Black Feminist Organization, The National Organization For Women, Bread and Roses, and The Chicago Women's Liberation Union. In the 1960s and 70s,

Throughout history in the world of art women had a hard time getting their works represented by galleries. Women artists, motivated by the feminist movement, began the feminist art movement in the 1970s. Feminist art represented a shift in art culture, from when art made by women was put in an "other" or different class than works made by men. Judy Chicago coined the term "feminist art" and had founded the first feminist art program in the United States. One of her most famous piece is named “The Dinner Party” now in the collection of the Brooklyn Museum.

Women’s rights have evolved over time; beginning with being homemakers and evolving to obtaining professions, acquiring an education, and gaining the right to vote. The movement that created all these revolutionary changes was called the feminist movement. The feminist movement occurred in the twentieth century. Many people are not aware of the purpose of the feminist movement. The movement was political and social and it sought to set up equality for women. Women’s groups in the United States worked together to win women’s suffrage and later to create and support the Equal Rights Amendment. The economic boom between 1917 and the early 1960s brought many American women into the workplace. As women began to join

Art was a way for women to highlight inequality and prejudice they faced. Their art reflected the unfair treatment that endured. Though not too much feminist art was produced at this time it did pave way for activism. Frida Kahlo was a female painter who was well known for depicting feminist themes in her paintings. Some of her paintings exposed unhealthy marriages, domestic violence, and the effects they had. Though she didn’t have a feminist intent, Kahlo became a representative for the feminist movement, and many of her paintings were used as

Feminism was a cultural movement born in the late nineteenth century, following the booming of the Industrial Revolution and the formation of diverse social ideologies. Feminism originated in France and then was gradually introduced to other countries such a the United Kingdom and the United States. Feminism was officially introduced into China during the May Fourth Movement and Feminist Art rose up in the Chinese contemporary art scene around 1990s.

The feminist movement which falls into 3 different waves. The first wave between 1800s to early 1900s where white women largely of the middle class can vote. But exclusion of women of color and poor women. The second wave between 1960s to 1980s whereas the issues of sexuality, family, work, reproduction, domestic violence and rape was a problem that they faced. Women of color emerge into being a part of the movement.

The goal for feminist artists all along has been the gender-blind interpretation of art, allowing women equal opportunity for success. Feminists have long cried for museum curators and art collectors to see more than just “male” or “female” in a work. However, politics tend to get in the way, and it may be argued that, by clamoring for equality, women have isolated themselves further, making female art a socially-conscious fad rather than a respectable institution. In Women, Art and Society, Whitney Chadwick elaborates: “Feminist critics remain sensitive to the dangers of confusing tokenism with equal representation” (1990). Fear of such tokenism, and perhaps too much emphasis placed on inequalities, has made feminism somewhat of a “dirty word” to some artists today.

Regardless of the difficulty, these artists have what it seemed as a successful art career. What is clear, the need to exhibit in a mainstream gallery or museum is not a priority, being consistence and creating a network is important. I do not believe any of these artists would turn away an exhibit in a mainstream gallery or museum. There is a great difference in the support network system in the 1970’s than today. For Picket and Washington there were black art organizations, which helped them enter the art world and in their personal life. There was a personal mentorship during the Black Feminist Art Movement that is not seen with artists today. I believe after the 1980’ the Black Feminist Art Movement started to slowly dismantle into more individual concerns. There is definitely a gap worth researching between the 1990’s to the present with the absent of the Black Feminist Art Movement. The two married artist Seneferu and Butler have very supportive husbands. Pickett and Washington already have a long established support system. James did not mention whether her marital status has any effect on her art career. One thing these five artists concurred, being a successful black female artist was about your connections and not always your race or sex. Still, the purpose of this research is not how successful black female artist are in their career, but rather it is about the deliberate exclusion from mainstream galleries and museums based on their sex and race.

A clearly defined Black feminist perspective cannot be found in the K-12 art education curriculum at this time. Although several articles from Wanda Knight and Jessie Whitehead have discussed the importance of including a Black feminist and woman of color perspective, nothing definitive can be found in the current art education curriculum. Through the use of Charles Mills’ theory of “revisionist ontology,” I will discuss the importance and value of including a Black feminist perspective in the K-12 art education curriculum.

Mangai had a slightly different background that most of the feminists from India. Mangai didn’t have the same struggles that the other feminists had had, thus leading them to feminism. Rather, Mangai came from a place of education that led her to feminism. Mangai would use a very unique approach to the feminist movement involving the arts and theater. With all of that being said, I feel that I can dive a little into her past.