Community: feminist.bloggers@brooklynmuseum

Maura Reilly and Roseanne Barr, June 25, 2007. Photo © Adam Husted

Dear Feminists,

I’m giddy with excitement when I tell you that one of the greatest comic geniuses of all time visited us here yesterday at the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art. She came–as a self-declared, longstanding feminist–to see the Center and Judy Chicago’s The Dinner Party. Ms. Chicago–who is an old friend of Roseanne’s–was there to give her a personalized tour of the masterpiece, after which I showed her our inaugural exhibition Global Feminisms. She was delighted with it all! As was no surprise to any of us, she was brilliant, warm, and delightful to be with.

Thank you for the visit, Roseanne. Come again–and bring friends!!!

LAST CALL! Global Feminisms, the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art’s inaugural exhibition, is coming to a close on July 1st. If you haven’t seen the show yet, or if you’d like to see it all over again, come visit during this final week. If you can’t make it out, Global Feminisms moves to the Davis Museum at Wellesley College in the fall. (Photo: Pilar Albarracin, still from Forbidden Singing (Prohibido el cante), 2000)

Also check out…

Katarzyna Kozyra is featured in the group show Not Your Parents’ MTV: Music Videos From Hell at Postmasters Gallery, New York (June 28- July 28) . She will be screening her videos Cheerleader and Diva Reincarnation.

Role Exchange at Sean Kelly Gallery, June 29-August 3. A group show featuring some of our favorites: Marina Abramovic, Laurie Anderson, Sophie Calle, Cindy Sherman, and many others. The show brings together a varying set of works that address questions of identity, gender, and society. (Photo: Marina Abramovic, Role Exchange. 1975; published in 1994. 2 black and white photographs with 1 letter press text panel)

She Was Born to be My Unicorn, curated by Amy Kellner and featuring too many cool artists to name, opens June 28th and runs through July 28th at Smith Stewart on Stanton St., NYC.

Undressed: Works by Kate Kretz at the Belger Art Center, Kansas City, Missouri. Through September 7. An exhibition of two series by Kretz- Hair Embroideries and Psychological Clothing. In the Psychological Clothing series, Kretz creates clothing for parts of the body and intimate situations. Her work is unusual, arresting, and explores the psychology of her imagined feminine subjects and anatomy. (Photo: Passive/Repressed Anger Dress (detail) found dress, underlayer hand embroidered with passive phrases (I’m sorry… I don’t mind…”etc.), beginning at the throat as white text, getting darker as it descends and “knots” in the stomach. size 8. 2002, courtesy of the artist.)

Global Feminisms artist Ingrid Mwangi works as a collaborative team with Robert Hutter as the German-based artist collective INGRIDMWANGIROBERTHUTTER. Check out the duo’s first solo New York exhibition Select Videos 2006/2007 at BRIC’S Rotunda Gallery, running from June 20th to July 20th. (Image: INGRIDMWANGIROBERTHUTTER, still from Being Bamako, 2007)

Other cool shows to see this week (as researched and recommended by our amazing intern Lauren Palmor) include:

The Great Cover-Up: American Rugs on Beds, Tables, and Floors at the American Folk Art Museum, on view through September 9th. This show contains work by dozens of women artists, many who were previously unidentified or named as “anonymous.” A fascinating and colorful look into the world of American women’s crafts from the 19th and early 20th centuries. Roberta Smith’s review in the N.Y. Times highlights the show’s feminist spin.

Amelia Earhart: Image and Icon on view through September 9th. This exhibition at the ICP makes a connection between Earhart as a historic icon and images of her public persona. Before you see the show, you can brush up on her story with a visit to her page our Dinner Party Database.

Circa 1970, a show of works by Lynda Benglis and Louise Bourgeois opens on June 21st at Cheim and Read gallery. The exhibition focuses on works produced by the two artists from the 1960s and 70s. You can also learn about Lynda Benglis on our Feminist Art Base before you visit the show! (Image: Cheim and Read)

Also…

The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum is celebrating its tenth anniversary! 2007 has been declared “The Year of O’Keeffe” by the Santa Fe city council, as well as the New Mexico state legislature. Join in the celebration by attending some of the amazing upcoming events at the O’Keeffe Museum. Learn more about O’Keeffe in our Dinner Party Database. (Image: Alfred Stieglitz. Georgia O’Keeffe, 1919. Courtesy of Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C. LC-USZC4-6228)

Please join us for an installment of The Dinner Party Lecture Series:
Craig Barnes–In Search of the Lost Feminine

Saturday, June 30th, 2007, 2-4 p.m.
Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Forum, 4th Floor

Craig S. Barnes lectures on his book In Search of the Lost Feminine: Decoding the Myths That Radically Reshaped Civilization. He discusses the earliest civilizations in which women and the environment were at the center, the contributing factors in the creation of patriarchal societies, which have dominated for 3,500 years, and the dramatic effect this change has had on Western history.

A book signing on the first floor will immediately follow the lecture.

Craig S. Barnes, a former lawyer for women’s rights and the environment, and international negotiator/mediator, is an author, playwright, and essayist. In Search of the Lost Feminine: Decoding the Myths That Radically Reshaped Civilization is available through Fulcrum Books. He is also the author of Growing Up True: A Memoir.

(Image: Molded Breasts Linked by Ever Continuing Spirals that Decorated the Ceiling around All Four Walls of a Large Hall at the Palace at Zakros. Herakleion Museum, Crete. From In Search of the Lost Feminine, by Craig S. Barnes, Golden, Colorado: Fulcrum Publishing, 2006)

We are a bit late reporting on this bit of news, but feel it is an important Alert! nonetheless. In the recent Ledbetter v. Goodyear case, the Supreme Court ruled–by a one vote margin–that an employee must file a wage discrimination complaint within 180 days of the act of discriminatory pay. This decision greatly effects women, who are all too often the victims of such discrimination (currently only earning 77 cents to every dollar earned by a man) and who, like Lilly Ledbetter in this case, perhaps do not want to rock the boat in a new job. Does it not take time to determine if you are being discriminated against? To learn more about this case, here are some links: National Women’s Law Center; National Organization for Women; PBS; Ms. Magazine; and Women’s E-News.

On a related note, ABC news did a report back in April on the Wage Gap and I was interested in the empowerment message in the article–ask for what you are worth! Certainly its not that simple, but have a read!