2. JUDY CHICAGO
Chicago is an American
artist, author, feminist, educator, and
intellectual
Her art has been frequently exhibited in
the United States and internationally
By the 1970s, Chicago had coined the
term ―feminist art‖ and had founded the
first feminist art programme in the United
States
3. The Dinner Party, 1979, by Judy Chicago is an icon of feminist art, which represents 1,038
women in history—39 women are represented by place settings and another 999 names
are inscribed in the Heritage Floor on which the table rests. This monumental work of
art is comprised of a triangular table divided by three wings, each 48 feet long.
This exhibition is very symbolic and celebrates the achievements of women over the centuries. If I
was to create something similar, I would need a large budget and a huge team of designers and
researchers. This project wouldn’t be possible to do solo. To fit my time scale and money budget, I
would maybe create a smaller piece like a tapestry or patchwork blanket. For representing it through
clothing, I would choose the most traditional garment (for instance of a Goddess) and create a time
line of names and story.
4. THE ENTRY BANNERS
There are six woven entry banners (5' 6" x 3' 6" each) welcoming visitors
into the Dinner Party. The banners follow the red, gold, white and black
colour scheme and include motifs found throughout the piece, for instance
the triangular, floral, and abstracted butterfly forms.
Judy Chicago was inspired to use Renaissance
pictorial weaving when she discovered that
women were prohibited from working on the
high-warp looms.
5. THE ENTRY BANNERS
―Woven into the banners are a series of phrases intended to convey
Chicago's vision for a equalized world, one in which women's
history and perspectives are fully recognized and integrated into all
aspects of human civilization. A line from the following text is
depicted in each tapestry respectively:
And She Gathered All before Her And She made for them A Sign to
See And lo They saw a Vision From this day forth Like to like in All
things And then all that divided them merged And then Everywhere was Eden
Once again”
It’s a rather inspirational
quote, suggesting the ideal utopia
of both genders being equal.
―Eden Once again‖ suggesting
that the world will be paradise
when everyone is equal.
6. PLACE SETTINGS
The tables are set in a triangular shape
(triangles represent equality), with each seat
decorated with a gold ceramic chalice and
utensils, a napkin with an embroidered
edge, and a fourteen-inch china-painted
plate with a central motif based on
butterfly and vulvar forms. Each place
setting is designed in a style suitable to the
individual woman being honored.
These plates that are hand painted and designed
to fit the individual woman they are
representing, are very personal and unique. I have
done a lot of hand painting in my other pieces, so
maybe I can try another method that would give a
similar effect: photo shop images and digital
print.
7. PLACE SETTINGS
―Wing One of the table begins in prehistory with the Primordial Goddess
and continues chronologically with the development of Judaism; it then
moves to early Greek societies to the Roman Empire, marking the decline
in women's power, signified by Hypatia's place setting. Wing Two
represents early Christianity through the Reformation, depicting women
who signify early expressions of the fight for equal rights, from Marcella
to Anna van Schurman. Wing Three begins with Anne Hutchinson and
addresses the American Revolution, Suffragism, and the movement
toward women's increased individual creative expression, symbolized at
last by Georgia O'Keeffe.‖ – Brooklyn Museum
8. HERITAGE FLOOR
The heritage floor is an equilateral
triangle in the centre of the Dinner
Party, decorated with 999 mythical
and historical women of
achievement names. It took over two
years to finish.
"how many women had struggled into prominence or been able to make their ideas
known—sometimes in the face of overwhelming obstacles—only (like the women
on the table) to have their hard-earned achievements marginalized or erased" -
Chicago
9. HERITAGE PANELS
There are seven heritage panels that are
hand coloured photo and text
collages, portraying the lives of the
mythical and historical women whose
names are inscribed in the Heritage
Floor.
Judy Chicago, with the help of a team
of researchers, selected 999 women
from prehistory to the 20th
century, whose example impacted
women's history and the improvement
of women's conditions.
