I
feel that in my short twenty years of this life I have more than earned
the title “woman.” I take pride in the fact that I am of the
same gender of many amazing females that have preceded me. There have
been such women as poet Emily Dickinson, the phenomenal woman author Charlotte
Bronte and the celebrated soprano Jenny Lind. There are many other women
who have made their mark in the arts. These women, many of whom suffered
physical ailments, societal pressures, and the other issues that faced
women of the past, all have one thing in common. These women all beat
the oppression and the odds and rose to become some of the most recognized
and achieved artisans in history, male o female. And Judy Chicago decided
to have them all over for a dinner party. Sadly, this dinner party is
over. The name, Judy Chicago is synonymous with feminist art. A native
of the Chicago are, Judy received a Bachelor of Art from the University
of California, Los Angeles in 1962 and then went on to obtain her Masters
of Art from the University of California in 1964. Judy blazed the trail
for many women artists to follow her by beginning a program known as Womanhouse.
This is one of the first times in the history of art that there was a
program dedicated entirely to women’s candid views in art. Judy Chicago
has paved the way for many female artists through this program.
Though
Judy is responsible for many great programs and works of art, perhaps
her most compelling piece is "The Dinner Party.” Between the
years 1974 and 1979, Judy, along with the help of hundreds of others volunteering
to assist her, completed this masterpiece. This sizable masterwork is
both a stunning success as well as a tragedy. “The Dinner Party,”
is a triangular work that is 48 x 43 x 36 feet. This project is best described
as “…a triangular configuration, that employs numerous media,
including ceramics, china-painting, and needlework, to honor women’s
achievements. An immense open table covered with fine white cloths is
set with thirty-nine place settings, thirteen on a side, each commemorating
a goddess, historic personage or important woman (Viking, “The Dinner
Party,” pg. 3).”
Each place setting is set with a plate that iconographically depicts the
woman who it represents as well as her achievements. While Judy was creating
the plate, and researching the women she came to the realization that
there were so many women that should be represented in this work that
it would be near impossible to set them all a place at the table. Judy
instead added a floor for the table to sit on. It is know as “Heritage
Floor.” The floor itself is made up of 2300 white, handcast, porcelain
tiles. The 999 names are scribed on the floor with gold luster and iridescent
rainbow luster. They are grouped together by commonalties that exist among
them.
This
powerful piece has spoken to over one million viewers who have had the
opportunity to experience it. Sadly, it has spent nearly the last twenty
years in storage. Attempts were mad to raise the million plus dollars
it would take to build a museum to house this work, but the attempts failed.
This piece of art is lost to the millions of women and artists it has
the potential to inspire and inform. It is true heartbreak that even in
today’s world the effort so women are still being undervalued. It
is with this quote that I close...[not permanently housing “The Dinner
Party] “is not only a symptom of women’s oppression, but its
very manifestation (Lerner, Gerda. Viking. “The Dinner Party. Pg.
225-226.”
I
feel that in my short twenty years of this life I have more than earned
the title “woman.” I take pride in the fact that I am of the
same gender of many amazing females that have preceded me. There have
been such women as poet Emily Dickinson, the phenomenal woman author Charlotte
Bronte and the celebrated soprano Jenny Lind. There are many other women
who have made their mark in the arts. These women, many of whom suffered
physical ailments, societal pressures, and the other issues that faced
women of the past, all have one thing in common. These women all beat
the oppression and the odds and rose to become some of the most recognized
and achieved artisans in history, male o female. And Judy Chicago decided
to have them all over for a dinner party. Sadly, this dinner party is
over. The name, Judy Chicago is synonymous with feminist art. A native
of the Chicago are, Judy received a Bachelor of Art from the University
of California, Los Angeles in 1962 and then went on to obtain her Masters
of Art from the University of California in 1964. Judy blazed the trail
for many women artists to follow her by beginning a program known as Womanhouse.
This is one of the first times in the history of art that there was a
program dedicated entirely to women’s candid views in art. Judy Chicago
has paved the way for many female artists through this program.
Though
Judy is responsible for many great programs and works of art, perhaps
her most compelling piece is "The Dinner Party.” Between the
years 1974 and 1979, Judy, along with the help of hundreds of others volunteering
to assist her, completed this masterpiece. This sizable masterwork is
both a stunning success as well as a tragedy. “The Dinner Party,”
is a triangular work that is 48 x 43 x 36 feet. This project is best described
as “…a triangular configuration, that employs numerous media,
including ceramics, china-painting, and needlework, to honor women’s
achievements. An immense open table covered with fine white cloths is
set with thirty-nine place settings, thirteen on a side, each commemorating
a goddess, historic personage or important woman (Viking, “The Dinner
Party,” pg. 3).”
Each place setting is set with a plate that iconographically depicts the
woman who it represents as well as her achievements. While Judy was creating
the plate, and researching the women she came to the realization that
there were so many women that should be represented in this work that
it would be near impossible to set them all a place at the table. Judy
instead added a floor for the table to sit on. It is know as “Heritage
Floor.” The floor itself is made up of 2300 white, handcast, porcelain
tiles. The 999 names are scribed on the floor with gold luster and iridescent
rainbow luster. They are grouped together by commonalties that exist among
them.
This
powerful piece has spoken to over one million viewers who have had the
opportunity to experience it. Sadly, it has spent nearly the last twenty
years in storage. Attempts were mad to raise the million plus dollars
it would take to build a museum to house this work, but the attempts failed.
This piece of art is lost to the millions of women and artists it has
the potential to inspire and inform. It is true heartbreak that even in
today’s world the effort so women are still being undervalued. It
is with this quote that I close...[not permanently housing “The Dinner
Party] “is not only a symptom of women’s oppression, but its
very manifestation (Lerner, Gerda. Viking. “The Dinner Party. Pg.
225-226.”