CAA/WCA Panel: Multiplicities in Dialogue: From Political Caucus to Engaged Community

This session is organized on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Women’s Caucus for Art to explore the trajectory of engaged activism within the women’s art movement from its origins in the sixties and seventies to twenty-first century initiatives. Postmodern, heterogeneous, and extremely diverse: the women’s art movement consists of a multiplicity of art professionals who form partnerships, collaborations, collectives, networks, and alternative learning spaces—often with the aid of new technologies.

Following an Open Forum format, five paired dialogues following session co-chair Tanya Augsburg’s introduction will offer a sampling of contemporary models for innovative artistic engagement that have been inspired and informed by feminist perspectives. Annie Sprinkle and Beth Stephens will discuss their ongoing artist couple partnership in making ecosexual art while raising awareness for marriage equality. The second dialogue will examine global/transnational collaborations with artists Karen Frostig of Lesley University and Yueh-mei Cheng of Finlandia University. During the third dialogue Judy Baca, Founder and Artistic Director of Social and Public Art Resources Center (SPARC), and Cathy Salser, Founder and Executive Director of A Window Between Worlds (AWBW), will reflect upon their experiences leading arts organizations in which engagement with specific communities is an integral part of their personal artistic process. The fourth dialogue will spotlight emergent forms of institutional critique and alternative educational spaces with Jenny Yoo from DIY Graduate School and Dena Muller, Executive Director of ArtTable. Issues of image and identity in both popular media and interactive digital media will be probed during the fifth dialogue with Carol Wells, art historian and Founding Director of the Center for the Study of Political Graphics (CSPG), and Lisa Brenneis, independent artist. Co-Chair Deborah Thomas will provide concluding remarks as discussant. The session will include a participatory dimension that will offer numerous ways to engage the audience including a Q/A period and an online forum where the dialogues can continue after the session.