Women's
Art Organisations Q: What is a timeline ?
A: A linear chronology, often used in art history to map out the relationship between exhibitions and events in social and political life. A timeline is often used to indicate the development of an avantgarde group through meetings, exhibitions and political actions.
Q: Where are the timelines for the women's art movement and feminist art practices since 1970 ?
A: See the bibliographic references given below for different histories of the women's art movement in several different countries. If you can add to this list - or have done similar unpublished research in your own country, please contact the editor and share your knowledge: k.deepwell@ukonline.co.uk
Introduction
Feminist art histories of the contemporary women's art movement and the history of exhibitions of women's art have repeatedly documented the relationship of the women's art movement to events and actions in the Women's Liberation/ feminist movement since the 1970s. The publication of books, the holding of exhibitions, conferences and political actions have all informed these early accounts and Timelines. One characteristic of this picture has been the building of, what are in effect, "national" pictures of feminism, based on events in major towns and cities in one specific country. Until feminism develops a greater knowledge of events in different parts of the world, any understanding of feminism as an international phenomenon will remain partial and run the risk of reinforcing an implicit "nationalism". The information on this page is designed to encourage researchers to expand their horizons beyond their national borders and to encourage a trans-national dialogue within feminism about the relationship between feminist histories in different parts of the world.
The Timeline is only a graphic indication of the emergence of events - but as Alfred J.Barr's plan of the progress of modern art written in 1935 for the new Museum of Modern Art in New York indicated - it can have quite dramatic effects in framing our understanding of the progress of avantgarde movements for museums and for cultural knowledge. Below are only ones currently known to the editor, from a handful of countries:- Australia, Canada, Germany, Taiwan, UK, USA.
Viewers are invited to add to this list any other useful resources from any other country or email comments to the editor which critique any of the timelines referred to here - for their omissions, their emphases and their accuracy - these comments will be posted as they come in - onto this page: k.deepwell@ukonline.co.uk
Australia
Barbara Hall 'The Women's Liberation Movement and the visual arts: a Selected Chronology, 1969-1990' in Catriona Moore (ed) Dissonance: Feminist and the Arts 1970-1990 (Australia: Allen and Unwin, Artspace,1994)
J. Kent (ed) Setting the Pace: The South Australian Women's Art Movement 1980-1983 (Adelaide: South Australian Women's Art Movement, 1984) events of 'W.A.M activities, 1980-1983' pp.111-117; Jane Kent 'Herstory of W.A.M. 1976-1983' pp.88-92.
Canada
Carol Williams 'A Working Chronology of Feminist Cultural Activities and Events in Vancouver, 1970-1990' in Stan Douglas (ed) The Vancouver Anthology: The institutional Politics of Art (Vancouver: Talon Books, 1991)
Germany
Irene Below 'Die Utopie der Neuen Frau setzt die Archäologie der alten voraus' in Anne Schülter/Ingeborg Stahr (eds) Wohin geht die Frauenforschung? (Germany: Köln and Austria:Wien, Böhlau, 1990) pp.101-125.
(This text lists art events, exhibitions, initiatives in the woman's art movement in Germany from 1969 to the late 1980s with an extensive booklist of publications from Germany)
For a cultural timeline of the feminist movement and cultural developments in Germany see:
'Die Autonome Frauenbewegung, 1968-1980' in Viktoria Schmidt-Lisenhoff, Detlef Hoffmann, Almut Junker, Sabine Kübler, Roswitha Mattausch Frauenalltag und Frauenbewegung 1890-1980. (Frankfurt, Historisches Museum exhibition catalogue. Basel: Stroefeld, Frankfurt am Main: Roter Stern, 1981)
'Chronik des Vereins der Berliner Künstlerinnen, 1867-1992' in Carolya Muyser (ed) Profession ohne Tradition: 125 Jahre der Verein Berliner Künstlerrinnen (Berlin: Berlinische Galerie,1992) pp.426-463.
(A listing of women's art organisations in Berlin and their activities, 1867-1992)
Mexico
Monica Mayer Si Somos Muchas Y No Somos Machas: Una recopilación de textos periodísticos sobre mujeres artistas de Mónica Mayer. Ediciones al Vapor, 2001.
María Araceli Barbosa Sánchez 'LA PERSPECTIVA DE GÉNERO Y EL ARTE DE MUJERES EN MÉXICO (1983-1993)'. Phd Thesis. Facultad de Filosofía y Letras. División de Estudios de Posgrado. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 2000
Taiwan
Elsa Chen 'Reading Feminist Dimensions of Contemporary Art in Taiwan' in Binghui Huangfu Text and Sub-Text: Contemporary Art and Asian Women (Singapore: LASALLE-SIA College of the Arts, 2000) pp.75-87.
(Table 1: p.75 lists exhibitions of women artists held in Taiwan from 1989-1999)
Mind and Spirit : Women's Art in Taiwan (Taiwan: Taipei Museum of Fine Art, 18 April-9 Sept 1998, curator:Ying-Ying Lai. Text in Chinese, except English summaries)
(This chronology links Taiwanese developments to European developments across the 20th Century)
UK
Margaret Harrison 'Notes on Feminist Art in Britain, 1970-1977' Studio International vol. 193, no.987, 1977.
R. Parker and G. Pollock Framing Feminism: Art and the Women's Art Movement, 1970-1985 (London,Pandora/ RKP, 1987). Dossiers section, chronologically republishes texts from the women's art movement in the UK.
USA
Carrie Rickey 'Timeline: A Highly Selective Chronology, 1970-1990' in Norma Broude and Mary Garrard The Power of Feminist Art : Emergence,Impact and Triumph of the American Feminist Art Movement (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1994)
If you can cite the details of other timelines of the history of women's
art exhibitions and the history of the women's art movement from different
countries, please send these to:
k.deepwell@ukonline.co.uk