P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center presents WACK! Art and the Feminist Revolution, the first comprehensive, historical exhibition to examine the international foundations and legacy of feminist art. Organized by MOCA Ahmanson Curatorial Fellow Connie Butler for The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, WACK! focuses on the crucial period of the 1970s, during which the majority of feminist activism and art making occurred internationally. Praising the exhibition, P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center Director Alanna Heiss notes: "In addition to exploring international occurrences of feminist art, the show emphasizes New York's role in the movement, as well as its relationship with each artist involved. This is a particularly happy coincidence for P.S.1, as Connie Butler, the curator of WACK! in Los Angeles, has since last year joined the staff at the Museum of Modern Art, and will work on the very special installation of the exhibition with P.S.1 Director of Operations and Exhibitions Design Antoine Guerrero." This exhibition will be displayed on the entire First and Second Floors, and in the Third Floor Main Gallery from February 17, 2008 through May 12, 2008.
The exhibition spans the period of 1965 to 1980 and includes 120 artists and artist groups from the United States, Central and Eastern Europe, Latin America, Asia, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. WACK! includes work by women who operated within the political structure of feminism as well as women who did not necessarily embrace feminism as part of their practice, but were impacted by the movement. Comprising work in a broad range of media—including painting, sculpture, photography, film, video, and performance art—the exhibition is organized around themes based on media, geography, formal concerns, collective aesthetic, and political impulses. The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue.
A series of performances and panel discussions presented in the Third Floor Main Gallery connected featured artists with younger generations inspired by feminism. To listen to audio recordings from the events, visit Clocktower.
WACK! Art and the Feminist Revolution is organized by The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.
The presentation of the exhibition at P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center is made possible by Kathy and Richard S. Fuld, Jr., Agnes Gund, Jerry I. Speyer and Katherine G. Farley, and the Joseph and Joan Cullman Foundation for the Arts, Inc.