Mar

7 2024

Miriam Schapiro. Leader of Feminist Art: Accomplishments & Jewish Identity

7:00PM - 8:00PM  

VIRTUAL Program Jewish Federation of the Berkshires 196 South St
Pittsfield, MA 01201
4134424360

Contact Rabbi Daveen Litwin
4134424360
dlitwin@jewishberkshires.org

Via zoom.  Please click HEREto register.

Join Dr. Carol Salus for a presentation on Miriam Schapiro, an artist and educator, who promoted the importance of women in the world of visual arts, so much so that she came to be called the Johnny Appleseed of the field. Mimi, as she was called, along with Judy Chicago, founded the nation’s first Feminist Art Program at Cal Tech.

Femmage was the term she coined in the mid-1970s to identify the collaging of materials such as rickrack, embroidery, handkerchiefs, lace and other textiles which were previously considered outside the realm of serious art making. Schapiro embraced the distinctive femmage as a statement about women and their work. Mimi created femmages relating to her Jewish heritage.  We will see her tributes to famous Jewish women as well as discuss the conflicts she faced between family and professional obligations almost fifty years ago.

Carol Salus, PhD, recently retired after an accomplished career as a Professor at Kent State University’s School of Art. She has published on multiple artists including Picasso, Degas, R. B. Kitaj, Andy Warhol, and Roy Lichtenstein and she and has taught Art History and American Art and Architecture.  Her work has been recognized by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.