Launching a Genre: Feminist Art

Judy Chicago and Miriam Schapiro started the CalArts Feminist Art Program in 1971. The program was centered around consciousness-raising techniques; at its core, the program was intended to influence independence in the women’s personal lives by asserting independence through their art work. Womanhouse (1972) was born in response to a lack in studio space for the program. Featuring only women artists, only women were allowed to view on the first day. The collaborative installation was intended to raise the consciousness of the public from viewing women as only ” domestic beings” to a more full representation of womanhood.