Judy Chicago is an icon of feminist, contemporary and recent art. Her works, especially The Dinner Party of 1974-1979 places her practice firmly in the herstory of art and the rewriting of culture to include the women who had been there all along.
The Serpentine are calling Revelations an exhibition and not an actual retrospective, but it is a retrospective really, with works covering all six decades of her career, and her largest solo London show. However, it's astounding that there is not more about The Dinner Party, the work which launched Chicago's international reputation and place in the development and elevation of feminist art. I was lucky to attend the press view, and had a couple of chats with others there. We all discussed The Dinner Party, and I'm not sure it's really possible to appreciate Chicago without it.
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It seems against all my reviewing principles to write about a work that's not in the actual exhibition, but in brief, The Dinner Party made a splash in the art world in the late 70's and 80's. I saw it myself many years ago when it was on show in London, and it made an enormous impression on me. I remember it made quite a splash in the media at the time, in the sense of the 'is this really art' debate. If you want to know more...www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/dinner_party/ (Perhaps there are copyright issues involved in recreating even one setting of this culturally significant piece.)
That work, and Chicago's whole output, had influence outside the world of art, bringing into public consciousness forgotten women that she celebrated. It's not just about art, it's about culture and society. Now in her eighties, Chicago still speaks with fire and emotion about rebalancing the world away from toxic patriarchy. This is always highly politicised issue-based artwork, but never at the expense of beauty and technique. Women's' pain and the deep wounds of inequality are the subjects, from the woman's point of view.
Chicago has a particular aesthetic in drawings and prints. I do admire an artist who is fundamentally still regularly in the studio, just them and the paper.
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I didn't know anything about her pyrotechnic and smoke works, represented in videos and stills. They are gorgeous and astounding, and for me, the best kind of works which can be viewed and interpreted in multiple ways. Chicago was a trailblazer, continuing to produce powerful art in the face of discrimination. She was an outsider in terms of artworld acceptance, who carried on regardless, and has forged a trail. It turns out it is great to meet your heroes.
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Judy Chicago Revelations
Serpentine North, Kensington Gardens, London W2 3XA
23rd May - 1st September 2024
Admission free
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