Art installation reflecting on what it means to be female in America coming to Manchester
Some of the artists who put in several hundred hours transforming 121 West Main Street into an art exhibit and exhibition space. Photo courtesy of Laura Earle.
In 1972, thirty female art students at the California Institute of Art transformed a dilapidated 17-room mansion into a groundbreaking feminist art installation known as Womanhouse. Forty-six years later, 26 female artists are responding with an installation of their own, and it is happening in Manchester!
In February of this year, Laura Earle was finishing up her Masters of Fine Art at Eastern Michigan University. She was learning about Womanhouse, the landmark art project led by Judy Chicago and Miriam Schapiro, in an art history graduate seminar. She and her classmates kept wondering, “Have things really changed for women artists? What are the issues women would make art about if they did Womanhouse today?” One evening, she blurted out, “Want to find out? I have a house we could use!” She stated, “That started the very complex and rewarding project of collaborating with dozens of studio artists, gallerists and educators to create our response to the 1972 exhibit. We thought of it as a kind of art correspondence across the decades, and entitled it Dear Womanhouse, What Now? The Art of Being Female in America Today.”
Dear Womanhouse, What Now? The Art of Being Female in America Today is an exhibit coming to the Art Kettle located at 121 West Main Street in Manchester on October 12, featuring 26 artists from southeast Michigan exhibiting work about their lives as women. Earle added that many more friends and artists cheered them on along the way, offering guidance and volunteering their time as they, under the direction of artist and onsite studio director, Margaret Miller, transformed the house from a rental property into a community arts venue. Several hundred hours were volunteered by more than 40 people to bring this exhibit to Manchester.
Much in the same vein as the original Womanhouse, the artists learned new construction skills by working on the house. Some learned to work with power tools for the first time. Others had never even painted a wall before. Earle stated, “It was very gratifying to watch them teach each other, and share their stories as they worked. Many new friendships were formed as the artists opened up about the pivotal moments of their lives which inspired the powerful work they have created. Some are humorous, some are heart wrenching, but they all stem from authentic female experiences.”
Earle explained the significant differences from the 1972 Womanhouse. “Theirs was a college course,” she stated, “Their artists were of a very narrow demographic. Ours was a volunteer collaboration. We strove for diversity. We were inclusive, because we value the richness of hearing from as many voices as possible from as many backgrounds as possible – across generations, disciplines, races, gender expressions and socio-economic backgrounds. For this reason, our project offers a more complex and complete view of the female experience.”
She continued, “The 1972 artists were required to be there for college credit, and so they spent a lot of time together. Our artists worked as a labor of love. We have jobs and families and school and other obligations. We live all over southeast Michigan. We gathered a few times a month, to develop the artistic content, then, most of the work was made independently.”
One of the models of 121 West Main used in a classroom so younger students can work on their own version in miniature. Photo courtesy of Laura Earle.
Art Kettle is collaborating with Eastern Michigan University, and three secondary schools. One of the artists is an educator, and wrote a curriculum specifically for the exhibit. It features a model house of 121 West Main Street for the students to transform into their own expression of Dear Womanhouse. EMU student teachers are guiding young artists through the project in Wayne County, Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor. Their creations will be on display at the Art Kettle as part of the exhibition. The model house was designed and fabricated by Laura Earle and her son, David Earle.
Some of the student artists. Photo courtesy of Laura Earle.
In addition to to the collaborations with the schools, individuals volunteered their time to refurbish the house and tame the garden including Anthony Emery, Rich Earle, David Earle, Margaret Shaw and Kathleen Graddy and they partnered with Manchester’s Riverfolk Music and Arts Organization. Earle stated, “I’ve been working closely with Aileen Rohwer of Cultural Arts Strings. We’ve got a real synergy. Aileen has been successful in writing for grant funding, too. We received a State of Michigan grant [Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and Ann Arbor Arts Alliance] to support an Art Kettle concert series – it’s very exciting!”
There will be several activities throughout the life of Dear Womanhouse, What Now? The Art of Being Female in America Today including music, poetry, and performance. Most will be free. Some will be ticketed, paid events. The exhibit will run October 12 through November 16. The opening event on October 12 will be divided into ticketed time slots to schedule viewing times as space is limited. The first time slot, 6 to 6:45 pm, is free; 7 to 8 pm is $10; and 8 to 9 pm is $10. The latter two time slots include live performances by Musique Noire. Details and links to tickets will be posted online at artkettle.com.
Musique Noire. Photo credit: Bruce Turner Photography.
Musique Noire is a Detroit-based world jazz music; Detroit Music Awards nominees for Outstanding Jazz Recording (2009, 2018) and Outstanding World/Reggae Group (2009, 2010, 2011, 2018) and 2015 winners of the Best Black Female Jazz Group through Black Women in Jazz Awards out of Atlanta, GA. Their latest release, "Reflections: We Breathe" celebrates women warriors of the arts, with original tunes and covers of Nina Simone and Eileen Ivers.
Rohwer explained how Musique Noire was selected. "Musique Noire was chosen to be a part of the opening for Art Kettle because the group supported Riverfolk's mission of engaging the community in music and arts experiences which nurture creativity and promote cultural diversity as well as matching up with the Dear Womanhouse exhibit theme ‘The Art of being Female in America Today.’” She also noted that Manchester has never before programmed a Black Female World Jazz music group.
“I got shivers when I first listened to Musique Noire,” recounts Earle, “and realized we’d found kindred spirits in this amazing group of musicians. I’m beyond excited and honored to host these wonderful artists at the Art Kettle.”
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