CHICAGO ––Woman Made Gallery (WMG) is proud to present the The Feminist Biennial, juried by Ashley Wynn. It is a group exhibition featuring the artwork of 34 women and non-binary artists exploring the new age of feminism. As legendary historical moments, the first three waves of feminism are well theorized and widely known. The first emerged with women’s suffrage; the second propelled forward by the civil rights act and women’s sexual and financial freedom; and the third further defined by the rise of queer theory, racial justice and intersectionality within the feminist moment. Now speculating the fourth wave, which has yet to be theorized and is less understood, WMG asks what does it mean to be a feminist today?
At its core, feminism has been and continues to be a personal and collective reclamation of power in a patriarchal world that undervalues and devalues feminine-presenting expressions of self. It is a lived experience, a daily act, and held in community to make sense of the world through a feminist lens. WMG’s first Feminist Biennial, as an exhibition, seeks to provide a platform for marginalized voices to put forth artwork that explores feminist thought, action, art practices and lived experience in 2022.
In her juror’s statement, Ashley Wynn writes: “’Each work presents both a timeless and timely expression of the pluralism of feminism, a provocative amalgamation of intersectional pursuits of equality, liberation, and autonomy, upending preconceived ideologies of what it means to be a woman. The resultant conversation invites an active exploration into a broader spectrum of experiences and perspectives, dynamically opposing binary boundaries imposed upon genders and identification.”