Institutional Time: A Critique of Studio Art Education

For more than a decade, Judy Chicago has been formulating a critique of studio art education, in colleges or art schools, based upon observation, study, and, most importantly, her own teaching experiences, which have taken her from prestigious universities to modest regional colleges. Founder of the first feminist art program, at California State University, Fresno, in 1970, she went on to initiate at Cal-Arts (with artist Miriam Schapiro) the Feminist Art Program, the first at a major art school to specifically address the needs of female art students. Creator of the celebrated "Dinner Party," a monumental art installation now on permanent display at the Brooklyn Museum, Judy reviews her own art education, in the 1960s, when she overcame sexist obstacles at the beginning of her career and became recognized as one of the key figures in the dynamic California art scene of that decade. She reviews the present-day situation of young women aspiring to become artists, including a sharp critique that recognizes the persistence of bias against women. The heart of the book is a sequence of topical chapters:
--emphasizing practice as opposed to theory;
--advocating clearly communicated content;
--examining the situation of male artists;
--offering advice for young artists "beyond the diploma"; and
--providing a detailed proposal for curriculum reform.
Written in a personal and engaging style, this book is far from a dry educational treatise. It is instead a heartfelt, and highly personal, book that has the earmarks of a classic in arts education.