Press release for "Still Doinʼ It: Fanning the Flames of the Womanʼs Building"

              PRESS CONTACT: Sheri Mobley 323 668-0874
smobley@mobleymarketing.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Still Doinʼ It: Fanning the Flames of the Womanʼs Building to be held October 15 and 16
with Sheila Levrant de Bretteville, Phranc and the Feminist Art Workers
Two-day Convening of Feminist Artists, Scholars Complements the
Doinʼ It in Public Exhibition at Otis College of Art and Design
Exhibition, Programs and Publications in Collaboration with
Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A. 1945-1980
LOS ANGELES – October 6, 2011 – Part convening, part symposium, part reunion, part
performance, the two-day event Still Doinʼ It: Fanning the Flames of the Womanʼs Building is a
dialogue between feminist artists then and now. To be held October 15 and 16 at various Los Angeles
venues, the multi-faceted symposium complements the exhibition, Doinʼ It in Public: Feminism and
Art at the Womanʼs Building that opened last week at the Ben Maltz Gallery on the main campus of
Otis College of Art and Design. Along with historical ephemera and documentation, the show surveys
the work of groundbreaking feminist artists/designers and artist collectives who gathered together at
the Los Angeles Womanʼs Building from 1973 through 1991.
Still Doinʼ It: Fanning the Flames of the Womanʼs Building begins on Saturday with Doinʼ It in
Public scholars Alexandra Juhasz, Jennie Klein, Michelle Moravec, and Jennifer Sorkin
presenting tours of the exhibition, and Womanʼs Building writers reading from their work in the evening
at Antioch University. On Sunday the keynote speaker is Womanʼs Building co-founder and
renowned graphic designer Sheila Levrant de Bretteville. In addition there will be interactive
dialogues and performances including one by the Feminist Art Workers. On Sunday afternoon
Phranc, the all-American Jewish lesbian folksinger, hosts a concert titled “This Is Your Life: the
Womanʼs Building” at the Skirball Cultural Center. The complete schedule and tickets are available
at http://www.otis.edu/public_programs/ben_maltz_gallery/wb_tickets.html
The feminist art movement of the 1970s set off an explosion of art-making and analysis that continues
to reverberate in the art world today, and the Woman's Building (WB) in Los Angeles was one of its
epicenters. In 1973, artist Judy Chicago, graphic designer Sheila Levrant de Bretteville, and art
historian Arlene Raven founded the WB, and for over two decades it helped shape the regional and
international cultural landscapes. Through extensive public performances, site-specific work,
networking with political activists, and collaborations, the feminist art movement at the WB raised
consciousness, invited dialogue, and transformed culture. The WB handed women their rightful claim
to the role of “artist.” It inspired and allowed members to create a community of women who saw art
as a powerful tool for social change, and shared this vision with the public.
Still Doinʼ It: Fanning the Flames of the Womanʼs Building is part of Pacific Standard Time: Art
in L.A. 1945-1980. This unprecedented collaboration, initiated by the Getty, brings together more than
sixty cultural institutions from across Southern California for six months beginning October 2011 to tell
the story of the birth of the L.A. art scene.