Arts & Culture

UK, The Feminist Art Project Explore Intersection of Politics, Gender and Craft at 'Materializing Resistance'

photo of art used with Facebook call for Materializing Resistance

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 8, 2019) National and international scholars, artists and activists will congregate in Lexington for the "Materializing Resistance: Gender, Politics and Craft" Symposium April 12-13, in the Bolivar Art Gallery, in the University of Kentucky Arts and Visual Studies Building. The free public symposium will explore how the politics of craft are framed, preserved, deconstructed, revised and reimagined, and how artists deploy the unique properties of their chosen materials to resist gender binaries and hierarchies. Featured speakers will include art historian Jenni Sorkin and UK alumna and co-creator of the Woman's Building Susan King. 

"Materializing Resistance" will feature panel discussions, interviews and networking opportunities. The symposium schedule includes:

Friday, April 12

  • 9:45-11 a.m., keynote address by art historian Jenni Sorkin, an associate professor at University of California, Santa Barbara;
  • 11 a.m.-noon, Reorienting Craft Discourse panel;
  • 1-2:30 p.m., Text + Textiles + Resistance panel;
  • 2:30-3:30 p.m., Crafting Community panel; and
  • 4-4:30 p.m., performance by Rae Goodwin, associate professor and director of Foundations at UK School of Art and Visual Studies.

Saturday, April 13

  • 9:30-10 a.m., Gendered Cultures of Craft panel;
  • 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Against Hierarchies of Labor panel;
  • 1:30-2 p.m., UK Art Museum Curator Janie Welker interview with UK alumna and artist Susan King, one of the creators of the Woman's Building and founder of Paradise Press;
  • 2-3 p.m., Encoding the Everyday panel;
  • 3-4:30 p.m., Resistant Acts panel; and
  • 5-8 p.m., closing reception and opening at Parachute Factory.

For the full symposium schedule, visit: https://finearts.uky.edu/savs/events/materializing-resistance-gender-politics-and-craft.

UK's School of Art and Visual Studies and College of Fine Arts are co-sponsoring the symposium alongside the Kentucky chapter of The Feminist Art Project.

The Feminist Art Project (TFAP) is an international organization that "recognizes the aesthetic and intellectual impact of women on visual arts and culture." It sponsors, promotes and connects women in the arts around the world. TFAP Kentucky helps to organize and promote feminist conversations, events, workshops, symposia, exhibitions and activities related to women in the arts in Kentucky. 

The UK School of Art and Visual Studies, part of the College of Fine Arts, is an accredited member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design and offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in the fields of art studioart history and visual studiesart education, curatorial studies and digital media and design.