Judy Chicago

Date of Birth: July 20, 1939

Zodiac Sign: Cancer

Biography

Judy Chicago is a pioneering American feminist artist, art educator, and writer who is known for her large collaborative art installation pieces about birth and creation images, which examine the role of women in history and culture. Born Judith Sylvia Cohen on July 20, 1939, in Chicago, Illinois, she adopted the surname of her hometown to assert her independence from male-dominated naming conventions. Chicago is best known for her landmark work “The Dinner Party,” which is a symbolic history of women in Western civilization. The piece is a permanent installation at the Brooklyn Museum’s Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art. Chicago attended the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where she earned both her BA and MA in painting and sculpture. She was instrumental in the development of the feminist art movement in the United States and founded the first feminist art program at California State University, Fresno. Her work often incorporates traditional female crafts such as needlework and ceramics, which she elevates to the status of fine art.

5 Interesting Facts about Judy Chicago

1. Judy Chicago founded the first feminist art program in the United States at California State University, Fresno in 1970.

2. “The Dinner Party,” her most famous work, features 39 elaborate place settings arranged on a triangular table, each commemorating an important woman from history.

3. Chicago changed her name to Judy Chicago in 1970 to free herself from the male-dominated naming conventions of her father and husband.

4. She has written several books, including “Through the Flower: My Struggle as a Woman Artist” and “The Flowering: The Autobiography of Judy Chicago.”

5. Chicago’s artworks often incorporate a variety of media, including needlework, ceramics, and glass, challenging the boundaries between fine art and craft.