Not Ready to Make Nice, a major presentation of the Guerrilla Girls, illuminates and contextualizes the important historical and ongoing work of these highly original, provocative, and influential artists who champion feminism and social change. Focusing primarily on recent work, the exhibition features rarely shown international projects that trace the collective’s artistic and activist influence around the globe. In addition, a selection of iconic work from the 1980s and 90s illustrates the formative development of the group’s philosophy and conceptual approach to arts activism.
Sponsored in part by the John E. Moyer Sr. and Chris Moyer Endowment and Krannert Art Museum and partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency
The exhibition is further punctuated by documentary material including ephemera from famous actions, behind-the-scenes photos, and secret anecdotes that reveal the Guerrilla Girls’ process and the events that drive their incisive institutional interventions. Visitors can peruse the artists’ favorite “love letters and hate mail” and are invited to contribute their own voices to multiple interactive installations. This multimedia, expansive exhibition illustrates that the work of the anonymous, feminist-activist Guerrilla Girls is as vital and revolutionary as ever.
Select programming:
Guerrillas In Our Midst
Friday, January 24 through Sunday, April 6, 2014
East Gallery
Guerrillas In Our Midst (1992), a film by Amy Harrison, presents a savvy exploration of the machinations of the commercial art-world during its boom in the 1980s, and brings the Guerrilla Girls to the screen. This anonymous group of art terrorists has succeeded in putting racism and sexism on the agenda in the art-world since 1985, and their witty and creative tactics have changed the face of political and cultural activism. Interviews with key figures in the Manhattan art scene, record-breaking auction sales, exhibition openings and interviews with the Guerrillas Girls themselves combine to highlight how the myth of the heroic male painter is perpetuated.
Gallery Conversation with Frida Kahlo
Thursday, February 27 · 2 pm
Frida Kahlo, a founding member of the Guerrilla Girls, talks with students at the University of Illinois
East Gallery
Frida Kahlo: Guerrila Girls Artist Presentation
Thursday, February 27 · 7 pm
"Not Ready to Make Nice: 28 Years of the Guerrilla Girls"
Featuring Frida Kahlo, a founding member of the Guerrilla Girls
KAM Auditorium
Note: Link to view full video of the February 27, 2014 Gallery Conversation with Guerrilla Girls founding member Frida Kahlo.
Guest Curator: Neysa Page-Lieberman
