Persimmontree Magazine | 23

Hands in Glass

by

Judy Chicago

      Judy Chicago is an artist, author, feminist, educator, and intellectual whose career now spans four decades. Who among us has not seen or read about The Dinner Party or her many other projects? She’s a leading artist of our times, loved by us for her prodigious creative work and her courage in pushing the accepted boundaries and hierarchies that have separated craft and design from art.

      When she approaches a project, she does it with her whole being, asking questions, going deeper into it, becoming completely conversant with the materials she will use—and then her art comes forth, in collaboration with others or alone, in a unified body of work.

      We are pleased to honor Judy Chicago here by showing some of her most recent work, hands made exclusively of glass (along with related drawings), both cast and fused. For her, the hand conveys strong emotions and deeply held convictions—and we experience this intensity of feeling as we look at these hands below.

      You can learn more about Judy’s work at www.JudyChicago.com and www.ThroughtheFlower.org

Grand Flame Fist, Etching and glass paint on cast glass, 24"x24"x21".
Multi-staged etching by Dobins Studio.
© Judy Chicago 2005. Photo © Donald Woodman.

Hands of Choice, Glass paint on cast glass, 14"x14"x16".
© Judy Chicago 2005. Photo © Donald Woodman.

Twinned Veins, Cold work and glass paint on cast glass, 15"x20x14".
© Judy Chicago 2006. Photo © Donald Woodman.

Grand Snake Arm #2, Etching, cold work and gold leaf on cast glass, 24"x24"x21".
Multi-stagged etching by Dobins Studio.
© Judy Chicago 2005. Photo © Donald Woodman.

Double Clear Handout/Handoff, Etching and glass paint on clear glass, 21"x30"x12".
Multi-stagged etching by Dobins Studio.
© Judy Chicago 2006. Photo © Donald Woodman

Damaged Arm, Etching and glass paint on cast glass, 22"x14"x13".
Multi-stagged etching by Dobins Studio.
© Judy Chicago 2005. Photo © Donald Woodman.

Study for Temporal Connection, Etching and glass paint on clear glass, 12"x17"x7".
Multi-staged etching by Dobins Studio.
© Judy Chicago 2005. Photo © Donald Woodman

Large Fused Musclehand, Etching, and glass paint on fused glass, 19"x26".
Kiln work and multi-staged etching by Dobins Studio.
© Judy Chicago 2006. Photo © Donald Woodman.

Pissed off, Prismacolor on black Arches, 29"x37".
© Judy Chicago 2004. Photo © Donald Woodman.

Bloody Discharge, Prismacolor on black Arches, 18"x22".
© Judy Chicago 2004. Photo © Donald Woodman.

Study #3 for Flayed Arm, Etching, silver stain and pen work on flashed glass,15"x22". Low-relief carving by Dobins Studio.
© Judy Chicago 2003. Photo © Donald Woodman.

Judy Chicago has received numerous awards, grants, and honorary degrees. Her ten books, printed in several languages, have brought her art and philosophy to readers around the world. Her work has been collected by many museums, including the British Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the National Gallery. Her major collaborative works have been The Dinner Party (now permanently housed in the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Brooklyn Museum); the Birth Project; the Holocaust Project: From Darkness into Light; and Resolutions: A Stitch in Time.