Women Figurative Artists Who Created SoHo Co-ops in 1970s
Show Work at Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus, March 2-27
- Panel discussion with artists on co-op model to take place on March 4, 4:30 p.m. -

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Brooklyn, N.Y. – In celebration of Women’s History Month, Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus will feature an engrossing exhibition of works by some of the women artist-activists who created artist-run cooperative galleries in SoHo in the early 70s.

The group exhibition, “Better then Ever: Women Figurative Artists of the ‘70s SoHo Coops,” will take place in the Salena Gallery from March 2 to March 27. The gallery is located at the Brooklyn Campus in downtown Brooklyn, on the corner of Dekalb and Flatbush avenues.

There will also be a panel discussion with some of the artists on “The Power of the Co-op Model” on Wednesday, March 4, at 4:30 p.m. in LLC Room 109, adjacent to the exhibit. An opening reception for the artists will follow at 5:30 p.m. in the Salena Gallery. Sponsored by the Campus’s Art Department, the exhibition, panel discussion and reception are free and open to the public.

The exhibition looks at some of the figurative women artist activists who jump-started the art scene in SoHo in the early ‘70s. According to curator and artist Sharyn Finnegan, “For those first couple of years, 50 percent of the artists in these early galleries were women, a very rare sort of art scene with women proportionately represented. These pioneers validated the co-op model as a powerful engine for women artists to find a public in addition to a community that can support them in pursuing a professional career.” Many faced overt discrimination from gallery directors, Finnegan noted, and took great pleasure in taking their careers into their own hands.

Nineteen women, who were either founders, early members or directors of galleries like A.I.R., Prince Street Gallery and SOHO20, are represented by one work from the ‘70s and another from recent years, giving a glimpse of the trajectory of their development. The roots of Dotty Attie’s serial narratives can be seen in a portrait drawing of Ingres. Early and late self-portraits show both the aging process and the maturation of a painting style in Marjorie Kramer and Sharyn Finnegan’s pieces. Current politics engage many now, with work about war by Attie, peace by Selina Trieff and environmental degradation by Cynthia Mailman and Marcia Clark.

Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday/Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, call Nancy Grove at (718) 488-1198.

Media Contact: (718) 488-1015

Posted: February 17, 2009