Opening Text:
Welcome to the Museum of Women. There are four entrances to the center of the museum that you can choose to enter from. At the end of the hallway that you choose, there will be a center surprise installation. Each hallway would lead to a different installation. Each hallway will transition in time or color and will include important women that changed and enhanced art all over the world.
When I opened the Artstor home page, I began exploring the site and stumbled upon a women in art section. One of the first pieces that caught my eye actually inspired the architecture for my museum. I originally wanted to make some sort of maze that led to a center exhibit. I didn’t want my museum to be too confusing and limiting to what the visitors would be able to see. A lot of museums are very open and give freedom to the viewer, which is something I wanted to incorporate into my museum. When I saw Female Rejection Drawing #2 by Judy Chicago, I instantly realized what I want my design to be like. This piece is very clean and pleasant looking but at the same time very strong and intimidating. The flower like shape was a perfect designer for my museum, and it still involved my original idea of having a main center. Unlike all of the sky scrapers of NYC, I think it would be unique and interesting to have an underground museum that spreads wide instead of tall. Depending on where the visitor enters, there will be several hallways they can walk down to to reach the center. I still want to encourage freedom, so all of the hallways would be connected so the viewer can move from one section to the other. Each hallway would have a theme.
Depending on the era of the particular pieces in a hallway, I would include music that was created by women in the same era. I personally enjoy museums that allow you to use more than just your sight, so I would like to encourage my visitors to interact with some of the pieces.
My Exhibits:
- Women in Fashion: One of the hallways would be dedicated to women in fashion. I would include designers that changed the industry. This is one of the exhibits that would include real clothing and not just artwork. The exhibit would start off with Madeline Cheruit and a painting that was made of a woman wearing her dress. This painting took my attention because you can clearly see the guests of the party staring at a woman in a beautiful dress. Nobody else has anything like it, and she clearly stands out. This painting shows how capable and innovative women designers were, even though they rarely got any opportunities or recognition. This exhibit would feature Coco Chanel and 3-D pieces of her clothing. There would be a souvenir section of this exhibit that would allow visitors to buy souvenirs of these designer’s pieces.
- Modern Feminist Art: I think modern feminist art is very enticing and fascinating. A lot of it is very raw and powerful. This part of the museum would be very explicit and real. I think women now are much more outspoken and comfortable with themselves so this exhibit would represent that. The first artist I would feature is Marina Abramović. Her photography is very real and striking. A lot of her work is also in black and white which is an important part of the concept of this part of the museum. As the viewer moves forward, I would want the artwork to get brighter and bolder. It would make sense for Lynda Benglis sculptures to follow Abramovic’s, because her sculptures are very abstract and mute in color. Cecily Brown would follow because her artwork uses more color but is still a little bland. Marilyn Minter would be the next feature because her photographs are raw and vibrant.
- Judy Chicago: Tribute to the inspiration behind the architecture of my museum I would dedicate one of the hallways to Judy Chicago and her art. A lot of her paintings are abstract but she also has a lot of sculptures. I would like to incorporate both into the exhibit.
- Women Of Color: My last exhibit would be particularly dedicated to women of color and how they impacted culture and art. The first would that I would feature is Harriet Powers. She was very talented in creating quilts that told stories of the bible and myths. She was born as a slave but her work is now recognized by many. Quilt work was an important part of American civil history and I would like to recognize Powers’ work. Frida Kahlo would also be an important part of this exhibit. Shirin Neshat would also be included in that same work. Her work would be featured closer to the center of the museum because her work encouraged a lot of conversation and forced people to discuss things that they would usually sweep under the rug.
- Once everyone gets to the center of the museum, there will be an infinity mirror installation by Yayoi Kusama. She was an important part of the feminist movement, her art is very abstract and interactive, and she’s also a woman of color. Infinity Mirror would be one of exhibits that would entice a lot of visitors. Her installations are very photogenic and I think it would attract a lot of people. It would also incentivize everyone to go through the whole exhibit to get to the center, which would be the best part. Each hallway would lead to a different infinity mirror installation. From there, the visitor can move between installations and exit out of a different hallway.
