A Time of One's Own: Histories of Feminism in Contemporary Art

In A Time of One's Own, Catherine Grant explores how contemporary feminist artists are reviving feminism through creative and political engagement with a broad history of feminist organizing, artworks, and activism from the 1970s to the 1990s. She characterizes this engagement as a fandom of feminism, an autodidactic and collective form of learning from history that rejects a generational model and embraces aspects of feminism that may be seen as embarrassing, queer, or anachronistic.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 232 pages
Publication date: 09 September 2022
Publisher: Duke University Press

In her book "A Time of One's Own," Catherine Grant delves into the captivating world of contemporary feminist artists who are embracing a rich tapestry of feminist histories, spanning from political organizing and artistic expressions of the 1970s to queer art and activism in the 1990s. Through a comprehensive exploration of artworks created between 2002 and 2017 by artists such as Sharon Hayes, Mary Kelly, Allyson Mitchell, Deirdre Logue, Lubaina Himid, Pauline Boudry, and Renate Lorenz, Grant charts a remarkable revival of feminism that embraces the creative and political implications of forging feminist communities across time and space.

Grant characterizes these artists' engagement with feminism as a passionate, self-directed, and collective form of learning from history. This fandom of feminism enables artists to connect with previous feminist ideas, artworks, and communities that reject the notion of generational divides and embrace aspects of feminism that may be perceived as embarrassing, queer, or anachronistic. By accounting for the growing interest in feminist art, politics, and ideas across generations, Grant demonstrates that for many contemporary feminist artists, the present moment can only be fully understood through an embodied engagement with history, where feminist pasts are reinhabited and reimagined.

Through her insightful analysis, Grant unveils the profound ways in which these artists are reinterpreting and reimagining feminist legacies, challenging traditional narratives and creating new spaces for feminist discourse and activism. "A Time of One's Own" serves as a testament to the power of art in shaping our understanding of history and inspiring a collective commitment to building a more inclusive and equitable world.

Weight: 386g
Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781478018841