The Right to Herself

The Right to Herself by Aline SmithsonNovember 22, 2020

Billboard for The Right to Herself at the corner of Lincoln and Riverside in Fort Collins, CO

On October 20, the exhibition The Right To Herself, co-curated by Lauren Cross, Ph.D., MFA, and Hamidah Glasgow, MA, Executive Director and Curator, The Center for Fine Art Photography, opened in two gallery locations in Fort Collins, Co. The event also includes a billboard, projections, artist talks, and a catalog. The project was funded in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and The City of Fort Collins, Fort Fund Grant. The exhibition will run until November 28, 2020 at the Lincoln Center Gallery, Fort Collins, CO and through December 12, 2020 at the Clara Hatton Gallery at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO. The Billboard at the corner of Lincoln and Riverside in Fort Collins, CO will be on display through the end of November.

The Right To Herself exhibition examines the complexities of the 100th anniversary of the passing of the 19th amendment. Though the law legally prohibited the denial of the right to vote based on sex, many women of diverse backgrounds in the U.S. were unable to exercise that right. In this way, The Right To Herself exhibition and related programs will provide a lens to view works by women artists who self-identify as indigenous, women of color, and/or embody diverse racial, ethnic, and economic identities to share their various perspectives on the intersections of gender equity, and the influence of women of color on the suffrage and equal rights movement both in contemporary society and in history. The exhibition will reflect on the vote as a promise for agency and voice within society, and its relationship to diverse communities. In featuring these themes, the show will recall, reclaim, and reimagine the power of women from different racial, ethnic, and class-based histories in front of the lens and rectify their lacking presence within photography and art history.- Lauren Cross Ph.D., Co-curator

Featured Artists: Tya Anthony, Lindsey Beal, Christa Blackwood, Marcella Ernest, Adama Delphine Fawundu, Angela Faz, Karen Ann Hoffman, Ann ‘Sole Sister’ Johnson, Letitia Huckaby, Sedrick Huckaby, Gabi Magaly, Pallavi Govindnathan, Renluka Maharaj, Suchitra Mattai, Jennifer McClure, Michelle Rogers Pritzl, Pete Sands and the Martin Sisters, Rachelle Mozman Solano, Susan Sponsler-Carstarphen, and Chanell Stone.

Originally, the idea for the exhibition was based on the anniversary of the 19th amendment but evolved as I realized that having the vote is not inherently the issue. The real problem is that women, and specifically BIPOC women, were and are still not treated equally. Examining the upside-down world of patriarchy became a fundamental basis of the project. That women had to fight for the right to vote and have a say in how society goes is in and of itself, problematic. All people innately deserve enfranchisement, and we are working backward towards this issue.

Featured artworks explore many issues that affect women and their lives from diverse perspectives. From the Flame Urn by Karen Ann Hoffman signifying the fire that Haudenosaunee elders, in a matrilineal culture where women and men are equal, gathered around and agreed to peace. To American Chorus by Suchitra Mattai, an image that radiates joy and a hopeful future for all. This project brings to the forefront lived experiences that are cautionary, intimate, painful, joyous, and essential. – Hamidah Glasgow, Co-curator

Upcoming Events:

Virtual Closing Reception | November 24, at 5 pm Mountain Time

Missed the artist talks? Go to The Center’s YouTube channel for the recorded versions.