Chicago turns to her heritage for “˜Resolutions’ exhibit at Skirball

  Skirball Cultural Center This is one of many tapestries
on display in Judy Chicago’s exhibit, "Resolutions: A Stitch in
Time" at the Skirball Cultural Center.

By Allison Dixon
Daily Bruin Contributor

Old adages such as “home sweet home,” “live
and let live” and “bury the hatchet” usually
bring to mind images of samplers and quilts found around
grandma’s house. While these sayings may seem like
oversimplified, antiquated mantras in today’s complex world,
Judy Chicago presents them with new relevance in her exhibit
“Resolutions: A Stitch In Time.”

Running now through April 29 at the Skirball Cultural Center,
the exhibit explores age-old homilies in light of contemporary
problems through a unique combination of paintings and
textiles.

A UCLA graduate, Judy Chicago is one of the most groundbreaking
and controversial artists of the century. She is renowned for her
artistic talent as well as her social
activism. Chicago’s “The Dinner Party”
created an international stir as it traveled throughout the world
for many years featuring a dinner table with place settings
dedicated to female artists in history.

According to the current exhibit, after bringing feminist art
history to the forefront, Chicago turned to her Jewish heritage for
inspiration. Along with her husband, photographer Donald
Woodman, she created a multimedia exhibit titled “The
Holocaust Project,” which takes viewers from painful darkness
into light. The melancholy nature of “The Holocaust
Project” led Chicago to delve into the values that the Jewish
people have clung to for thousands of years.

This exploration resulted in her current exhibit,
“Resolutions: A Stitch In Time.” Collaborating with
gifted needleworkers, Chicago created samplers and tapestries
with modern backdrops to old sayings. The exhibit is grouped
into seven sections: Family, Responsibility, Conservation,
Tolerance, Human Rights, Hope and Change. Each section
features textiles that display an adage related to that theme.

  Skirball Cultural Center This tapestry, "It’s Always
Darkest Before the Dawn," is part of "Resolutions: A Stitch in
Time," an exhibit at the Skirball Cultural Center. The Family
section features a work titled “Home Sweet Home.” This
piece is representative of the exhibit as a whole. Instead of the
traditional embroidered cloth with a cottage-style home behind a
picket fence, this “Home Sweet Home” depicts the globe
encircled by various dwelling types. It features houses ranging
from a tepee to an igloo, from a trailer to a pueblo, embracing
homes from all cultures and reminding viewers that everyone shares
the same home ““ Earth.

Another piece featured in the exhibit is “We’re All
In The Same Boat” from the Tolerance section. Here
Chicago uses the old adage to frame a scene in which people of
different ethnicities work together to keep their boat
afloat. An older Latino man fishes, a young black man paddles,
an Asian girl patches a hole, an elderly Indian woman prays and a
white man dumps buckets of water out of the boat. Everyone does
what they can to help the group.

One of the most powerful works in the exhibit is
“It’s Always Darkest Before the Dawn” in the Hope
section. This proverb has been said throughout the ages during
different times of suffering. Here, Chicago uses visions of modern
doom to illustrate this homily. The left half features the
“darkest” hour and is painted in shades of gray with
acid rain, violence between people, missiles falling from the sky
and nuclear waste filling the landscape.

The “dawn” half, on the other hand, is alive with
bright colors, humans, animals and nature living in
harmony. It is as if Chicago is giving humanity a chance to
start anew ““ all the way back to Adam and Eve, this time
represented by an interracial couple. The area surrounding
Adam and Eve is actually embroidered, which creates a richness that
couldn’t be obtained with paint alone.

The embroidery enhances each of Chicago’s works by not
only creating different textures and finishes, but also remaining
true to the original medium ““ many of these sayings were
passed down through generations on embroidered samplers, pillows,
quilts and tapestries. The stitching in Chicago’s works is a
very appropriate tribute to a difficult craft that doesn’t
often get the recognition that other arts enjoy.

Beyond the works is a display, in the Hurd Gallery, explaining
the incredible beading and stitching techniques used on the various
pieces. A video of Judy Chicago explaining “Resolutions: A
Stitch In Time” is also in this room. It may be helpful
for those unfamiliar with Chicago’s work or sewing techniques
to start in the Hurd Gallery. 

The Hurd Gallery also has a collection of international Judaic
ceremonial textiles dating as far back as 1748. This addition to
the exhibit gives some idea of the heritage behind the embroidery
tradition.

“Resolutions: A Stitch In Time,” is a beautiful
exhibit with words of wisdom about tolerance, love, environmental
concerns, family and life in general that transcend culture and
have universal applicability.

MUSEUM: “Resolutions: A Stitch In
Time” is at the Skirball Cultural Center through April
29. Admission is $8 for adults, $6 for students w/ID and
seniors. For information contact www.skirball.org or call (310)
440-4500.