Outraged at their inability to control their own bodies and an imposed ignorance about women’s health, women across the United States launched hundreds of political projects centered on women’s bodies throughout the 1970s and 1980s. They peered inside their bodies, developed feminist knowledge, and founded women’s clinics. Activists and artists created profound change by channeling their determination, rage, and vision to empower women, wresting control from the forces of patriarchal oppression. Using examples from her book Looking through the Speculum, Professor Judith Houck will share the images and stories of feminist alternatives from the women’s health movement.
Jointly sponsored by the Southern California Society for the History of Medicine, this program is inspired by the liberating acts of self-representation performed by feminist artists held in the Getty Research Institute’s special collections.
The talk will be followed by a public reception from 5:30–6:30pm. The conversation will be available on the Getty Research Institute YouTube channel following the event.
Visit the Getty Research Institute's Exhibitions and Events page for more free programs.