Miriam Schapiro: An Interview

Canadian-born artist Miriam Schapiro (b.1923) was one of the great forces behind the feminist art movement in Los Angeles. Originally painting in an Abstract Expressionist manner, she developed a new, more personal style of assemblage she called “femmage” as she became more politically involved. She was also one of the first scholars to create a curriculum on Feminist Art at CalArts. Through the use of large scale media and symbols emblematic of the female, she has battled to pay homage to women and their undervalued domestic traditions. Her seminal role in the art world was acknowledged with the esteemed honor of 2002 Distinguished Artist Award for Lifetime Achievement of the College Art Association, the national organization of artists and art historians.

In this interview by Lyn Blumenthal she describes her move away from Abstract Expressionism. "I was a women and yet wishing to be a shaker and doer in society...The two were incompatible in the deepest recesses of my soul."

A historical interview originally recorded in 1976 and re-edited in 2006 with support from the Lyn Blumenthal Memorial Fund.