Women of the World A Global Collection of Art

The Last Century's convulsive societal changes have given women of many countries a greater opportunity for independence than ever before in recorded history. For others, the twentieth century offered little relief from age-old oppression. But avenues of communication--person to person, nation to nation--have exploded into a stream that carries information from place to place like a flood tide, diminishing our differences, increasing our understanding, & establishing new avenues for political, social, & artistic discourse. Thus Claudia DeMonte, an artist & world traveler, asked women artists in 174 countries "What image represents 'woman'?", invited each of them to create a work of art that expressed her view of the essential quality of woman, & assembled their work in a historically unique exhibition. DeMonte saw the project as a way to show the differences in how art is made & perceived, & it achieves that goal. But there was another, unforeseen, & joyous effect of the accumulation of images. In Women of the World, the visionary & the everyday come together to render a global image of the female, circa 2000. Traditional art in ancient media gleefully joins with multimedia constructions that sing or glow. Individually superb, these works of art make an aggregate statement about the continuity of women's accomplishment. Women of the World is an affirmation of survival of the will, of commonality that subsumes difference, of courage under fire, & of grace in adversity. It is a powerful & moving expression of self from people whose voices have rarely been heard.DeMonte, Claudia is the author of 'Women of the World A Global Collection of Art', published 2000 under ISBN 9780764913341 and ISBN 0764913344.