Founded in September of 1970, the Chicago Women’s Graphic Collective (CWGC) became an influential group at the epicenter of the feminist liberation movement, using posters, fliers, and art to push forward political and social causes. As founding member Estelle Carol put it in one of her pieces, the goal of CWGC was “to bring women who want to share ideas, share skills, resources, and criticism in visual and literary arts.”

Melding creative potential with political potential, the CWGC serviced women’s groups throughout Chicago to help promote their own events.

In celebration of Women’s History Month, The Center Long Beach has asked Helen Factor to share her experience as a member of the Chicago Women’s Graphics Collective. This opportunity to explore an important aspect of women’s and lesbian history will also be facilitated by UCI and CSU Northridge professor Dr. Marie Cartier.

On January 15, 1971, the CWGC issued a statement that binds their artistic, philosophical, social, and political beliefs:

Women artists in Chicago have gotten together, sparked by a growing consciousness of the women’s liberation movement, to form a women’s art collective. Using printmaking as a medium (silk-screening) will allow wide distribution of large, original prints to large numbers of people at low cost. The women in our group feel there is a need for both high quality women s graphic art and for women artists to identify and work within a collective. A collective gives us the opportunity to support each other in our art work. As well as to combine resources for a workshop that has a greater variety of materials and equipment than each woman alone maintain (ending the exclusivity of art). Also belonging to a collective makes identification with the larger women’s movement more real. As women artists and revolutionaries, we believe that a visual image communicates with people and expresses the tone of a movement in a special way that cannot be filled by words. Because people communicate through art and because art is a part of being human, it is a necessary part of the growing revolutionary counterculture. A large part of energy, time, money has gone to putting together a silk-screening workshop in the home of one of our members We are interested in producing political and non-political prints although right now we are working on posters with only women’s themes.

The lecture and discussion will be held at The Center on April 7, from 3PM to 5PM, followed by a reception. The event is free to the public. The Center is located at 2017 E 4th Street. To RSVP, click here.

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