On Sunday October 23, 2016, six hundred New York female and female-identifying contemporary artists gathered in the Brooklyn Museum’s historic Beaux-Arts Court for the largest group portrait of artists ever taken in New York. Now Be Here #2, NYC was conceived by California-based Kim Schoenstadt, and its staging at the Brooklyn Museum marked the kickoff week of A Year of Yes: Reimagining Feminism at the Brooklyn Museum celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art. The convening was shot by noted photographer Paola Kudacki, marking a moment in history for the museum and for the city’s artist community. Each participating artist’s name will be linked to their image in an online archive of those who were in attendance, and each will receive a digital copy of the portrait. (Stay tuned for that link in the coming weeks!)
<p>The day began with a boisterous check-in process, where each artist was assigned a number to help label them for the formal portrait. Hundreds of artists mingled in the Museum’s Beaux Arts Court, surrounded by masterworks of the Museum’s European painting and sculpture collection, catching up with old friends and making new connections. Attendees included Erica Baum, Zoe Buckman, Petah Coyne, Patricia Cronin, Jessica Dickinson, Rochelle Feinstein, Joanne Greenbaum, Heather Hart, Valerie Hegarty, Jane Hammond, Maren Hassinger, Claudia Joskowicz , Deborah Kass, Kalup Linzy, Sharon Louden, Marilyn Minter, Carrie Moyer, Alix Pearlstein, Mira Schor, Agathe Snow, Mickalene Thomas and Deborah Willis, among many others.
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Just before 11, Schoenstadt, Smith, and Kudacki corralled the crowd and organized the group to smile for the camera for a series of portraits that form an impressive and human monument to women artists. The group spontaneously began chanting “Equal pay for equal work,” highlighting an ongoing disparity between genders that transcends the art world. Participants were encouraged to stay and enjoy the museum’s collections and exhibitions, including the Beverly Buchanan–Ruins and Rituals exhibition. Buchanan was an artist interested in questioning historical memory and connecting memory to place; the exhibition and Now Be Here #2 cohered beautifully to kick of an exciting year at the Museum.
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