Curator’s Talk: A Radical Alteration

Curator’s Talk: A Radical Alteration

A Conversation on Book Arts and Feminist Collaboration

On Sunday, August 3, 2025, from 3 to 4 p.m., the National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) enriches its twice monthly Free Community Day with a lively conversation about book arts and intersectional feminist art-making collaborations.

Centered on the exhibition A Radical Alteration: Women’s Studio Workshop as a Sustainable Model for Artmaking, the discussion will feature curator and writer Maymanah Farhat and Natalie Renganeschi, acting director of Women’s Studio Workshop (WSW), a proponent of book arts for marginalized communities in the U.S. for the past 50 years. Since its founding in 1974, WSW has grown from a grassroots organization to a collaborative institution that serves women, trans, intersex, nonbinary, and gender-fluid artists. Moderated by NMWA’s Library and Research Center (LRC) Director Elizabeth Ajunwa, the discussion will explore the conditions under which art-making can build a sustainable and more equitable art ecosystem, the evolution of artists’ books over the past five decades, and WSW’s influential artist residency program, which to date has published more than 245 artists’ books. Attendees will hear about the collaborative process behind the exhibition and how the workshop continues to shape the future of feminist artmaking.

The exhibition, A Radical Alteration: Women’s Studio Workshop as a Sustainable Model for Artmaking, on view through September 28, 2025, presents more than 40 works dating from 1974 to 2024, including artists’ books created by more than 20 artists, as well as zines, ephemera and archival materials. The show is supported in part by a generous bequest from Marjorie B. Rachlin.

The talk is part of the museum’s Free Community Day, which offers visitors free admission on the first Sunday and second Wednesday of each month. Visitors are encouraged to explore the museum’s collection, special exhibitions, and LRC, as well as a range of engaging programs throughout the day, including art-making in the Studio and gallery talks and tours.

Note: the Free Community Day runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with Open Studio art-making from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and a tour at 2 p.m. Additional details are available at https://nmwa.org/whats-on/calendar/free-community-day-2025-03-02/