Partway into the third political debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump, Clinton sparred with her opponent as she answered a question on the topic of Social Security. Expressing her belief that the country needs to invest more in the Social Security trust fund, which would require raising taxes to the wealthy, Clinton commented, “Social Security payroll contribution will go up — as will Donald’s, assuming he can’t figure out how to get out of it.”
Trump leaned close to the microphone and interrupted her, intoning, “Such a nasty woman.”
Right away the comment went viral, with women tweeting #nastywoman and adopting the term as a badge of strength and honor. The debate was held on Wednesday night, Oct. 19; by Thursday morning, there were “Nasty Woman” T-shirts for sale online.
Two Brooklyn artists, Roxanne Jackson and Jessamyn Fiore, embraced the “nasty woman” moniker by putting out a call for work for a Nasty Women art exhibition in Queens, New York. Organized as a fundraiser for Planned Parenthood, that exhibit, which opened Jan. 12, drew the work of close to 700 artists. That initial call for work included an invitation for others to create similar shows in other venues. To date, 30 other “nasty venues” across the country and worldwide are listed on the Nasty Women Art Exhibition website: http://nastywomenexhibition.org.
Locally, Nancy Paglia, a stress management specialist, yoga instructor and massage therapist who lives in Leverett, saw the call for work on Facebook and decided to organize a show.
“Usually it takes me days to make decisions,” Paglia says. “But this, I saw it and I thought, ‘I have something like 20 artist friends — I’m going to organize this.’”
Paglia, who is not an artist herself and has never organized an art exhibit before, said she felt like she was channeling her parents who were organizers and activists. She said to herself, “I’m doing it!”
Paglia now has 25 submissions for the Nasty Women art exhibit and fundraiser to be held at the Barnes Gallery at Leverett Crafts & Arts in Leverett Friday, Feb. 10 through Sunday Feb. 12, with an opening on Feb. 10 at 7 p.m.
Paglia expects that many more submissions will come in as the Jan. 31 deadline for work to be dropped off approaches. All proceeds from art sales will go to the Abortion Rights Fund of Western Massachusetts, an all-volunteer organization that provides financial assistance to women and girls in need of an abortion.
“As a woman, and just as myself, I don’t want to see reproductive rights going back to what they were in the 1950s,” Paglia said. “And that could very well happen with Mike Pence as vice president.”
Paglia said that since the election, many people with fears about the incoming administration have been asking themselves “How can I do something and what can I do?”
Sue Mulholland, a silkscreen artist who is co-director of the Barnes Gallery along with Will Sieruta, said that participating in a show such as this is one way for artists to feel empowered.
Lori Lynn Hoffer, a painter who has a studio at the center, said, “And I think there’s something gleeful about supporting that term, ‘nasty woman.’ I think a lot of us now, we say that it makes us feel really good.”
The term did bring up the question as to whether show organizers were looking for “nasty art,” Mulholland said.
She answers, “No.”
Mulholland explains carefully and with force that what exhibit organizers are looking for is, “Beautiful art by strong, talented women.”
Paglia adds, “We just want to defend against that identification the way he made it.”
“Right. We’re here. This is what we do,” Mulholland says.
These and other artists are creating activism out of what they know: paint, clay, ink, fiber, fabric.
Paglia is collecting artist statements from each exhibitor and will be posting them with their work in the gallery.
In her statement, Mulholland wrote, “I am a strong believer that we should not have our rights controlled or taken away by a government of men. I will continue to make beautiful silkscreen prints, silk scarves and clothing. I have comforted myself in the months following the election by painting silk in my studio. I think I will be painting a lot over the next four years.”
Sally Chaffee, an Amherst artist who makes beaded jewelry, wrote, “I’m proud to be a Nasty Woman and stand in solidarity with women and men who support the rights of women and our families, including a woman’s right to choose and the right to an abortion. Our rights are under attack in these dangerous times and we must act, march, protest together to protect and increase those rights, for the sake of our families, our children and parents, and the future of our planet.”
Deadline for work to be dropped off at Leverett Crafts & Arts Center is Tuesday, Jan. 31. An artists’ reception will be held Friday, Feb. 10, at 7 p.m. in the Barnes Gallery at Leverett Crafts & Arts, 13 Montague Road, Leverett. Gallery hours on Saturday and Sunday will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information. visit: barnesgallery.org or contact gallery co-director Sue Mulholland at sbmulholland1150@hotmail.com or 413-548-9161.