Chicago, Judy

(born July 20, 1939, Chicago, Ill., U.S.) U.S. multimedia artist. She studied at UCLA, and in 1970 she adopted the name of her hometown. Motivated by perceived discrimination in the art world and alienation from canonical art traditions, she developed “environments” featuring feminine imagery. Her most notable work, The Dinner Party (1974–79), is a triangular table with place settings for 39 important women, each represented by personalized ceramic plates and table runners embellished with embroidery styles typical of their eras. This installation established her reputation as a leader in feminist art. In 1973 she cofounded the Feminist Studio Workshop and Woman's Building in Los Angeles.