Books and Art

My Bookman and I went to see Judy Chicago at Amazon Bookstore Cooperative this afternoon. We both admire her work, particularly The Dinner Party and The Holocaust Project. She has a new exhibit that opened in a small gallery here in town that I have not seen yet. It features some of the drawings and watercolors from her new book Fragments from the Delta of Venus. Chicago and Anais Nin met at a party in 1971. Nin became a both a friend and mentor to Chicago. Fragments consists of text selections from Nin's book of erotic stories, The Delta of Venus, and watercolor art by Chicago inspired by the text. It's a lovely little book, the cover of which is a sort of shimmery flushed flesh pink. Chicago read briefly from her introduction to the book and spent the rest of the time just talking and answering questions. Feminism and art were the themes. I don't know about everyone else there (about 30 people mostly women but a handful of men too, and a mixed age range), but I left feeling inspired and uplifted. I didn't know what to expect, but I am quite pleased with the experience, which includes an autographed copy of the book.