NEW YORK, NY.- Carolee Schneemann: Body Politics is the first survey in the UK of the work of Schneemann (1939–2019) and the first major exhibition since her death. Tracing Schneemann’s diverse, transgressive, and interdisciplinary work over six decades, the show celebrates an artist who remains a feminist icon and point of reference for many contemporary artists and thinkers. With over 300 objects, the exhibition draws from the Schneemann Foundation as well as numerous private and public collections, bringing together paintings, sculptural assemblages, performance photographs, films, and large-scale multimedia installations, as well as rarely seen archival material including scores, sketches, scrapbooks, and costumes. This exhibition—curated by Lotte Johnson, and running from September 8, 2022 through January 8, 2023—positions Schneemann as one of the most relevant, provocative and inspiring artists of the last century.

A robust program of film screenings, public talks, poetry readings, and workshops will take place throughout the run of the show. The first of these public programs is a symposium at the Courtauld on September 9. Exploring her engagement with and assessment of urgent political questions, her relationship to feminism, and her connections with wider artistic communities, this day-long symposium will consider Schneemann’s work and legacy. Speakers will discuss the artist’s long career and innovative experiments with form alongside her explorations of sexual expression, personal politics, and body as a medium, as well as the historical and artistic contexts in which she was working. Supported by the Centre for American Art, the event is organized by Dr. Rachel Warriner of the Courtauld and Lotte Johnson of Barbican Art Gallery, and concludes with a keynote by Dr. Lucy Bradnock of the University of Nottingham.

The Carolee Schneemann Foundation is pleased to announce the appointment of Sara Vance Waddell as president of the Board of Directors. Vance Waddell’s commitment to art by women and artists of color, along with her significant philanthropy toward social justice and animal rights, make her an excellent leader for a Foundation dedicated to the legacy of the pioneering feminist artist Carolee Schneemann.

Speaking about the leadership of Sara Vance Waddell, Schneemann Foundation Director Rachel Churner noted that “Sara’s insight and experience are a significant asset to our Board of Directors, which is already a distinguished group of scholars, curators, and collectors. Under Sara’s helm, the group is well positioned to promote the radical legacy of Carolee’s artworks through exhibitions, publications, and the creation of a residency at her upstate home. It is particularly exciting to welcome her in this new role now, just as the Barbican Art Gallery opens the first survey in the UK of Carolee’s work.”

Vance Waddell is the owner/president of SMV Media, a media management company that has worked with the Cincinnati Art Museum, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, and Summerfair Cincinnati, among other cultural institutions. She is a collector and patron, and is project organizer of the exhibition Still They Persist: Protest Art of the 2017–2019 Women’s Marches. Vance Waddell has amassed one of the largest collections of women’s art in the Midwest and is instrumental to the regional and national arts community. Currently she serves on the following boards, in addition to the Schneemann Foundation: the Ohio Advisory Group Co-Chair and National Advisory Board for the National Museum of Women in the Arts in D.C.; the Committee on Media and Performance of the Museum of Modern Art, New York; ArtTable, New York; the Westin Art Gallery Support Committee; and Wave Pool. She is Trustee Emeritus of Artworks and Honorary Lifetime Trustee of Cancer Family Care. Previous art board commitments include: the Ohio Arts Council; Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati as Vice President; the Cincinnati Art Museum as Acquisitions Chair; the Neuberger Museum of Art, New York as Acquisitions Chair; and The Ohio Citizen for the Arts as Secretary.

The Schneemann Foundation’s dedicated Board of Directors includes Alvin Hall, financial educator, television and radio broadcaster, and bestselling author; Jenny Jaskey, Chief Curator and Director of Art Awards, American Academy of Arts and Letters; Cash (Melissa) Ragona, Associate Professor of Visual Culture and Critical Theory, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh; Walter Sudol, founder, Second Ward Foundation, Hudson; Brian Wallace, former director of Keene State’s Thorne-Sagendorph Gallery; Kenneth White, Assistant Professor of Film Studies, State University of New York at Binghamton; and, outgoing board president Steven Johnson, principal at Johnson Gallagher LLC. Johnson served as president from 2014 to 2022.