Women at work

“Women: An International Women’s Day Exhibition,” presented by the Philadelphia Chapter of the Women’s Caucus for Art, celebrates international perspectives of femininity and the feminine, and highlights female icons inspired by various Asian, Latin American, European, North American and African cultures.

Opening March 8 at International House, the exhibit offers twodimensional and three-dimensional works of art, including paintings, prints, photography, collages, sculptures, fiber arts and assemblages. The artists are women of diverse backgrounds, ages and ethnicities.

Differing cultural representations of the feminine can be found in Nicole Dul’s depiction of an elderly woman and Pamela Flynn’s depiction of a shapely paper doll created for AIDS awareness.

Bonnie MacAllister’s photographs explore femininity, gender roles and the relevance of education in a child’s life. The photo “Herder: On the Road to Harar,” taken at a bus stop in Ethiopia during a 12-hour ride to the city of Harar, is part of a series on Ethiopian women and children. Marcelle Pachnowski’s “Ishtar” is a selection from her collection of small collage assemblages of various female goddesses. Ishtar, a goddess of fertility, love, war and sex, was the divine personification of the planet Venus and the courtesan of the gods. Other exhibited artwork includes Qaadira Allen’s “Gaia Prayer” and Veronica Gledhill’s “The Gathering” (pictured). The exhibit was created through a partnership between the Women’s Caucus for Art of Philadelphia, the African Studies Department at Penn and “One Book, One Philadelphia” in celebration of the book, “The Complete Persepolis” by Marjane Satrapi. The event takes place at 6 p.m. For more information, call 215-895-6533 or email phila_wca@yahoo.com. The exhibit runs through March 14.

feminine painting