Judy Chicago, In Praise of Prairie Dogs (19-325), 2019

During the summer of 2019, feminist icon, artist, writer, and educator Judy Chicago was in the workshop collaborating with Master Printer Valpuri Remling on a special edition for Tamarind, which, by the way, sells this work for US $8,000, which can be seen HERE. 

The eleven-color lithograph she created brings attention to impending species extinction, and continues her extensive work in printmaking. Chicago has spent her career bringing visibility to subjects that are not widely represented in the history of art. Internationally known for The Dinner Party, an epic installation comprised of a banquet of ceramic table settings honoring influential women in Western civilization, Chicago has worked tirelessly to highlight the social and cultural contributions of women. Now 80 years old, sporting brilliant purple hair and enjoying broad critical recognition and major museum exhibitions, Chicago has achieved a new level of art celebrity status. She is utilizing this hard-earned platform to focus attention around species extinction. Tamarind’s 2019 edition pays tribute to the North American prairie dog, which is experiencing a sharp population decline and currently listed as an endangered species. Chicago renders a pair of prairie dogs as they actually greet each other, in a kind of toothy kiss. Her finely drawn creatures float against a luminous green ground, achieved through three blend rolls and six runs through the press. In Praise of Prairie Dogs prompts us to consider the species’ important role in maintaining grassland habitats and biodiversity.