Funny work from feminists

Funny work from feminists

Melbourne can enjoy an exhibition by feminist cartoonists until September 22. The "Out of Line" exhibitors include Hermoine the Modern Girl's creator Kaz Cooke, and others. (Why not mention them all? Jane Carafella, Trudy Clutterbok, Bronwyn Halls, Judy Horacek, Deborah Kelly, Kathleen McCann, Nicole McKinnon, Joan Rosser and Jo Waite.)

The exhibition program by Judy Horacek tentatively theorises their work: "Unknown, underpaid, re/oppressed, under/over ideologized, the woman cartooning is in the unique position of representing the post modern Other to the mirror of Capital." Then again, Horacek concludes, "maybe they just like drawing".

"I am not trained to be a feminist but suppose I am in that I believe in doing anything I bloody well want to", explains Bronwyn Halls.

Kaz Cooke was not trained as a feminist either, but then she didn't need to be: she was born one in 1962. She spent 1963-1981 doing preparation for becoming a feminist cartoonist "including fieldwork, research, the school dance, being told girls couldn't play footy at school because it caused breast cancer, etc".

See it all at the Friends of the Earth Gallery, 222 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy. A Melbourne Fringe Arts Festival and Feminist Book Fortnight Event.

From GLW issue 28