19th Amendment Centennial Commemorative Artworks

About the Program

Category: Arts, Culture and Historic Preservation (Best in Category)

Year: 2021

From August 2019 to August 2020 the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors commemorated and celebrated 100 years since the ratification of the 19th Amendment of the United States, granting women the right to vote. Despite its passage, many women of color were barred from voting for decades through racial discrimination and intimidation. To honor the centennial and the ongoing work toward achieving equity, the LA County Department of Arts and Culture collaborated with the LA County Women and Girls Initiative, Library, and Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk to commission six artists to create original commemorative artworks. The project invited LA's creative community to explore and celebrate the achievements of the Suffragists and place the movement in a larger historical context. The resulting artworks reflect a diversity of women and perspectives and highlight themes such as empowerment, civic engagement, resiliency, and the right to vote. The original artworks were installed in County facilities as part of the County’s Civic Art Collection. To further reach and accessibility of the arts, the artworks were made into sharable digital graphics and printable posters to encourage voting, and three of the artworks were turned into special edition library cards for constituents Countywide and distributed at Library locations offering Sidewalk Service during the Safer at Home orders.