Book excerpt: “It is not about provocation, reaction or even invocation, it is about transformation: mentally and physically.”—Marina Abramovic, artist “Art is subjective, and if one sees something in an image, that projection is a reflection of the spectator, who sees what he or she wants to see, whose critique is relevant to him or herself, exposing his or her own perversions.”—Irina Ionesco, artist Until the late twentieth century, women’s creative skills were relegated to craft and decorative arts, and valued only for utilitarian purposes in service to others and the manufacturing of products to benefit society. After enduring the great injustice of being denied the freedom that self-expression brings through art for the joy of the human spirit, Women of the Underground: Art celebrates those female cultural innovators who are creating new artwork that pushes boundaries, dares to question, and redefines the genres of mixed media; theater; film; photography; and visual, conceptual, and performance art. In this groundbreaking anthology that will inspire artists and everyone interested in alternatives to mainstream culture, as well as serve as a reference book for art historians, twenty-six female artists describe their ideas, beginnings, influences, and creative techniques. Contains interviews with Lady Pink, Marina Abramovic, Orlan, Aleksandra Mir, Penny Arcade, Johanna Went, the Guerrilla Girls, and many others. Editor Zora von Burden was born and raised in San Francisco, California. A frequent contributor to The San Francisco Herald, von Burden also wrote the screenplay for Geoff Cordner’s underground cult classic film, Hotel Hopscotch.