Art School Cheerleaders
Encyclopedia
The Art School Cheerleaders were a performance art
troupe that used cheerleading as a medium for satirical, political and social commentary on the arts and their place in our society.
from 1996-1998, the SMFA Cheerleaders performed at venues such as Banned In Boston, a benefit which included city luminaries such as the mayor of Boston, and the Car Talk
anniversary show: A Tribute to Click and Clack: Celebrating 20 years of Bad Car Advice. They were featured in numerous publications including the Sunday Boston Globe, the Sunday New York Times, and the August 1997 issue of Playboy, which featured an anti-censorship
cheer that they had penned.
The SMFA Cheerleaders also performed on the main stage at the Art Now! March on Washington in support of the arts during the massive 1997 National Endowment for the Arts
budget cuts.
Several of the Art School Cheerleaders were also members of Bad Girrls Studios
, a popular artist-run Boston gallery that hosted numerous public art events.
The Art Cheerleaders were resurrected in 2007 in Richmond, Virginia
by one of the co-founders of the SMFA group, Rebecca Goldberg, who pulled together and worked with Richmond artists from many genres to advocate for arts funding in the Richmond area. This iteration of the group received a Muse Award for Creativity in Business from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
and was featured as the cover story for Richmond Style Weekly's 2007 year-in-review. The group separated in late 2008 after leading a parade through the City of Richmond commemorating the 30th anniversary of Richmond's oldest non-profit space for new art, the 1708 Gallery.
Performance art
In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
troupe that used cheerleading as a medium for satirical, political and social commentary on the arts and their place in our society.
History
Originally existing as the SMFA Cheerleaders at the School of the Museum of Fine ArtsSchool of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
The School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston is an undergraduate and graduate college located in Boston, Massachusetts, dedicated to the visual arts. It is affiliated with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs in partnership with Tufts University...
from 1996-1998, the SMFA Cheerleaders performed at venues such as Banned In Boston, a benefit which included city luminaries such as the mayor of Boston, and the Car Talk
Car Talk
Car Talk is a radio talk show broadcast weekly on National Public Radio stations throughout the United States and elsewhere. Its subjects are automobiles and repair, and it often takes humorous turns...
anniversary show: A Tribute to Click and Clack: Celebrating 20 years of Bad Car Advice. They were featured in numerous publications including the Sunday Boston Globe, the Sunday New York Times, and the August 1997 issue of Playboy, which featured an anti-censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
cheer that they had penned.
The SMFA Cheerleaders also performed on the main stage at the Art Now! March on Washington in support of the arts during the massive 1997 National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
budget cuts.
Several of the Art School Cheerleaders were also members of Bad Girrls Studios
Bad Girrls Studios
Bad Girrls Studios was a popular Boston gallery and performance space from 1996 to 2000,, located at 209 Green Street in Jamaica Plain. Founded by School of the Museum of Fine Arts student Jessica Brand, the artist-run studio hosted numerous events until it closed due to pressure from the Boston...
, a popular artist-run Boston gallery that hosted numerous public art events.
The Art Cheerleaders were resurrected in 2007 in Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
by one of the co-founders of the SMFA group, Rebecca Goldberg, who pulled together and worked with Richmond artists from many genres to advocate for arts funding in the Richmond area. This iteration of the group received a Muse Award for Creativity in Business from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
The Virginia Museum of Fine arts, or VMFA, is an art museum in Richmond, Virginia, in the United States, which opened in 1936.The museum is owned and operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia, while private donations, endowments, and funds are used for the support of specific programs and all...
and was featured as the cover story for Richmond Style Weekly's 2007 year-in-review. The group separated in late 2008 after leading a parade through the City of Richmond commemorating the 30th anniversary of Richmond's oldest non-profit space for new art, the 1708 Gallery.