About

Why are there no great trans* artists?’ one might ask, paraphrasing feminist art historian Linda Nochlin’s rhetoric of 1971. This companion volume to feminist art practice and theory seeks to rectify the problem of trans omission by including this essay that focuses on trans visual art, but therefore also begs an explanation for what is awry in canonization processes that it (previously) would exclude trans-identified artists and works. Like Nochlin, I won’t take the bait to answer the question as it is put: ‘that is, to dig up examples of worthy or insufficiently appreciated [trans] artists throughout history’ without questioning the assumptions and power differentials couched in the question.