To honor and document women’s voices and visions
To encourage dialogue and collaboration
To inspire creative expression
Lorraine Serena – Artist/Founder, Artistic Director
Women Beyond Borders is a cross-cultural exhibition initiated by artist Lorraine Serena and a group of artist friends in 1991, with the goal to encourage dialogue, collaboration, and community among women, and to honor their creativity worldwide.
A small wooden box measuring 3 1/2 ” x 2 ” x 3 1/2 ” was selected as a point of departure. Women were invited from all continents to transform the boxes. Boxes have been contributed by accomplished, nationally or internationally known artists, as well as by women with no prior artistic experience, anywhere from Afghanistan to Zambia.
While the individual boxes are repositories for the personal, political, and economic realities of women internationally, the project itself challenges geographical, political, ethnic, religious, and aesthetic boundaries. In the 21st century, Women Beyond Borders has been adapted to audiences, such as the international adjunct project Children Beyond Borders, a collaboration with VSA Arts, involving 6,000 children with disabilities worldwide.
Since its inception, Women Beyond Borders has acted as a catalyst for cultural exchange and change worldwide, taking a pivotal position at the intersection of contemporary art and today’s increasingly globalized society.
WORLD TOUR STATISTICS 1995 – 2013
50+ countries
50+ exhibitions around the world
900+ artist boxes
800 sponsors, curators, coordinators
10 publications
250 workshops/panels/presentations
15 million viewers (actual, virtual exhibitions)
8,000+ student participants – adjunct projects
Women Beyond Borders has become a summons for all women to express themselves. Lorraine Serena
Women Beyond Borders is a miracle of its time. Johanna Demetrakas, film director, Judy Chicago’s Dinner Party
Women Beyond Borders is a celebration of women’s progress and movement forward as they connect with one another on a global level. It was one of our most successful exhibitions. Nancy Doll, Former Director, Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, Site of WBB Premier Exhibition.
Women Beyond Borders is positioned at a crucial intersection in today’s art. The significance extends beyond individual artworks. Women Beyond Borders combines traditional object-based art with virtual communication and acts as a catalyst for the building of community among women. Cross-cultural communication lies at the heart of Women Beyond Borders. Dr. Anette Kubitza, Art Historian
The language of art in these boxes expresses the feelings of each woman who participated in the exposition and as a whole is the expression of millions of women in their daily reality. Women Beyond Borders tells much more about the human condition than all of the peace agreements that have been signed in the world to date. Margarita Dalton, Oaxaca, Poet/Anthropologist
WEBSITE Schedule, Journal and Virtual Exhibition of boxes
WBB BOXES ON THE TRAIN Austria to Russia: Traveling train exhibition, Austria to Russia
VIDEOS Reflections on the Body Women Beyond Borders World Tour