[Faith Ringgold, Yvonne Rainer, Jon Hendricks]

Flags: An Open Exhibition to be held at Judson Memorial Church [People’s Flag Show]

[New York]: Judson Memorial Church, 1970. Xerox. 8 1/2 x 11 in. Very good. Item #10567

The rare flyer promoting an open call for the People’s Flag Show, organized by Faith Ringgold, Jean Toche, and Jon Hendricks at Judson Memorial Church in 1970 - an exhibition ultimately raided by police, with the organizers arrested and charged with flag desecration.

Ringgold, Hendrick and Toche did not do any selection and displayed all submitted works at the exhibition. Altogether, more than 150 works of all kinds were displayed at the Judson Memorial Church. They included both professional art pieces by famous artists (for reasons of caution, some of the most renowned artists decided to sign their works using pseudonyms) and entirely amateur expressions of rage, frustration and plain anger at the government’s actions. Notable artists and activist involved included Kate Millett, Abbie Hoffman, and Yvonne Rainer.

The exhibition began with a flag burning, and ended with a police raid that interrupted the show and saw the arrest of the three organizers. Rainer, in what she described as “a double-barreled attack on repression and censorship” contributed a variation of her iconic performance “Trio A” titled “Trio A with Flags;” the dancers performed the original work wearing only an American flag tied like a bib around the neck.

A striking document of the convergence of avant-garde art and radical politics, resulting in the striking agit-prop protest, art, and performance associated with the late 1960s and early 1970s.

OCLC locates only one holding as of April 2026, at MFAH.

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