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Portland art blog + news + exhibition reviews + galleries + contemporary northwest art
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Tuesday 02.27.07 The Fountainhead  Marcel Duchamp's Fountain a.k.a the "great white whale" A recent case involving art vandalism raises some interesting questions about art, monetary value, and audience alienation, all of which were among the issues discussed in a February 18th lecture at the Portland Art Museum by New York Times chief art critic Michael Kimmelman. On February 9th, 2007, the Associated Press reported that, "A French appeals court ruled...that a 78-year-old Frenchman who attacked Marcel Duchamp's famed porcelain urinal with a hammer last year does not have to pay $260,000 in damages.".............................(more) Posted by Jessica Bromer on February 27, 2007 at 22:33 | Comments (4) PermalinkMonday 02.26.07 Some picks from the Armory Show 2007 Posted by Amy Bernstein on February 26, 2007 at 13:40 | Comments (3) PermalinkLisa Sigal • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series  Lisa Sigal • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series Mon • Feb 26 • 8:15p 510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92 Posted by Melia Donovan on February 26, 2007 at 9:46 | Comments (0) PermalinkSunday 02.25.07 Sue Coe Lecture  Sue Coe, one of the most important politically oriented artists living in the U.S. today, will be showing work at PNCA's Feldman Gallery and Project Space. Tackling subjects from apartheid to animal rights, Coe’s drawings have appeared in publications such as the New York Times, Newsweek, and Artforum. Her work is in the collections of many major museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Event Info: Lecture Wednesday, Feb. 28 6:30p in PNCA Swigert Commons Exhibition Thursday, March 1 – Monday, April 16 Feldman Gallery + Project Space 1st Thursday Opening, March 1, 6-9p Both events free and open to the public Posted by Jenene Nagy on February 25, 2007 at 22:46 | Comments (0) PermalinkNew York new work? Maybe you weren't in New York this weekend for the Armory show, maybe you were?
PORT's Amy Bernstein was there on assignment and we will have something from
her "too much art" weekend shortly.
Till then check out Artists Unite's coverage of Scope and Edward Winkleman's Pulse coverage. Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 25, 2007 at 17:08 | Comments (0) PermalinkSaturday 02.24.07 Congratualtions PICA!
You may already know about this, since it’s been announced elsewhere,
however, in case you haven’t heard, PICA has received 3 major grants totaling
$225,000 from The Andy
Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts of New York, The
Paul G. Allen Family Foundation of Seattle, and The
Collins Foundation of Portland, all of which points to the local, regional
and national need that PICA satisfies....(more)
Posted by Melia Donovan on February 24, 2007 at 8:49 | Comments (0) PermalinkFriday 02.23.07 Last chance, some quick reviews I always feel guilty writing about worthy shows in a very short form, yet since all of these shows ends this weekend I feel it's worth the brevity:
 Whitney Nye at Laura Russo Whitney Nye at Laura Russo: Yes, Portland has had way too many collage shows but this is a breakthrough for Whitney Nye and "Counterpane" is just one of the standouts....(more Nye, Weber, Hilliard, Vogland, Eckard, Dan May and Jim Hansen) Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 23, 2007 at 17:27 | Comments (0) PermalinkDeath Staring Back You: Damien Hirst at PAM by Arcy Douglass .
 No Art; No Letters; No Society (Detail), 2006. Glass formica cabinets with medical packaging and human skulls, The Broad Art Foundation, Santa Monica. Hirst has become famous over the last twenty years for art that pushes back at the viewer, and this exhibition is no exception. His most famous works like The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living, a large shark floating in a giant tank, forces spectators to confront their own mortality. The four works included in the exhibition from the Broad Collection are a good overview of some of the themes that run through Hirst's work, all presented with the fun and horrors of a haunted house at a traveling carnival. His work is at the crossroads of many contradictory ideas by being both funny and sad, shallow and deep, slapstick and profound...(more) Posted by Arcy Douglass on February 23, 2007 at 10:52 | Comments (0) PermalinkBackroom Brunch for Kids and Grownups • TOMORROW!! The
Backroom: Featuring Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
Sat • Feb 24 • noon Reed College Student Union 3203 SE Woodstock Boulevard Tickets: $5 Sip orange juice and mimosas and sup on mac 'n' cheese and pancakes at the first ever backroom brunch for boys and girls and other interested parties (ie chaperones). The authors and illustrator of The Edge Chronicles, Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell will discuss their books with live music by Karl Blau. In addition to that, Chris will lead the kids in some drawing projects and show them how he works on his illustrations for the books. Posted by Melia Donovan on February 23, 2007 at 9:24 | Comments (1) PermalinkStephanie Robison • Lecture Tilt Gallery and Project Space
625 NW Everett Suite 106 Fri • Feb 23 • 7pm “Please join us for an informal conversation with sculptor Stephanie Robison. Robison will be discussing her new piece Water Landing on view at Tilt Gallery and Project Space. With her most ambitious work to date, Robison continues to cull materials from the everyday. Wood, fabric, foam, plastic and linoleum are transformed into something playful, mysterious, and evocative.” Posted by Melia Donovan on February 23, 2007 at 6:28 | Comments (0) PermalinkThursday 02.22.07 Globetrotting Portland Artists in 2007  David Eckard on the streets of Rio Despite the increasing real estate development and institutional maturation (for example Small A Projects was just accepted into NADA) Portland is still unique for being mostly defined by its people and I'm happy to report they have a rapidly increasing international reach. The artists are still the most influential and controversial force at work here and it will probably be that way for the next decade as...(much more) Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 22, 2007 at 16:18 | Comments (1) PermalinkA little butterfly told me, Damien Hirst has a new show There is a convenient scandal brewing, did
Damien Hirst rip off artist Lori Precious?... uh no but check it out here. Let's
just say, ideas, butterflies and even PR stunts get recycled all the time. Kinda
neat how Hirst isn't having this show in New York this Armory weekend huh? I'm a huge fan and though
I doubt this was orchestrated directly it's a testament to the guy that people think he's capable
of it (well he is, but why try when this kind of stuff can be almost counted on). The title of the show is "Superstition."
It is a show title I wanted to use someday... arrgh, but it's totally appropriate. Also, PORT's own rather involved Damien
Hirst review will be up tomorrow.
Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 22, 2007 at 14:54 | Comments (4) PermalinkWednesday 02.21.07 TAMpering with the Northwest Biennial?  Jen Graves at the Stranger has reviewed the Northwest Biennial at the Tacoma Art Museum. I saw the show this past weekend and I pretty much agree with her assessment, except the Schweder had kinda disintegrated by the time I saw it. Ive seen most of it before in...(more) Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 21, 2007 at 16:39 | Comments (0) PermalinkApply! Below is my latest list of opportunities you should check out. Remember, if you have an opportunity you would like to see posted, send me the info. This is a curated list and not all opportunities will be posted...(more)
Posted by Jenene Nagy on February 21, 2007 at 13:46 | Comments (0) PermalinkIs Liverpool the next Portland? I'll be posting that list of Portland artists with shows outside of town in 2007
that Ive promised (maybe later today). Till then:
The Guardian is claiming that Liverpool is like San Francisco with greyer weather? Ha, that doesn't sound anything like Portland at all does it? Actually we don't want that kind of title here and the fact is Portland is kinda the anti San Francisco. Which is why in 2005 the Norton collection's curator remarked to me, "All of San Francisco's best artists are moving to Portland." It isn't just Harrell Fletcher and Chris Johanson... there are a pile of others like Patrick Rock, Jesse Hayward, Brittany Powell, Emily Counts, Todd Johnson and even Brenden Clenaghen ...etc. (it's a huge list) who all have done stints in SF only to settle here. Sure, Portland has similarities to an older San Fransisco but it's different, we arent a financial center and we are more of an alternative to the mistakes of the second half of the 20th century. Ideologically the PDX thing is something completely different. Add in over 10,000 artists to the mix of a city this size and see what happens. The city is a rebel base and I think it's increasingly dfficult to talk accurately about Portland art without looking outside of Portland. To that end, PORT's Amy Berstein will be covering The Armory etc. this week in New York. *Update: Matt McCormick just jogged my memory, he was in the Liverpool Biennial... see why the Portlanders outside of Portland post has taken so long to come out! (PDX-ers feel free to email me with updates before I publish the list tonight) Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 21, 2007 at 11:15 | Comments (4) PermalinkTuesday 02.20.07 Back from Rio 
TROCA USA Lecture at Pacific Northwest College of Art Three years ago Feldman Gallery curator emeritus Nan Curtis began an exciting artist exchange and exhibition program with Ernesto Neto called Troca Brazil. The exhibition of Neto and others from Brazil at the PNCA's Feldman gallery group in 2005 was covered here. This past January the circle of exchange was completed when a select group Portland artists and PNCA students traveled to Brazil for an exhibit in Rio. You get to hear their stories today from the participants: Nan Curtis (curator), Bruce Conkle, David Eckard, Emily Ginsburg, MK Guth, Don Olsen, Tamsie Ringler. Tuesday, February 20th 7 pm (free) PNCA Commons 1241 NW Johnson Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 20, 2007 at 11:55 | Comments (0) PermalinkMonday 02.19.07 What would LBJ do? Nicolai Ouroussoff of the NTY's has denounced
the so-called Freedom Tower in his strongest words yet. I absolutely agree
and have stated many
times before how it is a massive failure of imagination. The only thing that
can do real justice to the site, city and nation is a much better design. A clumsy
restatement of the empire state building with a blast shield doesn't cut it. I
know it's probably too much to ask of the current President but if the state and
local governments can't get a developer of a national historical site to do it
right it's time for the national government to step in. (then again could they
do better? ....uggh it's times like these that I actually yearn for LBJ...
yes that is what it has come to)
On a more local public art front Portland Public Art, The Portland Tribune and the Mercury have been on top of the evolving failure of the dragon sculptures in Portland's Chinatown from early on... (more) Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 19, 2007 at 10:18 | Comments (2) PermalinkTalk is Cheap, Buy a Beer PINTS FOR PICA @ Low Brow Lounge Monday • Feb 19 • 6-10 p 1036 NW Hoyt Street • 21+ View a special one-night screening, High Five! : 3 videos about gesture, featuring contemporary art’s Douglas Gordon, Gary Hill and Joan Jonas organized by PICA’s Visual Art Program Director, Kristan Kennedy. “Shown in a loop and including short interviews with Hans Ulrich Obrist, these works focus the traveling eye on the gestures of the hand. Hands that greet, prop up, push down, flip off and hold up elements of fragmented stories.” Videos have been selected from the project "Point of View- An Anthology of the Moving Image" commissioned by the New Museum of Contemporary Art. A portion of all food and drink sales on this special night will benefit PICA’s artistic programming.  Untitled Fun 1, 2004 Project Row Houses Cultural Arts Festival Houston, Texas Zach Moser • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series Mon • Feb 19 • 8:15p 510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92 “Zach Moser is an artist living and working in Houston, Texas. He is a graduate of Oberlin College. His artistic practice is the facilitation of collaborative investigations, as well as interactive installations that attempt to uncover shared human values and inspire dynamic readings of our surroundings. By focusing on collaboration and interaction, he works to explore the unknown in order to create new discussions, discover new methods of communication, and propose new expectations of human potential. Besides a variety of installation projects, he is a founder of the Oberlin Big Parade, Workshop Houston, and the Shrimp Boat Project.” Posted by Melia Donovan on February 19, 2007 at 7:41 | Comments (1) PermalinkThursday 02.15.07 The Candor of Cali: Chris Johanson at The Portland Art Museum  Non-Time Specific Chris Johanson (Detail) Non-Time Specific Molecular Contemporary Landscape, 2007 Latex, acrylic, and spray-paint on reclaimed wood 48 x 45 3/4 inches Courtesy of Jack Hanley Gallery, San Francisco and Los Angels, and the artist Photo: Paul Foster The latest APEX spotlight to hit the Portland Art Museum this month is Portland-based artist Chris Johanson. In the past couple of years, Johanson has received national and international attention as part of a group of artists hailing from San Francisco's Mission District. Occasionally titled "The Mission School" this group of artists (also including Barry McGee, his late wife Margaret Kilgallen, and Alicia McCarthy, among many others) revels in the intersection of public, private and the D.I.Y. philosophy of a generation suffocated by consumer culture. . .(more) Posted by Amy Bernstein on February 15, 2007 at 20:36 | Comments (13) Permalink3 Dances on your Card  Three things of note this weekend - small A is having an opening on Friday, Kristan Kennedy has organized a show at the Heathman Hotel and Michael Kimmelman is lecturing at the Portland Art Museum. My suggestion to you, if you happen to be roaming around Portland this weekend, is that you stop by small A Friday for the opening, wander the galleries in the Pearl District / Old Town / Chinatown on Saturday, take in the lecture at PAM on Sunday and snack on fries and pink champagne at the Heathman in the Mezzanine afterwards and gaze at a collection of some darn good art. Posted by Melia Donovan on February 15, 2007 at 18:58 | Comments (0) PermalinkAloha: the surf is up at PORT By now PORT readers, you have read Jenn's announcement that she is leaving the
publication to focus on her excellent gallery, Motel.
This is no surprise between the two of us and we have been implementing a slow
phase out of her essential role for over a year. No drama here, just change…
PORT isn't where either of us spends the majority of our time. Others who can
devote more time to this small scale but successful and innovative publication
will be stepping in to help take it to the next level. I will continue in my role. It's just a natural growth situation that we saw
coming a long time ago.
PORT itself is more successful than ever with over 25,000 unique individual readers per month and is the top ranked site when you Google "Portland" & "Art." Recently, the Walker Art Center's blog singled us out as one of the 10 best art blogs on the planet… wow. Many of you come back daily and we are grateful for your eyes. With those numbers and reputation weve looked at how to grow the operation from its current small (but influential) scale to a slightly larger one. To those ends we are going to be hiring at least 1 new critic + adding some new sponsors, both big and small. In other words, weve both been doing PORT on the side and its business now demands some attention and fresh management divisions. What wont change is our focus on presenting critical content and information about art both locally and internationally. Thank you Jenn, you've been a dream to work with and that has been a large part of the site's success, take a bow. Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 15, 2007 at 18:45 | Comments (0) PermalinkAu Revoir, Mes Amis Dear PORT readers,
You may have noticed my online absence over the past few months. In the past year, my presence with PORT has become primarily behind-the-scenes; site moderation, accounting, and design. When Jeff and I initially conceived of PORT, we envisioned it as a fairly casual endeavor to promote visual arts in Portland to both a local and national community. However, it became clear that the project was going to be much more demanding and grandiose than either of us ever imagined. We quickly grew a staff of critics and writers and made swift strides to offer daily content on the site. What was initially conceived as a "from the hip" kind of endeavor soon begged for a higher level of seriousness and professionalism. Clearly, the community was hungry for a dedicated arts publication and we stepped up to the challenge. However, due to my vocation as a gallery owner, it quickly became clear that it would not be prudent for me to publicly air my opinions on art and art politics. So, I became the announcements editor. As the demands of Motel increased, I then abandoned all posting responsibilities to take care of PORT's administrative matters. Although I have not been a visible force on PORT as of late, I have been plugging away behind the scenes. In March, Motel will turn four years old. After housing over 40 exhibitions featuring over 150 artists and participating in a number of national gallery fairs, Motel has become a successful and reputable gallery. However, with this growth and development, the demands of the gallery have grown too. Out of a commitment to my artists and my vision and to the sustainability of the gallery, I have decided to end my tenure at PORT. I am excited to have more time to commit to the gallery and hope that PORT will continue to remain a vibrant and essential voice for Portland's arts community. I am proud of what Jeff and I conceived of and executed and believe PORT to be an important player in the promotion of Portland to a international audience. I am grateful for the opportunity to work with a great crew of writers, all of whom have impressive talents and ambitions in their own right. Although I will be absent from the PORT roster, you can expect to see more of me around town and as always, I can still be found behind the front desk at Motel. Thank you for supporting me, Jeff and the rest of the staff in our contributions to putting Portland on the map. All best, Jenn Posted by Jennifer Armbrust on February 15, 2007 at 18:44 | Comments (0) PermalinkJohn Buchanan and the curse of King Tut Tyler
Green has the scoop on former PAM director John Buchanan. It's the curse
of King Tut!
I recently spoke at length with his replacement Brian Ferriso and the one huge difference is that Ferriso is clearly all about the importance of important art (just like the curatorial staff). That is what Portland really needs/wants anyways. Currently Ferriso is in his listening/learning period at the museum so it makes sense to let him go about that important process without asking questions he can't answer yet. I can say he's already on top of the "obvious to anyone" concerns I laid out in October, but it's too soon to expect action. Ok one tidbit, I do like the fact that he's an architectural design buff, something Buchanan certainly wasn't. Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 15, 2007 at 18:01 | Comments (0) PermalinkTuesday 02.13.07 American Architectural Valentine Buildings need love too and since Tyler Green's doing a
collective intelligence experiment on the 5 best bits of American architecture, why not?
Here's my list and as usual it is tinged with personal affinities, besides 5 is too few for a historical sample:
1) Frank Lloyd Wright's Unity Temple (1907), Oak Park Illinois. The approach to the temple is exactly that, its sets the pace, mood and expectations on a level with Mayan or Egyptian structures, then raises the bar (yeah scary). It was one of Wright's favorite buildings and highly innovative for its use of concrete at the time. The central hall is just dumbfoundingly good, debatably the best room ever designed by any architect. Pictures consistently fail it. Wright called it a, "jewell box." It is both massively uplifting and contemplative as an incredibly democratic yet enlightened community space. I wonder if Donald Judd ever experienced this space? There aren't many rooms similar to this, only Brad Cloepfil's Weiden and Kennedy building strikes any comparison, which is very good but Wright's is a class or two above that effort. Also, Unity Temple requires restoration, so please click here to help, it's a national treasure... 2,3 &  photo credit: Jeff Jahn 4) Rem Koolhaas: Seattle Central Library, (2004) One of the best things he's ever done... 5.... (more) Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 13, 2007 at 19:56 | Comments (3) PermalinkMonday 02.12.07 See this Every once and a while we have to post a link to Daniel Peterson's awesome photoblog because we keep forgetting to add it to the blogroll. Here is the most memorable photo of the year so far. Im so glad that snow is gone. I seldom single out one artist like this but Daniel Peterson is the single best photo chronicler of what its like to be young artist (or young at heart) in Portland these days.
Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 12, 2007 at 20:28 | Comments (2) PermalinkByron Kim • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series  Byron Kim • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series Mon • Feb 12 • 8:15p 510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92....(more) Posted by Melia Donovan on February 12, 2007 at 9:49 | Comments (0) PermalinkSunday 02.11.07 Get Your Sexy On  Campbell Hall Gallery and Western Oregon University present XXX; The Power of Sex in Contemporary Design. Curated by Joshua Berger of Plazm, and Sarah Dougher, XXX is part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Sex in New York City, and based on the award-winning book of the same name. Exhibition runs February 14 - March 13, 2007. Joshua Berger and Sarah Dougher will host a discussion on February 22nd at 7pm at the Campbell Hall Gallery. Power of Sex Opening Reception Wednesday, Feb. 14 • 6-8p Western Oregon University 345 N. Monmouth Ave. Monmouth, OR 97361 Posted by Jenene Nagy on February 11, 2007 at 11:06 | Comments (4) PermalinkSaturday 02.10.07 More PAM Aquisitions  Gene Davis, Angel Fish (1970) The Portland Art Museum has announced yet another acquisition... actually it's a total of 350 acquisitions. The estate of Elvin Duerst has bequested 350 art objects, from an important early Gene Davis, "Angel Fish"... to Spanish colonial, Asian and contemporary Latin American works. Duerst, a McMinnville Oregon native lived in Washington D.C. for the last 65 years having worked for the United Nations, and the State Department. Duerst was intimately connected to the Washington Colorfield school and dovetails nicely with the museum's acquisition of the Greenberg Collection in 2001 (which had many important holes like Morris Louis, Barnett Newman and Gene Davis). Many have remarked that the Greenberg Collection should have ended up in the DC area and now they've got to be wondering how Portland has become such a magnet for 60's and 70's formalism. Let's just say we like abstraction, many of the best selling artists in town deal with formal abstraction and then there is the fact that Mark Rothko grew up here. Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 10, 2007 at 14:12 | Comments (2) PermalinkThursday 02.08.07 Below the radar no more Here are two architecturally involved exhibitions that have flown below the
radar:
Carolina Aragon's "A Portland Cloud" at the Portland Building's gallery space may not be very original because it reminds me a lot of Cornelia Parker. Then again, I love Cornelia Parker and this atmospheric piece certainly holds my attention. Aragon is a Harvard educated landscape architect for Walker Macy. Show ends tomorrow February 9th, see it if you can during the building's very limited hours till 6:00 PM 
The Portland chapter of The American Institute of Architects has a show on the construction of the Aerial Tram ...(more) Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 08, 2007 at 20:04 | Comments (0) PermalinkWednesday 02.07.07 Bohemian Rhapsody, like you? Here is an wonderful article about Man
Ray's debauched bohemian muse from The Guardian.
Up in Seattle Jen Graves puts in a fine article on another bohemian moment, Cologne from the 80's till about 1995. Yes, bohemian lifestyles and art are a hot subject right now and in case you missed it, PORT's own Jessica Bromer took on the Met's Glitter and Doom show last month. There is no shortage of bohemian activity in Portland these days... I wouldn't know where to start. However, I do think Joe Thurston has stopped drinking absinthe though. Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 07, 2007 at 21:09 | Comments (9) PermalinkThe Other Portland In conjunction with the exhibition “The Other Portland: Art & Ecology in the 5th Quadrant”, at the Portland Art Center, Art on the Peninsula presents A Symposium: The Other Portland. Artists and activists, teachers and writers, scientists and environmentalists meet to share a conversation about art and ecology...(more)
Posted by Jenene Nagy on February 07, 2007 at 10:47 | Comments (1) PermalinkTuesday 02.06.07 Not everyone is a critic Interested in reaching an international audience with excellent art writing? Brave enough to broadcast your informed subjective opinion? PORT is trying its best to keep up with the changes in the Portland art scene so we are looking for one more paid art critic for its staff (possible but not mandatory First Thursday and Friday listings position as well). We place a premium on critical knowledge and insightful opinions as well as an eye for relevant details and context. Email your vitae or resume and letter of intent here.
We tend to hire those who can think for themselves with academic credentials but an informed poet ala Schjeldahl is also a possibility.
Deadline Feb 15th 2007 Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 06, 2007 at 20:10 | Comments (0) PermalinkMonday 02.05.07 Voodoo Hymn and Primal Anecdote: Zen Parry at Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery   "Engagement: White Light" Zen Parry at Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery The Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery ups their own pretty ante this month, expounding even further on the definitions and boundaries of the terms "arts" and "crafts" and asking (not so politely) for the rest of Portland to mosey on up to the bar. . .(more) Posted by Amy Bernstein on February 05, 2007 at 17:39 | Comments (1) PermalinkThings to do this week: 2 Lectures and a Grant.....(more)
Posted by Melia Donovan on February 05, 2007 at 9:27 | Comments (0) PermalinkSunday 02.04.07 Portland Modern Call For Entries: Issue #5  Portland Modern is seeking visual art submissions for its fifth issue, scheduled for release in June 2007. Up to ten artists will be selected for publication in a full color catalog and will participate in a group exhibition in July 2007 at the Portland Art Center. As many as 6000 copies of Portland Modern Issue #5 will be published. Catalogs are distributed free of charge throughout the Portland metropolitan area and are sent directly to institutions, galleries, curators, and clients.The juror for Issue #5, Victor Maldonado. is currently Exhibitions Coordinator at Froelick Gallery, a writer for PDX Magazine and an instructor at the Pacific Northwest College of Art. He has an MFA from the Art Institute of Chicago, and recently worked as a preparator for MOCA. Submission is open to all visual artists currently living and working in Oregon and SW Washington. Work in any medium will be considered including, but not limited to: painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, sculpture, film, fibers, video, installation, performance, etc. There is no theme to guide submission content; rather, artists are encouraged to send up to ten images that best represent their work. The deadline for submitting is March 31. Details about submitting or advertising are available here. To find out more about Portland Modern, click here. Additional questions should be directed to Editor and Publisher Mark Brandau at mark@portlandmodern.org. Posted by Jessica Bromer on February 04, 2007 at 7:19 | Comments (1) PermalinkFriday 02.02.07 21st century conciousness and Portland's Aerial Tram  There are several flavors of influential architecture which redefine cities; the phallic tower of power... made popular in during Italian renaissance (Pisa, Eifel Tower, Chrysler Building, Space Needle etc.), the temple or jewel (Parthenon, Frank Lloyd Wright's Guggenheim, Gehry's Bilbao or Rem Koolhaas's Seattle Central Library), power plays (the Great Pyramid, US Capital building, Kremlin) and then there is my favorite, the pragmatic but show stopping philosophical conversation piece like Zaha Hadid's Bergisel Ski Jump (which conveniently directs jumpers towards a very old cemetery), Golden Gate Bridge or the Statue of Liberty (basically a big, poetic welcome mat, ideological advertisement and thank you note all in one).  going up Portland's Aerial Tram is just that, a pragmatic but philosophical conversation piece. Pragmatically it was made for transporting people from the tall new glass towers in the South Waterfront neighborhood to Oregon Health and Sciences University at the top of Pill Hill but has courted and accumulated a lot of other meanings. Like the Eifel Tower, Space Needle, Arc de Triomphe and Statue of liberty it will forever be considered alongside the pervasive philosophical challenges and contexts in which it was built. For Portland today though context is questioning man's relationship to the environment (fossil fuels in particular), health care and science as a partner with nature, our use of increasingly scarce real-estate, issues of civic interdependence and the nature and use of the US's power. It is a unique architectural project and time will tell how the conversation it spurs will pan out....(more) Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 02, 2007 at 16:46 | Comments (4) PermalinkThursday 02.01.07 A 21 @ sign salute for Visual Codec, RIP @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Sad news, Visual Codec was an online journal devoted to connecting the three Cascadian art scenes of Vancouver, Seattle and Portland. It has announced a permanent vacation. Here is M the editor's statement. Tellingly it wasn't lack of interest, its the massive amount of work that success can bring. The only way weve managed it here at PORT is an empowered, passionate, intelligent and highly capable staff. The VC news reminds me of the early days of the Organ back in 2003, I warned Camela not to grow it too much (content wise) because it will consume a superhuman level of attention. Alas, it has happened again. Posted by Jeff Jahn on February 01, 2007 at 17:26 | Comments (7) PermalinkGroundhog Day Picks: February First Friday 
Justin Williams and Luke Ramsey at Grass Hut Grass Hut's lyrical, manifesto-style press releases are bright spots in the PORT mailbag month after month. February finds Grass Hut threatening to "pimp slap pretentiousness in the face then give it a brightly colored neon band aid so it can heal in style." and clarifying the origins of the "noodle on LSD" drawing movement, giving props to the magnificent Marc Bell and other seminal Canadian doodlers. Friends of the Endless Journey: a doodler's group show features work by Peter Thompson, Luke Ramsey, Justin Williams, Ekta, A.J. Purdy and Andy Rementer, including some collaborative pieces. Opening Reception • 6-9pm • Feb. 2-28 Grass Hut • 811 East Burnside • 503.445.9924............(more) Posted by Jessica Bromer on February 01, 2007 at 2:16 | Comments (0) Permalink |
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Site Design: Jennifer Armbrust | • | Site Development: Philippe Blanc & Katherine Bovee | |