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Danny Treacy, "Them #17"

Bluesky is turning 35! To inaugurate their 35th-anniversary celebration, they're exhibiting Wisconsin Tavern League by Carl Corey and Them by 2009 Man Photography Prize-winning Danny Treacy. Wisconsin Tavern League is Corey's effort to document Wisconsin taverns as culturally important communal gathering places. For Them, "London-based artist Danny Treacy searches his surroundings for discarded clothing to construct suggestive, haunting costumes. Treacy then dresses himself in what he creates and, by making striking life-sized self-portraits, he becomes 'Them.'"

Opening reception • 6-9pm • September 2
Blue Sky Gallery • 122 NW 8th • 503.225.0210

(More: Justine Kurland at Elizabeth Leach, Adam Sorensen at PDX Contemporary, Eva Speer at Charles Hartman, Damien Gilley at PNCA, Arcy Douglass at Chambers@916, Brooklyn artists at Froelick.)

Kartz Ucci

Linfield presents Kartz Ucci's like smoke and holy water, "a site-specific response to the architectural grandeur of the natural light that fills the Linfield Gallery...Through the singular use of highly reflective mirrored surfaces and the absence of video and sound - like smoke and holy water as text/image and as object/sculpture is an attempt to isolate and elevate the viewer's psycho-physiological response to the architectural space of the Linfield Gallery." The show will run through October 9, 2010.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • September 1
Linfield Gallery • 900 SE Baker St., McMinnville, OR

The NW Film Center is screening "Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child," a 2010 Basquiat documentary directed by Tamra Davis. "Combining never-before-seen interview footage with commentary from friends and contemporary art world luminaries, Davis offers a compelling introduction to a singularly driven creative personality, an artist who could paint masterpieces in an hour (earning him Andy Warhol's extreme jealousy) and find endless inspiration in the oversaturated culture from which he emerged."

Film screenings • 7pm • August 27 & 28
NW Film Center @ PAM • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium

Kate Bingaman-Burt and Clifton Burt

Starting tomorrow, the Museum of Contemporary Craft presents Collateral Matters, selections by Kate Bingaman-Burt and Clifton Burt. "MoCC invited graphic designers Kate Bingaman-Burt and Clifton Burt to craft a response to the museum's collection. Naturally drawn to museum ephemera - invitations, posters, receipts and correspondence - the designers create an installation that uses printed materials from the archive to examine how institutional identity is constructed. The exhibition is part of an ongoing series of curatorial strategies that engage contemporary ways of looking at the collection."

Exhibition • August 26, 2010 - January 8, 2011
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Half/Dozen +Projects presents please and thank you, "a performative exploration of hum drum." This one night only performance (happening twice in one night) features movement by Bonnie Green, Danielle Ross, and Robert Tyree, and installation by Bonnie Green.

Performances • 7pm & 9pm • August 27
Half/Dozen • 625 NW Everett #111 • 503.512.9079

At the Alberta alley spaces: Appendix presents Laura Hughes, In the Space of an Instant. The installation "articulates and enhances fleeting instances of light through applications of phosphorescent and iridescent paint. The work is an exploration of how light, space, time, and architectural form shape one another to produce the visible by amplifying the imprint of the peripheral to the forefront of our perception."

Opening reception • 8:30pm • August 26
Appendix Project Space • South alleyway b/w 26th & 27th off Alberta

Little Field presents new work by Midori Hirosi, "stemming from her interest in combining geometric and loose facets. Her interest comes from an investigation into the dichotomy of the Apollonian and Dionysian idea culled from reading The Birth of Tragedy. She has a predilection for order and chaos and for this series of sculptures, tries to achieve the genera principle using wood, foam and paint to convey a form of balance between structure and disorder."

Opening reception • 7pm • August 26
Little Field • North alleyway b/w 28th & 29th off Alberta

Rebecca Shelly

False Front presents Rebecca Shelly's The Seed Olympics. "Through the use of stop motion animation, Rebecca Shelly documents the growth of starter plants with an exploratory theme of Olympic games under the theory, 'survival of the fittest.'"

Opening reception • 6pm • August 26
False Front Studio • 4518 NE 32nd • 503.781.4609

RECESS presents Phun with Phonemes©, an exhibition exploring text and communication. "Through investigating memory and writing, text as spectacle, logo confusion, and conversational attention spans, Phun with Phonemes© will be a platform for engaging with language in new and exciting formats." Performances at the reception start at 7:30pm.

Opening reception • 6pm • August 25
RECESS • 4315 SE Division (ground level of Artistery)

On the second Thursday of every month, the Portland Art Museum "offers visitors the unique opportunity to explore the Museum's permanent collection through the inspired lens of notable Portland artists, writers, and curators." The talks are great, but we haven't posted the last several since they've been selling out way ahead of time. So I thought I'd share the list of upcoming talks in 2010 for those who want to jump on the ticket bandwagon early:

•September 9: Stephanie Snyder (SOLD OUT)
•October 14: Ethan Rose
•November 11: Matt McCormick
•December 9: Chas Bowie

Read more about the artist talk series on PAM's website.

This month's Art Spark features the "inside scoop" on TBA:10 with PICA at Mississippi Studio's new BarBar patio and a sneak preview performance by Woolly Mammoth Comes to Dinner.

Art chat • 5-7pm • August 19
Art Spark @ BarBar • 3939 N Mississippi

Steve Karlik,"Flip" Tension and Compression Series, 2010 Glass sheets and enamel paint "18" x "24 x "1/4

Alright, alright... yes Portland's curators have inadvertently conspired to drown the city in abstraction, considering; Donald Judd, Mark GrotJahn, Sol LeWitt, Reed's upcoming Abstract and my M5 show up right now... deal with it. Fact is Portland has been obsessed with abstraction and hard edged or reductionist work for years (even before acquiring the Greenberg collection) and it's why I curated M5 as aa classic summer group show. Considering that Mark Rothko is from Portland, I never want to hear another person say that the Northwest is just about figurative work, though the discussion today isn't the same old will to abstraction we saw back in the 40's-60's.

In attempts to further the discussion PNCA and I have put together The Essentials...

August 18, 6:30 pm
PNCA Main Campus Building, Room 201
1241 NW Johnson St.

The M5 exhibition sets the stage for The Essentials—a study of what ideas are crucial to the active abstract and hard edge/perceptual art community in Portland.

The Essentials is a JPEG jam, asking a number of reductive, abstract and perceptual artists in Portland to choose and present 3 essential images of their own work, while listing what three ideas or concerns accompany them... (more)

Anissa Mack, "Almost Arrowheads"

PICA's 8th annual TBA festival is ramping up. This weekend, artist-in-residence Anissa Mack will speak with Sarah Miller Meigs of the lumber room and PICA visual arts program director Kristan Kennedy about her residency at the lumber room and the collaboration between artist, curator, and patron. The talk is part of PICA's "ON SIGHT Salons."

Artist chat • 3-4pm • August 14
lumber room • 419 NW 9th

The Research Club is offering an ongoing class, "What Philosophy Can Do For Art," taught by University of Oregon doctoral student VA Carter. Meeting each Saturday over the course of 9 weeks, the class "will use plain language and clever pictures to give you a broad and thorough history of the important thinkers in western thought." As related to art making, presumably. Cost is $5 / $10 per class, with price breaks for a bundle of them.

Art Phil • 11am-12:30pm, Saturdays • July 31 - September 25
Research Club • 215 SE Morrison Suite 2020 • Portland Storage Building

Worksound presents Wearable Art, featuring (wearable) projects by Alex Dolan, Abraham Ingle, Hoyun Son, Aaron Terry, Deanna Bredthauer, Katie Behel, Palma Corral, Devon Maldonado, and Iris Stevenson.

Opening reception • 7pm • August 13
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

The American Institute of Building Design's annual convention is happening this weekend in Portland. In conjunction with the convention, the AIBD presents an exhibition of the finalists for the 2011 Solar Decathlon: "Since the first Solar Decathlon in the fall of 2002, the program has unleashed the creative power of architecture and engineering students to rethink the role of energy efficiency - and solar power in particular - in home design and raised public awareness on the topic. The Solar Decathlon challenges student teams to integrate reliable and efficient solar power with excellent design, resourceful engineering, and affordable systems...AIBD President Dan Sater II will open the exhibit, which will feature models of solar homes, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10:00 a.m. Thursday morning, August 12, 2010."

Art-Science-Architecture Exhibition • August 12 & 13, 2010
AIBD Convention @ the Marriott • 1401 SW Naito Parkway

Tonight at Grand Detour: Evan Stewart's poetry video chapbook/ experimental music video collage ###. This is Stewart's third chapbook, following Balls (2004) and Issues Souffle (2006). It is about something changing three times before it dies.

Film screening • 8pm • August 9
Grand Detour • 215 SE Morrison Suite 2020

Thursday at Grand Detour: Stephen Slappe's Peel Back and See: "Sifting through the wake of the mass media deluge in order to make sense of its psychological and social effects, Slappe is interested in adapting the massive archive of existing images and sounds through recombination..."

Film screening • 8pm • August 12
Grand Detour • 215 SE Morrison Suite 2020

Oregon Painting Society

Nationale presents Nightwave Catalog, "an exhibit of artifacts generated and uncovered by Oregon Painting Society. Each item has a past, present, or future role in our unfolding sequence of experiments. These artifacts have been plucked from their respective temporal-zones and translated into our own dimensional manifold. They are memories of future encounters, pulled up in a net from a dream. What you see are 3-D snapshots taken by the mind's eye from the window of a speeding car heading toward the ocean at dusk."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 6
Artist presentation • 6pm • August 8
Nationale • 811 E Burnside Suite 112 • 503.477.9786

(More: Kelly Rauer at NAAU, 5 year anniversary show at Gallery Homeland, Julie Perini at Pushdot, Laundromatte 2010 at the Troy Laundry Building.)

André Kertész, "Satiric Dancer, Paris" 1926

Charles Hartman presents André Kertész: Photographs. Kertész came to American from Hungary via Paris in 1936. After settling in New York, he became one of the "most influential photographers of the twentieth century...refining his art of avant-garde design and gentle observation of the human condition."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 5
Charles Hartman Fine Art • 134 NW 8th • 503.287.3886

(More: Lori Waselchuk at Blue Sky, Ethan Jackson & Jerry Wingren at Chambers@916, Drake Deknatel at Elizabeth Leach, M5 at PNCA, Maggie Casey & Zachary Davis at Tractor.)

Grotjahn's Dancing Black Butterflies originally installed at Gagosian

Definitely head over to the Portland Art Museum asap, we finally have a Marc Grotjahn exhibition in town. (fellow triangle enthusiasts ...triangulate?)

Now on view in the fourth-floor Miller-Meigs galleries of the Jubitz Center for Modern and Contemporary Art, the exhibition of Mark Grotjahn's Untitled (Dancing Black Butterflies) is presented in conjunction with the Museum's Summer of Drawing (along with Sol LeWitt, works from the Crocker and R. Crumb). Exciting to have such programmatic coherence...

Grotjahn's work on view is a drawing in nine parts that takes his recurring preoccupation with "the butterfly" to its formal and...

(more)

This week at Grand Detour: Hannah Piper Burns (Tuesday, August 3) and Dan Gilsdorf (Thursday, August 5).

Canopy by Jeff Jahn (2010)

There will a review of an interesting young artist later today but first just a little notice...

I'll be unveiling the finished version of my essay "Vection" for the exhibition of the same name tomorrow at 3:30 at the NAAU gallery. The show has been incredibly well received (thanks Huffington Post, and other press etc.) and yes it's the last weekend. This version 2.0 is a significant rewrite from the other versions I've been work shopping during the run of the show.

The essay itself isn't just about the Vection exhibition and explores a thread of work that has been very prominent in Portland over the past decade (always the curator critic). Lately, this thread has gelled into a definable combination of design (eco, livability, humanistic, architecture), nature and installation art. There will be a reading and for those hard core art geeks an opportunity to talk art more one on one about what is going on.

Vection is open from 12-5 today, Saturday and Sunday is the last day

New American Art Union (NAAU) 922 SE Ankeny

K. Miller, bamboo scroll

The Portland Japanese Garden presents Behind the Shoji, an annual exhibition of Asian-inspired art. Work will be on view by several new artists, and there will be new pieces by several returning artists.

Garden exhibition • July 31 - September 6, 2010
Portland Japanese Garden • 611 SW Kingston

PSU's Littman Gallery presents the 9th biannual International Women Artists' Exhibition and Conference. Organized locally by the Oregon Women's Caucus for Art (OWCA), the event features public artist talks, a seminar on "art made out of desperate need," and an exhibition at the Littman Gallery. The events start Monday, August 2, 2010, and the exhibition will run August 5-27, 2010. Check the Littman event calendar for more details on the opening remarks, artist talks, and seminar.

Gary Wiseman, "Temporary Monument One (Couldn't Have Done It Without You)"

Little Field presents Gary Wiseman's Temporary Monument Two: Project, Reflect, Perform (Imagining Transitions). The project is "the second in a series of monuments that acknowledge and honor the people who have collaborated with Wiseman through his social and Co-Relational art practice."

Opening reception • 6pm • July 29
Little Field • North alleyway between NE 28th & 29th off Alberta

(More: Appendix/Hay Batch, False Front, Alicia Blue Gallery, Stumptown Family Showcase.)

Allison Halter, still from "Please Please Please"

Grand Detour presents Allison Halter: Apparently I Am An Experimental Filmmaker Now, a selection of Halter's film and video work from 2002-present. "She will probably also riff around on various topics such as un-representable sadness, accumulation, and ecstasy."

Film screening & chat • 8pm • July 27
Grand Detour • 215 SE Morrison Suite 2020

Jesse Malmed

Grand Detour also presents Jesse Malmed's "This is What I Thought You Meant by Contemporary: American Folk Art (e) // V=I=D=E=O." This Portland-based artist and curator who programs Deep Leap Microcinema will present a program "combining video art, installation and participatory performance into a special blend of visionary, expanded cinema."

Screening & presentation • 8pm • July 29
Grand Detour • 215 SE Morrison Suite 2020

William Rihel and Sanna-Lisa Gesang-Gottowt are hosting a Brain Party benefit for the Right Brain Initiative at their studios/house, affär. This all-ages party features live music, art installations, games, a silent art auction, brain massage, and performances by John Mery, Weird Fiction, DJ Tiger stripes, Cathy Cleaver, Portland Taiko, Greg Unwin, Rad Wave USA, Oregon Painting Society, Tim DuRoche and more. Bring cash for games and donations - the Right Brain Initiative supports K-12 arts education in the Portland area.

Benefit party • 5pm • July 24
Right Brain @ affär • 3001 NE Ainsworth

Tyler Wallace

Portland-based multidisciplinary artist Tyler Wallace will present her films at Grand Detour as part of their Summer Screening Series. "Wallace will present and discuss selections from her body of work, which focuses on the themes of idiosyncratic family dynamics, personal history, and identity construction. Through the use of parody and humor, Wallace delves into a personal narrative based around being raised in the South by two ex-Mormon parents and a homosexual father."

Film screening • 8pm • July 20
Grand Detour • 215 SE Morrison Suite 2020

Frederic Cousseau

Grand Detour presents the touring Cut and Run Festival. Their current program, Evolution and Life of the Mind, Body, and Medium, "focuses on cycles of minds, bodies, and filmstrips, with each work representing a perspective of itself as one, in contrast to the others." The program includes filmmakers from Spain, Cyprus, France, Germany, and the USA, with animated photo-negatives, appropriated 16mm trailers, film/digital hybrids, and genre-bending experimental works of "cinematic evolution."

Film festival • 8pm • July 17
Grand Detour • 215 SE Morrison • info@grand-detour.org

Ai Weiwei, "Dropping the Urn," 1995, image 2 out of a triptych of photographs

MoCC presents Ai Weiwei Dropping the Urn: "This exhibition of internationally acclaimed artist Ai Weiwei features his iconoclastic use of Neolithic vessels, blue-and-white Qing and Yuan dynasty replicas, and a work that consists of one ton of 'sunflower seeds' crafted from porcelain." This Ai Weiwei's first solo museum exhibition on the West Coast, and it's not to be missed. Keep an eye on PORT for a short review and a longer interview in the coming weeks.

Exhibition • July 15 - October 30, 2010
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

PDX Bridge Fest

Join Art Spark this week for the pre-pre-party for the upcoming PDX Bridge Fest (July 23 - August 8, 2010). Portland's "newest cultural arts festival... is dedicated to raising awareness and fostering appreciation of the Willamette River Bridges through educational, historical, cultural & artistic programming." Learn more about Bridge Fest here.

Art discussion • 5-7pm • July 15
Art Spark @ Rose Festival Headquarters • 1020 SW Naito Parkway • On waterfront @ SW Salmon & SW Naito Parkway

Weegee the Famous (Arthur Fellig), "Movie Ecstasy - The Kiss," 1943

Ongoing at UO's White Box: The More Things Change... Relocating Weegee Photographs. "The photographs by 'Weegee the Famous' depict the gritty reality of New York street life of the '30s and '40s. His shocking and beautiful black-and-white images show crime scenes, urban life, street kids, and emerging counterculture..." Ellen and Alan Newberg, from whose collection the show is drawn, will give a talk about their family relationship with Fellig and his career.

Exhibition • July 1-30, 2010
Collector talk • 5:30-6:30pm • July 29
White Box • 24 NW 1st

RECESS, the newish space in the Artistery, presents Social Net Works, featuring "works pertaining to ways humans interact socially in the light of technological influences, and how these interactions might be shifting and developing in today's cultural climate."

Opening reception • 6:30pm • July 14
RECESS • 4135 Division • recesspdx@gmail.com

A little bird with the voice of a grizzly bear (aka Chief Curator Bruce Guenther) has let PORT's readers know about a cool Sol LeWitt wall drawing in process using a massive scaffold (starting today):

"As part of the Summer of Drawing the Modern and Contemporary Art Department is going to complicate everyone's life with a 6-day live-action drawing event in the Schnitzer Sculpture Court from July 9 to 14.

An artist-trained technician from the Sol LeWitt Foundation, Nobuto Suga will be on site drawing every day from 10 to 5.

A small group of LeWitt works will round out the experience after the scaffolding comes out of the court July 16th.

The drawing will be on view through September 19."

I'll also remind everyone that as a climate controlled environment the museum is air conditioned and open late tonight. I hope they document the process as it's just as fascinating as the end product.

This month's installment in the "Bright Lights: Discussions About the City" series features a chat with Mayor Sam Adams and J. Isaac, the Trailblazers' senior VP of business affairs, on the future of development in the Rose Quarter: "For the past two years, the City of Portland has been looking at options for the future of Memorial Coliseum. After entertaining proposals for everything from replacing the building with a minor-league baseball stadium to converting it into a $140 million recreation facility, Mayor Sam Adams is now looking to the wider Rose Quarter to inform the city's next steps."

Community conversation • 6:30pm • July 12
Bright Lights @ the Gerding Theater @ the Armory • 128 NW 11th

We are proud of former PORTstar Jenene Nagy, who was our business manager from 2007-mid 2008 who will be taking part in a show called The Rise of Rad at the Torrence Art Museum. A show about "The Influence of the Urethane Revolution." It is curated by PORT pal Max Presneill.

Show includes some heavy hitters like Olafur Eliasson, Katharina Grosse and Albert Oehlen.

Torrance Art Museum
July 24 – September 4, 2010
Opening Reception: Saturday, July 24, 6-10pm

Worksound

Worksound presents Ask the Lonely, "an exploration of love and power" featuring Troy Briggs, Casey Lee Brown, Rachel Mulder, Brittany Taylor, Tony Hix, Courtney Gates, and Tim Janchar.

Opening reception • 7-11pm • July 9
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

Place

Place's second opening is happening this Saturday, featuring special guests Avantika Bawa, Harrison Higgs, Nova Moisa, Palma Corral, Rhoda London, and Theodore Holt. "Transitional spaces allow us to imagine and think of what might come next even if we've been there before. Like a city these spaces of flux constantly offer something familiar and new. Likewise, the works in Place showcase a series of highly engaging performances and installations that transform and address the transitory nature of the space and place."

Opening reception • 2-7pm • July 10
Place • In the former Pottery Barn in Pioneer Place Mall

PSU's Littman Gallery united top-notch designers from W+K and several smaller firms for OVER IT featuring 18 Portland artists, writers, designers, art directors, fashion designers, and illustrators: Chris Hutchinson, Damion Triplett, David Neevel, Jelly Helm studio, Jennie Hayes, Jimm Lasser, Julia Blackburn, Julia Oh, Kate Bingaman-Burt, Marco Kaye, Mike Giepert, Official MFG CO, Portland Foreign Legion, Scrappers, and Taylor Twist. OVER IT is "an experiment in creating as a group, letting go, disagreement, misunderstanding, backpedaling and trust."

Opening reception • 5-7pm • July 8
Littman Gallery • 1825 SW Broadway • PSU Smith Center 2nd Floor Room 250

Sundown (Landscape Anarchitecture Series)

Ok, you've recovered from the 4th of July weekend, now it's time to freak out to a lil overview of Carl Diehl's video works at Grand Detour.

The press release "alleges" that Diehl's work is compelled by the perpetual fissures of language, the emergent spaces between fact and fiction, and the potential of using audio-visual 'word-play' to generate novel associations and reveal previously imperceptible forms of meaning, Diehl is particularly fixated on the glitches and aberrations that sometimes disrupt the intended output of an audio-visual device. He will be screening a survey of works, including Time Out, Break of Dawn, Rock Robot:It's Edutainment and Along with Hooverball, as well as his Metaphortean Compositions. The evening with conclude with Blobsquatch: In The Expanded Field, a paranormal polemic on the perceived obsolescence of blurry sasquatches, and Patrolling the Ether, a diaristic reflection on the end of analog television.

Grand Detour itself is a newish microcinema and experimental media center committed to supporting, enhancing, and connecting the community of new media artists in Portland and beyond. Currently hosting weekly screenings and curating video work across the city, (and promisingly) "planting the seeds towards the larger goal of becoming Portland's hub for innovative video and media-related artworks."

Carl Diehl: Curious Gestures of Malfunction
Grand Detour
215 SE Morrison St, Suite 2020
Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Jeff Jahn VM (Nouvel), 2009

NAAU presents Vection, installations, photography and essay by PORTstar publisher and co-founder Jeff Jahn: "Im interested in civilization/wilderness and its interactive by-products (like culture, housing, design and landfills). Since 2006 my work has increasingly made use of recycled materials and design motifs as a digestion of the present challenges at the intersection of man and nature or where concept meets its execution. According to Jahn the recycled materials invite, 'a discussion around opportunity costs surrounding the definition and use of the built environment and its integration (successful or not) into the larger ecosystem.' The new works for Vection further this inquiry and the accompanying essay of the same name is intended to contextualize an important thread of work that has been being produced in Portland and beyond as well."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • July 2
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny • 503.231.8294

(More.)

Laurie Lambrecht

Blue Sky presents Laurie Lambrecht's From the Studio of Roy Lichtenstein. "Photographer Laurie Lambrecht was Roy Lichtenstein's part-time assistant from 1990 to 1992... Encouraged by Lichtenstein, she began taking photographs in his studio as they worked together. The two artists grew close over this period of time as Lambrecht's photographic project became a collaborative one. Lambrecht's vivid color images give us a rare glimpse into the working studio of one of the twentieth-century's most iconic artists."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • July 1
Blue Sky Gallery • 122 NW 8th • 503.225.0210

(More: Anna Gray & Ryan Wilson Paulsen at PDX, Schnitzer's print collection at PNCA, Calvin Ross Carl at Half/Dozen, and recent art grads at Blackfish.)

Half/Dozen Projects presents Children Get Stuck Places Underground, an opera by poet, performance and installation artist Bethany Ides, modeled in the vein of those composed by the late Mister Rogers: "When memory is rendered make-believe, specters take shape. A dark hole's hollow form animates as snake; its ability to shed its skin becomes infectious. Processed traumas wend a trail through one creature's digestive track into another, moving from mouth to mouth. Four guises (played by Ides along with David Weinberg, Morgan A. Ritter and Devin Lucid) represent the four Greek humors, figured within the two sides of a single, shadowy figure: O/Doe, whose perispirit inhabits other well known children who've spent time singing to themselves below the surface."

Performances • 7pm & 9pm • June 25 & 26
Half/Dozen • 625 NW Everett #111 • 503.512.9079

Appendix presents Cruisn', an installation and performance by Oregon Painting Society featuring "collectively built instrument-objects, composing a witchy scene with uncontrollable synth action." Little Field presents FUTURE_DEATH_TOLL: "Mysterious, ubiquitous, and eminently destructive, the agentz of blaze orange utilize vintage electronicz such as rotary pwnz, synthesizerz, and drum padz to perform back alley open-heart surgery on their most enthusiastic patientz."

Alleyway Performing • 8:15pm • June 24
Appendix • South alley b/w 26th & 27th off Alberta
Little Field • North alley b/w 28th & 29th off Alberta

(More: Michael Iauch at False Front and Rites in Passage at Alicia Blue.)

The Right Brain Initiative is hosting a Show + Tell next week to commemorate the end of its second school year: "As Right Brain's biggest community event of the year, complete with live music, Show + Tell 2010 is the best opportunity to see the impact of the program on area school systems and on the artists who lead these classroom arts experiences." The event also features an advanced viewing of Right Brain's new traveling exhibition, with samples of student work, evidence of impact on the communities served, and a spotlight on the mechanics of the program model.

Arts education showcase • 4:30-6:30pm • June 21
Left Bank Annex • 101 N Weidler

Gabe Flores and Gary Wiseman are opening Place in the Pioneer Square Mall this weekend. "Place is a fluid space that is constantly in flux. There will be an ongoing flow of people and disciplines through Place, which will play host to performances, installation, events and beyond...Transitional spaces allow us to imagine and think of what might come next even if we've been there before. Sometimes we make a transition and we want to be there for awhile because, like a city, it is always offering something familiar and new." Special guests for the opening reception include Avantika Bawa, Palma Corral, and Brennan Novak.

Opening reception • 2-6pm • June 19
Place • Former Pottery Barn in Pioneer Place Mall

(More: Netsuke carvings in the Japanese Garden and PSU's New Video Gallery.)

Still from Kamal Aljafari's "The Roof"

Cinema Project presents three fillms by Palestinian-born independent filmmaker Kamal Aljafari, who will be in attendance at both screenings. Port of Memory will be screened Tuesday and The Roof & Visit Iraq will be screened Wednesday. "These works demonstrate Aljafari's thoughtful but not overly formal compositions of half-inhabited houses and damaged neighborhoods, which reveal the strained co-existence of past and present and the complicated layers of history that help construct (physically and psychologically) such places."

Film screenings • 6:45pm • June 15 & 16
Cinema Project @ Clinton St Theater • 2522 SE Clinton

R. Crumb, "The Book of Genesis Illustrated by R. Crumb, Chapter 1"

Classic comic artist R. Crumb spent the past five years illustrating every word of the book of Genesis, which has since been released in book form. The Bible Illuminated: R. Crumb's Book of Genesis presents all 207 individual black-and-white drawings incorporating every word from all 50 chapters of Genesis. "Illustrated in his signature bawdy style, Crumb's version puts an entirely new twist on the Bible."

Exhibition • June 12 - September 19, 2010
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Peter Paul Rubens, "Male nude after Michelangelo's fresco of the Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel, Vatican," 1871

A Pioneering Collection: Master Drawings from the Crocker Art Museum also opens this weekend at PAM. The exhibition presents 57 rarely seen works dating from the late 15th through the 19th centuries by artists such as Albrecht Dürer, Fra Bartolommeo, Peter Paul Rubens, François Boucher, and Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres.

Exhibition • June 12 - September 19, 2010
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Artists in the North Coast Seed Building are holding open studios tomorrow, "in a night of art, process, and performance. Participants range from Illustrators to Painters to Visual & Product Designers to Wood Workers to Photographers and Performers."

Open Studio Reception • 6-10pm • June 11
North Coast Seed Building • 2127 N Albina (next to the train tracks)

Rudy Speerschneider

Gallery Homeland presents Doing It To It, a group exhibition that highlights the day-to-day actions that create works of art that are both subconscious and intentional. Focusing on individuals and groups working within a network of people and communities to make "a final wonderful outcome," the show features Patrick Collier, Per Schumann, Rudy Speerschneider, Amy Steel/Brian Drowns, Lisa Radon, Nim Wunnan, Malte Zacharias, and Dustin Zemel, as well as several groups, including Entwurf Direkt (Germany), Gartenstudios (Germany), Research Club (Oregon), and Grand Detour (Oregon).

Opening reception • 6-9pm • June 11
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th • info@galleryhomeland.org

Agnes Martin, "Untitled #15," 1980

Storm Tharp is speaking at PAM this week for their ongoing artist lecture series. He'll discuss Agnes Martin's Untitled #15 and Shirakura's four-paneled literati painting, Visiting A Mountain Recluse. "Considered a Minimalist in the canon of art history - suggesting a contemporary intention of formal reduction and essentialism - Tharp rather romanticizes [Martin's] practice to be 'reminiscent of a master Chinese calligrapher from the 12th century.'" As usual, the talk will meet in the Hoffman Lobby, be guided to the two pieces, and finish back in the Hoffman Lobby for "happy hour."

Artist talk • 6-8pm • June 10
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

UPDATE: Sold out!

Eve Fowler & Anna Sew Hoy

For their final show in the Booth Kelly Gear House, Ditch Projects presents Two Serious Ladies, a collaborative experiment in sculpture and photography by Eve Fowler and Anna Sew Hoy: "Embracing an aesthetic of chaotic feminism, the pair wrestles the clutter of daily life into submission, gleaning new messages and meanings from the hidden underbellies of everyday objects. Using a combination of photographic materials, Neanderthal technologies, and live light actions, Fowler and Sew Hoy reject the reason found in illumination, opting instead for open, interpretive possibilities for visual understanding." The reception features a musical performance by Jackie-O Motherfucker.

Opening reception • 7-10pm • June 5
Ditch Projects • 303 S 5th Ave #190, Springfield, OR • info@ditchprojects.com

Carlos Cruz-Diez, "Chromosaturation," 1965

As part of their ongoing Critical Voices lecture series, PAM presents "Color Embodied in Space," a lecture by Mari Carmen Ramírez: "In this lecture, Ramírez, curator of Latin American art and director of the International Center for the Arts of the Americas at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, will discuss the radical approaches to color in Latin American art of the past fifty years with a special focus on the work of Venezuelan artist Carlos Cruz-Diez, the late Brazilian artist Hélio Oiticica, and their contemporaries."

Curator lecture • 2-3pm • June 6
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

This Sunday, Portland Stock is celebrating their one year anniversary of Stock Grants with a dinner at Disjecta. In addition to the usual dinner, discussion, and voting, they'll be exhibiting all of the proposals they've ever received in conjunction with the Grown Ups exhibition. RSVP required to portlandstock@gmail.com.

Artist grant dinner • 6-8pm • June 6
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate

Bailey Winters, "After the Explosion..."

NAAU presents Bailey Winters' Ambush: The Story of the TDA. The exhibition "depicts a fictionalized revolutionary group living on the West Coast of the United States in the early years of the twenty-first century. Winters' paintings, and their accompanying narrative titles, explore the personal dynamics at work in the underground political party. In particular, Winters examines the organization's final decision to refuse a non-violent alternative and instead continue with militant reaction."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • June 4
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny • 503.231.8294

(More: Cadence at Worksound, (Not) So Bright Please at Nationale, Teri Fullerton at Newspace, and PORTstar Jascha Owens at Launch Pad.)

Gary Wiseman, "Tea Project"

There's a new art space in the ground level of the music venue the Artistery in SE. RECESS's mission is to "encourage collaboration between the artists, curators, and attendees at each event...the space will showcase work that invites the audience to be a direct and fundamental participant in the process." The first show, aptly titled Recess, opens this weekend and features work by Nim Wunnan, Gary Wiseman, Rachel Montgomery, Abraham Ingle, Justin Flood, Ally Drozd, and Crystal Baxley. Live music starts at 9:30pm.

Premier opening reception • 6:30pm • June 5
RECESS • 4315 SE Division • recesspdx@gmail.com

Avantika Bawawith friends at her Columbian building installation, photo by Dene Grigar

Artist K.C. Madsen has launched a new program in Vancouver (Washington) called "Windows Into Art." For a month, seven downtown Vancouver buildings will host the work of 19 artists in 18 storefront windows. Featured artists include Janice Arnold, Avantika Bawa, Anne John, Yoshihiro Kitai, and Crystal Schenk, as well as many other emerging and new media artists. The program hopes to engage viewers who might not walk into a typical art viewing space and engage people in a dialogue about "art space." None of the work is for sale.

Window viewing • June 4 - July 5, 2010
Windows Into Art • Visit the website for locations

Eva Lake, "Target 46"

Augen DeSoto presents Eva Lake's Targets. Inspired by the nostalgia craze of Hollywood glamor, Lake's "Babes in the Target" are a conversation about "what a woman artist's life [is] like - she makes objects but she's also the object. The conversation is as much about her, her body, how she looks and how sexy she is - as it is her work."

Opening reception • 5-8:30pm • June 3
Augen Gallery • 716 NW Davis • 503.503.546.5056

(More: Storm Tharp at PDX, "Wid B. Vicious" at Chambers@916, Brad Adkins at PDX Across the Hall, Pop Coochie at IGLOO.)

Bonnie Fortune

Bonnie Fortune will lecture this week for Clark College's Artist Talk series. She's "an artist, writer, and educator based in Chicago...whose project-based work explores issues surrounding the environment, health, technology, and aging."

Artist lecture • 7pm • June 2
Clark College • 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA • PUB 161

Upcoming PSU MFA exhibitions:
Michelle Liccardo's Too Much Mustard is the final show in the ongoing series of MFA in Contemporary Art Practice Exhibitions, June 1-12, 2010 at the MK Gallery;
Disjecta is exhibiting Grown Ups: PSU MFA Graduating Exhibition June 5-July 3, 2010 with a reception June 5.

Makino Takashi

Cinema Project is bringing Japanese video artist Makino Takashi to Portland for two nights of images and sound. The first night will feature short recent videos by Takashi, and the second will feature the world premiere of his newest work Inter View with a live score composed and performed by Portland-based musicians Tara Jane O'Neil and Brian Mumford.

Film screenings • 7pm • June 1 & 2
Cinema Project @ Clinton St Theater • 2552 SE Clinton

Drain magazine is celebrating the release of their 11th issue, "Rewind," with a launch party and video performance at Disjecta this weekend. "Issue #11 of Drain explores through word and image the concept of rewind in contemporary art and culture. What is it that we do when we rewind? What are the politics of personal and cultural rewind? Can we really see, feel, and act again? What are the phenomenological dimensions of rewind?"

Launch party & performance • 7-10pm • May 29
Disjecta @ the Templeton Building • 230 E Burnside

Registration has opened for the Right Brain Initiative's first annual arts education seminar, "Imagine This: A Seminar on Bringing Creativity to Classrooms." The event includes a broad range of workshops and lectures from many major arts education speakers. Cost is $100 for a day or $250 for the whole event. Follow this link to see the schedule of events and registration info.

At Appendix: Travis Fitzgerald is a painter who "works with the collective identity of grouped characters and a trajectory of design throughout the 20th century" whose "recent transition to built objects in space pulls known methodologies of making into unknown territories."

At Little Field: Zach Rose's HOMETOUCH: "Through object, performance, and interaction design, Rose interrogates the myths of technological innovation and capitalist enterprise. Situated between cell phone huckster and tech startup HOMETOUCH divorces product from service, form from function, and innovation from success."

Opening receptions • 6pm • May 27
Appendix Project Space • South alley b/w 26th & 27th off NE Alberta
Little Field • North alley b/w 28th & 29th off NE Alberta

While you're in NE, check out the Alicia Blue Gallery on 1468 NE Alberta and False Front on 4518 NE 32nd.

Deep Leap Microcinema presents The Internet is a Terrible Place to Live: video art by Tyrone Davies, Nia Burns, Rachael Morrison, Max Juren, Stephen Slappe, Jeremy Bailey, Grey Gersten, and more, featuring a performance of Poltzergeist by Weird Faction. $3-$6.

Film(s) screening • 8pm • May 25
Deep Leap Microcinema @ Grand Detour • 215 SE Morrison Suite 2020

ARTIST NEEDED: False Front Studio is seeking an artist to perform and/or exhibit in their intimate NE Portland space this Thursday to replace the previously scheduled artist, who had to postpone due to a family emergency. Contact Jason Doizé at jasondoize@mac.com ASAP for more info.

Peter Ballantine

It's the last 3 days of the Donald Judd exhibition at the U of O's White Box Gallery (in Portland) and thanks to RACC and OCHC Judd's longtime fabricator, friend, and now restorer, lecturer and curator Peter Ballantine will give a gallery talk at 3:00 PM on Friday May 21st at the gallery.

It has been a privilege to work with him and if you are interested in the radical aspects of 60's art, Judd or fabrication of any kind Peter is a must meet primary source. Ballantine met Judd in 1968 while in the Whitney Museum's now legendary Independent Studies Program. From 1969 to 1994 he fabricated over 200 Judd works directly and approved a large number by other fabricators on behalf of Judd. From 1994 to 2004 he was art supervisor for the Donald Judd Estate/Judd Foundation and since has worked as an independent Judd restorer, curator, researcher and lecturer. He is currently preparing a Judd drawing show in London and 2 Judd Delegated Fabrication conferences in Berlin and New York similar to Portland's. Those other venues likely wont have an exhibition like the one here (the first of its kind to explore Judd's delegated fabrication) and odds are this is the last major Judd solo show in the Pacific Northwest during our lifetime (all of the plywood works in the show are made from Oregon Douglas fir)... so see it.

University of Oregon, Portland
White Box Gallery
24 NW 1st ave
Lecture at 3:00 PM
Gallery hours this week Tuesday-Friday 12-6PM

From "Intersection"

NAAU presents InterSection: the lines that brought us here, a one-night-only event curated by Keia Booker. "Each of the 6 artists were given a directive to map a particular act of expression by tracing lines through their own personal artistic heritage. On May 21st their work in theory and practice will emerge from personal navigation and make contact with a larger context of communal action and expression." Featured artists include: Lindsay Kennedy (touch), Gary Wiseman (seeing), Tahni Holt (understanding), Seth Nehil (listening), Ty Ennis (forgiveness), Rikki Rothenberg (love).

Art event • 6-9pm • May 21
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny • 503.231.8294

UO's medical and athletic center, designed by ZGF

Eugene Sandoval, lead architect at ZGF, is speaking at UO White Stag this week for their Architecture & Allied Arts' spring lecture series. Lectures are free and open to the public.

Architecture lecture • 12-1pm • May 19
UO Portland • White Stag Building Event Room • 70 NW Couch

TILT Export, a curating project run by Josh Smith and former PORTstar Jenene Nagy, is hosting Art Spark at Vendetta this month. Dubbing the event "curatorial speed dating," the pair is soliciting artists to "knock their socks off." Send in images ahead of time to tilt@jjfab.com with "Art Spark" in the subject line, then show up at the event to present your project idea to TILT Export in five minutes. Participants will be considered for upcoming TILT Export projects being planned in other cities. A number of other local curators will be in attendance as well, including Avantika Bawa of Aquaspace, Derek Faust of Doppler PDX, and Damien Gilley of IGLOO.

Art adventure • 5-7pm • May 20
Art Spark @ Vendetta • 4306 N Williams

Nancy Andrews, still from "Phantom Limb"

Cinema Project presents Omnium-Gatherum Pt. II, a follow-up to Pt. I presented last fall at Light Industry in Brooklyn. "Picking up where Pt. I left off, Omnium-Gatherum Pt. II brings us to the present day for two nights of Northwest premieres from some of [Cinema Project's favorite artists]. Each of these works has been produced within the past two years, and showcases the innovation and maturity of these contemporary moving-image artists." Screenings are happening over two days, visit the Cinema Project website for schedule and details.

Film screenings • 7pm • May 18 & 19
Cinema Project @ Clinton St Theater • 2522 SE Clinton

Andrew Klaus

Grand Detour, "a new microcinema setting for experimental filmmakers and curators in Industrial SE," is kicking off their inaugural summer screenings with THINK/FEEL: The experimental cinema of Andrew Klaus, a Portland filmmaker with "a well-earned reputation for exploring the darker corners of the creative experience." Due to mature content, the screenings will be 18+.

Film screening • 7pm • May 18
Grand Detour • 215 SE Morrison Suite 2020

Art on Alberta' annual Art Hop is happening this Saturday. The day-long event, like an über Last Thursday, includes art openings, music performances, vendors, food, and four new permanent murals on NE Alberta.

Arts celebration • 11am-6pm • May 15
Alberta Arts District • NE Alberta St, covering ~15 blocks west of 30th

Stay on Alberta through the evening for the second opening at the new Alicia Blue Gallery, which debuted by hosting Heidi Schwegler's Portland2010 exhibition. Where are they now?, curated by Beth Gates, features work by Le Hong Thai and Nguyen Van Cuong, two young contemporary artists from Vietnam who live and work in Hanoi.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • May 15
Alicia Blue Gallery • 1468 NE Alberta • 503.505.9060

Fourteen30 presents Natascha Snellman's Face Facade: "Gender metaphors and archetypes mix with corporeal sensibilities in Natascha Snellman's recent photographs and sculpture. Snellman's works utilize surrogates from popular culture, the art world, and the animal kingdom to question relationships between animal and man/woman, man and woman, and the other."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • May 14
Fourteen30 • 130 SE 3rd • 503.236.1430

Shelves @ Monograph Bookwerks

Local artist Blair Saxon-Hill and John Brodie, owner of Le Happy and proprietor of the famous Store for a Month, have opened a new art bookstore on Alberta. Monograph Bookwerks, featuring "fine art books + objects," is open Wed-Sun 11am-7pm, at 5005 NE 27th @ Alberta, 503.284.5005.

PSU's 2010 Open Engagement conference is this weekend. "The artists involved in Open Engagement: Making Things, Making Things Better, Making Things Worse, challenge our traditional ideas of what art is and does. These artist's projects mediate the contemporary frameworks of art as service, as social space, as activism, as interactions, and as relationships, and tackle subject matter ranging from urban planning, alternative pedagogy, play, fiction, sustainability, political conflict and the social role of the artist." The conference is free and open to the public- just register at the PSU art building the day of the event you'd like to attend.

Art & social practice conference • May 14-17, 2010
Open Engagement @ PSU • 2000 SW 5th (registration: see schedule for event locations)

Bill Viola, still from "Quintet of the Astonished"

The NW Film Center presents The Art of Collaboration, a talk by Harry Dawson on his collaboration with Bill Viola on Quintet of the Astonished, a film that's currently on view at PAM for DISQUIETED. Tomorrow Dawson will discuss his "innovative, complex work with Viola, a two-decade association that, in addition to this piece, has yielded works ranging from a 3 1/2-hour, 35' x 70', silent film 'backdrop' for the Paris Opera's production of Tristan and Isolde (2005), to GOING FORTH BY DAY (2002), which references fresco painting to create a powerful five-part projection-based installation that examines cycles of birth, death, and rebirth." Admission to the exhibition is included with tickets to the talk.

Artist talk • 2pm • May 9
NW Film Center @ PAM • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium

Worksound presents House Arrest, featuring work by Nan Curtis, Ianthe Jackson, Rachel Peddersen, and Tyler Wallace, with special opening night performances by Sean Patrick Carney and Future Death Toll.

Opening reception • 6pm • May 7
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

(More: Alison Pebworth at Gallery Homeland, Liz Haley at Pushdot, open studios at Boatspace, Nicky Kriara at Good, UO MFA candidates at Disjecta.)

Ditch Projects presents Beside Himself: Exhibiting Male Anxiety, "an exhibition that combines art, cinema, everyday objects, and fabricated vignettes to explore how the relationship between masculinity and anxiety manifests itself in cultural production." The show is curated by Terri C. Smith and features work by Vito Acconci, Trisha Baga, Tim Davis, Marie de Saint Phalle, Alisha Kerlin, Neal Medlyn, Bryan Zanisnik, Seth Kelly, and Karsten Krejcarek.

Opening reception • 7-10pm • May 8
Ditch Projects • 303 S 5th Ave #190 Springfield, OR • info@ditchprojects.com

Also: Ditch Projects recently announced that they're losing their space in the Millrace Gear House and seeking a new permanent or temporary space in which to host their scheduled fall exhibitions. Please contact them with "any suggestions, commiseration, or acts of support."

Donald Judd, photo by Jeff Jahn

In case you somehow missed Donald Judd mania in April, you can still see the exhibition of his work at the University of Oregon's White Box gallery in the White Stag building. It's open to the public and up through May 21, 2010, with a First Thursday reception this week. Show curator and PORT founder Jeff Jahn notes that: "This is the first show of major Judd works in the Pacific Northwest since 1974 and the first ever exhibition of Judd's drawings for fabricators and drawings by fabricators and other ephemera."

First Thursday reception • 5-8pm • May 6
White Box • 24 NW 1st Ave

(More: Claire Cowie at Elizabeth Leach, Gus Van Sant at PDX Contemporary, Artur Silva at Half/Dozen, Holly Senn at Doppler PDX.)

Hank Willis Thomas

We've been remiss on calendaring good PMMNLS lectures, but there's a not-to-be-missed one next week. Hank Willis Thomas, "a contemporary African American visual artist and photographer whose primary interests are race, advertising and popular culture," will be lecturing on Ads Imitate Art, Art Imitates Life, Life Imitates Ads. About his work, Thomas writes: "[The] B(r)anded series is a result of an exploration, and subsequent appropriation of the language of advertising. By employing the ubiquitous language of advertising in my work, I am able to talk explicitly about race, class and history in a medium that almost anyone can decode."

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • May 10
PSU Campus • 1914 SW Park (Corner of SW Broadway & Hall) • Shattuck Hall Annex Rm 198

Karl Burkheimer

Karl Burkheimer, sculptor and Associate Professor and Department Head of the wood program at OCAC, will be lecturing this week for Clark College's ongoing art talk series.

Artist lecture • 7pm • May 5
Clark College • 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA • Penguin Union Building (PUB) 161

MFA in Contemporary Art Practice thesis exhibitions in May:

• Zach Springer, Build Something Together, May 3-10, 2010 at NH Installation Cases in conjunction w/ May 1 & 2 workshops at SEA Change Gallery;
• Jason Zimmerman, STORIES!!!, May 3-13, 2010 in New Video Gallery;
• Motoya Nakamura, Being Pulled, May 3-13, Autzen Gallery;

More details here.

There will be an artist talk and closing reception this Friday for Ben Buswell's New Work: The Shadow and the Willing at PCC Rock Creek's Helzer Gallery. The work "incorporates ideas of the archetype, ritual, process and art historical reference to create a physiological space. [Its] specific placement in the gallery and ubiquitously referenced image are meant to offer the viewer the opportunity for physical as well as mental experience. The work is not made to provide answers, but rather to create the opportunity to ask the right questions."

Artist talk • 12:30pm • April 30
Closing reception immediately following
PCC Rock Creek Helzer Art Gallery • 17705 NW Springville Rd Building 3

McIntyre Parker

False Front presents new work by McIntyre Parker, director of art space Pied-à-Terre, which has moved to Half Moon Bay, CA. Parker's videos "soften the static of modern life, pulling our focus gradually inward. Serving the greater theme of contemplation, Parker's captured images ask open questions of time, purpose and place...As analyst, we are free to create our own narrative and continue the survey which Parker begins."

Opening reception • 7-10pm • April 29
False Front Studio • 4518 NE 32nd • 503.781.4609

Appendix Project Space presents a joint installation by Nathan Dinihanian and Molly Cooney-Mesker that will "distill the function and program of a space...attempting to delve into the way meaning is layered physically, socially, and materially in their surroundings." This also marks the opening of Appendix's new performance/art space, Hay Batch.

Opening reception • 6pm • April 29
Appendix Project Space • South Alley between 26th & 27th off Alberta • appendixspace@gmail.com

Little Field, which is being co-curated & coordinated with Appendix, presents For Real, a group exhibition: "The collected computers represent work exploring viral replication, digital image curation, pixel work, and interactivity...Positioning these unreal works in real positions within Little Field, For Real attempts to pull the question of the gallery's relationship to digital work into conversation with the developing crowd of viral-curators, image dumpers, digital image makers and programmers."

Opening reception • 6pm • April 29
Little Field • North Alley between 28th & 29th off Alberta • appendixspace@gmail.com

As the Portland2010 biennial enters its final days, a few closing events:

Oregon Painting Society, "HexenHouse" at the Templeton

Tahni Holt et al will present the first of three performances of Culture Machine (In Progress) at Disjecta. (Performances two & three will happen on Saturday & Sunday, respectively.)

Performance • 6pm • April 23
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate

The Oregon Painting Society presents the HexenHouse closing performance, featuring Woolly Mammoth Comes to Dinner, at the Templeton Building.

Performance • 9pm (Doors @ 8) • April 23
Templeton • 5 SE 3rd

Portland2010 curator Cris Moss will host an informal discussion about the process of selecting artists and designing the exhibition at Disjecta.

Curator talk • 3pm • April 24
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate

Due to personal reasons, Hannah Higgins will be unable to come to Portland this week. Her lecture at the Museum of Contemporary Craft has been postponed, but in the meantime you can enjoy PORT's interview with Hannah.

Still from Christoph Doering's "Persona Non Grata," 1981

Cinema Project presents Screaming City: West Berlin 1980s: "In the decade before the fall of the Berlin Wall, a vast number of films were produced in and about West Berlin, dealing with the ambivalent realities of the enclosed city. No longer was it about devoting oneself to the World Revolution, but rather about implementing alternative life-styles, which gave rise to social resistance, strident underground cultures, and sexual border-crossing." Curator Stefanie Schulte Strathaus of Berlin's Arsena will present a series of experimental super-8 films "from this dynamic and complex period of our recent past."

Short films • 6:45pm • April 20
Long film • 6:45pm • April 21
Cinema Project @ Clinton St Theater • 2522 SE Clinton

The New Oregon Interview Series & UO White Stag present Portland on Portland: Image + Word. Host Nora Robertson will lead an evening of conversation with Nan Curtis, Brian Libby, and Floyd Skloot on "Portland's evolving creative culture and how it is communicated to other regions."

Panel discussion • 6-8pm • April 20
New Oregon @ UO White Stag • 70 NW Couch

Iwona Blazwick

Continuing their critical voices lecture series, PAM presents Iwona Blazwick: Just What Is It That Makes Today's Institutions So Different, So Appealing? Museums have been declared "cemeteries of crucified dreams," yet today arts institutions are more popular than ever before. Blazwick asks, "How and why have museums been transformed from mausoleums to destinations? Why do artists want to exhibit in them? What role do they play in today's society?" Taking the Whitechapel Gallery as a case study, she will explore its spaces and programs, as well as those of other institutions from around the world, and the public's love/hate relationship with them.

Director lecture • 2-3pm • April 18
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Jenene Nagy False Flat Linfield

Jenene Nagy, "False Flat," installed at Linfield

In conjunction with the Portland2010 biennial, Jenene Nagy, Damien Gilley, and the Oregon Painting Society will lecture tomorrow about site-specificity in installation art.

Artists lecture • 7-9pm • April 16
Templeton Building • 5 SE 3rd

Fernanda D'Agostino, "Baby TV"

The Marylhurst Art Gym presents Motherlode, featuring work by Julianna Bright, Nan Curtis, Fernanda D'Agostino, Jessica Jackson Hutchins, Linda Hutchins, Shelley Jordon, and Dianne Kornberg with poet Elisabeth Frost. The exhibition explores issues of motherhood, including the experience of parenting, "the impact of responsibility for another life, the re-encounter with childhood, and responses to making art with new restraints on one's time and energy." Motherlode will run from April 19 - May 22, 2010.

Opening reception • 3-5pm • April 18
Marylhurst Art Gym • 17600 Pacific Highway Marylhurst, OR • 503.699.6243

Ryan Kennelly

Portland City Art is celebrating their one-year anniversary by hosting Art Spark this week at the Olympic Mills Cultural Center. They'll present a call for artists as well as the exhibition A Rainy Day Wildfire, featuring work by over 120 Portland artists (see above). Music provided by Why Must I Be Careful and DJ Non-Prophet for the post-discussion (after 7pm) celebration.

Art Spark • 5-7pm • April 15
@ the Olympic Mills Cultural Center • 107 SE Washington

The seventh Portland Pecha Kucha night is happening this week. The theme is "Enough" and presenters include David Burdick, Eva Hagberg, Jonah Cohen, Kevin Duell, Nico Bella, Tracy Ball, and cityscope.

PK7 • 8:20-11:20pm • April 15
@ Sanbox Studio • 420 NE 9th

Poster for Judd Conference featuring image of Judd's 1974 piece at the PCVA (photo Maryanne Caruthers)
Just in case you hadn't heard already, there will be an historic scholarly conference and exhibition exploring the core issue of Donald Judd's Delegated Fabrication at the U of O in Portland (featuring keynote speaker Robert Storr and many others). In support this event many other Judd related events are taking place throughout the month.

There are several talks:

One of Dan Graham's outdoor installations

On April 15 The University of Oregon in Eugene is hosting a lecture by Dan Graham from 7-8PM at Room 177, Lawrence Hall. You can even video conference from the Portland Campus. Besides being a world renowned artist himself, Dan Graham was also Donald Judd's first art dealer at the John Daniels Gallery. Both artists were products if the same era and took a similar very empirical approach towards art and life.

Judd Related_sm1.bmp

On April 17 at 3:00 PM PNCA will host Judd Related, a multidisciplinary panel of noted Portland artists whose work has had a strong relationship to Donald Judd's. This will be a be a thought provoking discussion about intersecting influence, precedent, examples and the inevitability of where these artists differ from Judd. Of particular interest is the inter-artist note-comparing portion of this gathering all of the participants produce such divergent work. The panel consists of; Storm Tharp, Laura Fritz, Victor Maldonado, Arcy Douglass and Anna Gray & Ryan Wilson Paulsen. I will moderate.

Judd Exhibitions:

... (more)

Aki Sogabe

The Japanese Garden presents Texture: The Art of Fiber and Paper: "Most people are familiar with the Japanese art of paper folding, or origami, but there are a number of other Japanese paper arts that are equally engaging, including chiyogami, collage, iris-folding, calligraphy, kiri-e, sumi-e painting - and the creative process of making paper itself." The garden will be exhibiting works in fiber and paper in the pavilion April 10 - 18, 2010.

Artist reception • 5-7pm • April 9
Portland Japanese Garden • 611 SW Kingston • 503.223.1321

Alison Owen

Clark College's Archer Gallery presents an exhibition by Alison Owen. "Owen makes site-responsive paintings and installations that alter the environment in subtly invasive ways. She focuses on the peripheral, using delicate materials and colors to create works that reward sustained investigation and attention." She's working in residence at the Archer Gallery April 5-9, 2010, and will give a lecture on her work this afternoon, April 8. The exhibition will run April 10-30, 2010.

Artist talk • 1:30pm • April 8
Opening reception • 5-7pm • April 10
Clark College Archer Gallery • 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA • 360.992.2246

Sol Hashimi and Rebar Niemi

Ditch Projects presents Metabolizing Costco: "Beyond the slack of Generation X and the pathological ambition of Generation Y lies a digital void. Tomorrow's children are here today, and they embody an over-informed, undazzled, and decentralized generation for whom obscurity has all but expired. The kids are all the same and it turns out they're all pissed. With Metabolizing Costco, curator Jessica Powers (TARL) invites Seattle artists Sol Hashimi and Rebar Niemi to call a temporary truce, working together to create a physical screenshot of the children of 2012." The exhibition runs from April 10 - May 1, 2010.

Opening reception • 7-10pm • April 10
Ditch Projects • 303 S 5th Ave #190, Springfield, OR • info@ditchprojects.com

Max Beckmann, "The Mill," 1947

James Lavadour is speaking this week for PAM's ongoing artist talk series. He'll be leading a discussion of Max Beckmann's The Mill. The group meets in the Hoffman Lobby and returns there after for happy hour.

Artist talk • 6-8pm • April 8
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

James Plensa, "In the Midst of Dreams"

James Plensa, whose room-sized installation In the Midst of Dreams introduces DISQUIETED, will be lecturing this weekend at PAM. This is one of a series of lectures & events in conjunction with the exhibition.

Artist lecture • 2-3pm • April 10
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Andy Warhol, "Evelyn Kuhn," 1977, Polacolor Type 108 print

Reed College's Cooley Gallery presents Scarecrow: Exhibitionism, Ritual, & Theatricality, featuring work by Daniel Spoerri, Lynda Benglis, Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol, Mary Bauermeister, and Sol LeWitt from the college's collection. The exhibition "considers artists' explorations of the human body -- and its functions -- in visual narratives and performance situations that reorder and transgress physical and social conventions." Scarecrow will be on view from April 6 - June 9, 2010. There will be an opening reception this weekend, as well as "The Ever Unfinished Body," an evening of puppetry, Andy Warhol films, and short lectures, later this month.

Opening reception • 6pm • April 9
The Ever Unfinished Body • 6:30pm • April 22
Reed College Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd • Hauser Memorial Library

Also starting today: The Group Show featuring artists from the Portland2010 Biennial at UO's White Box in the White Stag building.

Group exhibition • April 6 - 17, 2010
University of Oregon's White Box • 24 NW 1st

Mike Bray, "When Movement Depicts Space" (still)

Mike Bray is lecturing this week for Clark College's Art Talk series via the Archer Gallery. Bray is an installation and video artist from Chicago whose work "examines artifice within the construction of cinematic space." He's exhibited in the Portland area recently in Fourteen30's Summer Show and the Marylhurst Art Gym's Guys Doing Guy Things (installation pictured above).

Artist lecture • 7pm • April 7
Clark College • 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA • PUB 161

Remaining April lectures from the PNCA Graduate Visiting Artist Lecture Series:
• Renny Pritkin, April 8, 6:30pm, The Lab at the Museum of Contemporary Craft
• Natalie Chanin, April 15, 6:30pm, MFA in Applied Craft and Design Studios at The Bison Building

Visit PNCA's calendar for more details.

Tania Cross

Worksound presents Drawing the Slight Uneasy, curated by MK Guth and featuring work by NYC & PDX artists Bill Adams, Nicolaii Dornstauder, Tania Cross, Patrick Kelly, Michael Lee, Frank Parga, Nicole Eriko Smith, and Lynn Yarn.

Opening reception • 6-10pm • April 2
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

(More: Gabriel Liston artist residency at NAAU, 100% Organic at Gallery Homeland, and the remaining two Disjecta shows, Kartz Ucci @ Alpern Gallery and Heidi Schwegler @ Alicia Blue Gallery.)

I'm back and I have two addenda to the picks list:

Larry Sultan, "Swimming Lessons"

Photographer Larry Sultan died on December 13, 2009, at the age of 63. For the month of April, a selection of original photographs from Sultan's 1981 Blue Sky exhibition, Swimming Lessons, will be on display in Blue Sky's Library and Resource Center. Sultan created this series of underwater images between 1978 and 1981 by submerging himself in a swimming pool and holding his breath until he took each picture.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • April 1
Blue Sky Gallery • 122 NW 8th Ave • 503.225.0210

Karl Burkheimer

Doppler presents Higher Ground, an exhibition by Karl Burkheimer, in which he "investigates his interest in the space, real or perceived, between the object of contemplation and the object of utility. Using the gallery as his architectural reference, Burkheimer created objects within the space as points of exchange with the public."

Opening reception • 5:30-9pm • April 1
Doppler PDX • 625 NW Everett #109 • dopplerpdx@gmail.com

iMegan is on vacation and it's my 11th anniversary of moving to Portland so here are my picks. Also, I'll have an official listing of Judd Month events culminating a world class scholarly conference and Judd exhibition up on Thursday:

Untitled 12-L, 1961-63/1969 Art © Judd Foundation. Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

To kick off Judd Month Elizabeth Leach Gallery presents Donald Judd Selected Prints. Donald Judd (1928 - 1994) is considered a seminal Minimalist sculptor, known for his total commitment to formal exploration, as well as his intensity of color and the sensuousness of his surfaces. Though originally a painter, Judd made extremely little two-dimensional work. This exhibition of prints from the 1960s offers an extremely rare opportunity to catch a glimpse of this lesser-known aspect of his practice. Though these prints were made at the height of Judd's career, Judd's interest in printmaking began in the mid 1950s, and extended throughout his career, including a brief collaboration with his father, Roy, in the early 1960s.

Studio view, Julia Mangold

Also Judd relevant Portland artist Julia Mangold will be exhibiting New Work while making her gallery debut in Portland. Mangold has shown extensively in Europe, including several solo shows at the Galerie Fahnemann (Berlin, Germany), Galerie Niklas von Bartha (London, England), and Studio La Città (Verona, Italy). Her work has also been shown across the United States, at Rhona Hoffman (Chicago, IL), and Jim Kempner Fine Art (New York, NY). New Work is her first solo exhibition at the Elizabeth Leach Gallery.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • April 1
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th • 503.224.0521 ...(more)

Michael Mandiberg, "Merrill Lynch - The Total Money Makeover"

PNCA presents The Great Recession, "an exhibition of new work by Michael Mandiberg exploring the psychic implications of this most recent burp by the American economy, late Capitalism, gold hoarding, and the end of an empire." Mandiberg will give a talk the day before the opening on this and other projects.

Artist lecture • 6:30-8pm • March 31
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • The Lab
First Thursday reception • 6:30pm • April 1
Pacific Northwest College of the Arts • 1241 NW Johnson • Feldman Gallery + Project Space

Jesse Hayward's installation at Linfield

Linfield presents Jesse Hayward's The Kitchen Counter Collective. "Whether it's with painted toothpicks that participants stab into an amorphous armature or with several hundred painted boxes the participants stack and re-stack throughout the run of the show, Jesse Hayward creates installations that are intended for direct audience manipulation. Utilizing repetition and ritual, he builds and paints objects in his studio that are then re-imagined through a collaborative, installation practice, articulating a space wherein boundaries are blurred." The exhibition will run from March 30 - May 1, 2010.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • March 31
Linfield Art Gallery • 900 SE Baker St. McMinnville • Miller Fine Arts Center

PSU's latest set of MFA exhibitions start this month. I'll be posting them in monthly batches, starting with:
Ralph Pugay, April 1-15, 2010, Autzen Gallery
Helen Reed, April 15-30, 2010, New Video Gallery
Miles Sprietsma, April 16-30, 2010, Autzen Gallery

For the full list and gallery locations, visit PSU's art department exhibition listing website.

Joanne Teasdale, "Twins"

Bullseye Gallery presents PHOTO/SYNTHESIS, a discussion on photography and glass with artists Carrie Iverson, April Surgent, and Joanne Teasdale, moderated by Richard Speer. RSVP required @ 503.227.2797 or sales@bullseyeglass.com.

Panel discussion • 5:30-8pm • March 30
Bullseye Gallery • 300 NW 13th • 503.227.0222

Naomi Uman

Cinema Project & Reed's Cooley Gallery present two programs of 16mm films by Naomi Uman, Ukrainian Time Machine and Milking & Scratching. "With Uman in attendance to present and discuss her films, career, and methods, the two-night event focuses on her most recent projects on bucolic Ukrainian life...Working at the intersections of documentary and experimental film, Uman's aesthetic is both delicate in approach to its subjects and bold in its images and processing."

Film screenings • 7pm • March 30 & 31 • $7 suggested donation
Cinema Project @ The Clinton Street Theater • 2522 SE Clinton

Deep Leap Microcinema presents Zaum / Beyonsense, "an evening of visionary experimental cinema from across the globe and exciting, specially commissioned performances by Seattle-based poet Brandon Shimoda and WHY I MUST BE CAREFUL."

Experimental film night • 8pm • March 29 • $5
Microcinema @ The Wail • 5135 NE 42nd @ Sumner

New Museum, NY

PAM's Critical Voices lecture series starts the 2010 season this weekend with Richard Flood's "Creating Networks: The New Internationalism." Flood will discuss how "museums today are learning to navigate an international, seemingly borderless art world, and the opportunities and costs involved." He is the chief curator at the New Museum in New York.

Curator lecture • 2-3pm • March 27
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Julie Lasky & Ernest Beck

PNCA cultural residents & internationally respected journalists and design critics Julie Lasky and Ernest Beck will be giving several public talks over the next week. For "Social Innovation-The Designer's Voice," Lasky and Beck will discuss, with Portland Monthly editor Randy Gregg, "the dialog that ensued between the [Aspen Design] Summit and Change Observer, the role criticism can play in evaluating the effectiveness of these programs, bringing voice to projects that address the impediments to human dignity and achievement faced by real people."

Critical conversation • 6-7:30 • March 29
PNCA @ Jimmy Mak's • 221 NW 10th

For the 3BY10 IDSA Series, Lasky and Beck present "Design and Social Change-What are the critical questions?" "Launched in the summer of 2009, Change Observer's goal is to monitor and report on developments in the burgeoning area of design and social change-people and projects, ideas and initiatives. Join Julie Lasky and Ernest Beck for a discussion on areas of significance that they have observed and their reflection on the critical conversations that designers and design educators need to engage?"

Critical conversation • 6-7:30pm • March 31
PNCA @ Design Within Reach • 1200 NW Everett

And finally, Lasky and Beck will discuss "Personal Design in Green Space." "The event will highlight select apartments showcasing the multiple and imaginative ways that residents have organized space, color, art and furniture to reflect their personal tastes."

Critical conversation • 6-7:30pm • April 2
PNCA @ Cyan PDX • 1720 SW 4th

Four Salvaged Boxes

Ongoing at UO Portland: Four Salvaged Boxes: wHY@work: "The 4 Boxes document the approach and process wHY Architecture and Design applied toward quality design and creative environmental sustainability...When closed, the boxes function as their own traveling crates, protecting their inner contents. When opened, the boxes unfold to present information about the sustainable design features of the Grand Rapids Art Museum and other innovative green projects, through the use of diagrams, models, material samples and videos." The show will be on view through April 15, 2010. Yo-ichiro Hakomori, AIA and Kulapat Yantrasast, AIA, will lecture next week on "A Crisis is a Terrible Thing to Waste" in conjunction with the exhibition.

Reception • 12-1:30pm • March 30
Lecture • 2-3pm • March 30
University of Oregon Portland • White Stag Building • 70 NW Couch

4D Sidewalks on Lower E Burnside

RACC's in situ PORTLAND temporary public art program presents 4D Sidewalk, a collaboration between urban workshop Cityscope and artist David Neveel. "4D Sidewalk creates a temporal event by recording and broadcasting a series of time-shifted video at street level, bringing the fourth dimension of time into the experience of the building. This interactive installation creates a feedback relationship with pedestrians and explores the extent to which a building can actively shape its environment."

Public art • on view through May 1, 2010 • daily 6pm-midnight
Bside6 Building • 524 E Burnside

Marta Ramoneda, "Girl in White Dress - Islamabad, Pakistan"

Ampersand presents 52 Selects: An Exhibition of Photographs by World-Renowned Photojournalists. The exhibition aims to showcase the beauty and value of photojournalism in an an era when news-proliferation and blogs have called "the very credentials" of photojournalists into question.

Opening reception • 6-10pm • March 25
Ampersand • 2916 NE Alberta Suite B • 503.805.5458

(More: Michael Endo at False Front and Mia Nolting & Aidan Koch at Together Gallery.)

Susan Brandeis

The next public lecture from the PNCA/OCAC MFA in Applied Craft & Design program will be given this week by Susan Brandeis, a fiber artist and Director of Graduate Programs for the Department of Art and Design at North Carolina State University.

Artist lecture • 6:30-8pm • March 18
Applied Craft & Design Studios • Bison Building • 421 NE 10th @ Glisan

After months of planning, PDXplore and the Architecture Foundation of Oregon will present the forum "Crossing the Columbia: What Does it Mean?" The program will explore the scope and impact of the Columbia River Crossing project. (Want to see a well-designed crossing? Come to this forum.) Events from March 22-26, 2010, include the exhibition PDXplore: Expanding Design Awareness and a series of panels and lectures. Click here for the full schedule.

Opening reception & tour • 5:30-7pm • March 22
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

Andy Warhol, "Marilyn," 1967

Opening this weekend at PAM: More Than a Pretty Face: 150 Years of the Portrait Print. "Featuring some 70 works by artists ranging from James McNeill Whistler to Chuck Close, this exhibition focuses on the portrait print from the late 19th to the early 21st century. Themes include the relationship among artist, sitter, and viewer; issues of identity, including age, gender, sexuality, and ethnicity; and ways in which social status, roles, and class are conveyed by pose, gesture, attire, and setting."

Exhibition • March 20 - May 30, 2010
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

David Komeiji and Wako Henyoji, photo by Jonathan Ley

The Portland Japanese Garden presents an Ohara ikebana exhibition. "Led by Master Teacher Kitty Akre, the members of the Portland Chapter of the Ohara School set the tone for early spring with an array of exquisite designs." This is one of several ikebana exhibitions, led by different schools, that occur throughout the year at the garden.

Ikebana exhibition • 10am-4pm • March 20 & 21
Portland Japanese Garden • 611 SW Kingston • Garden Pavilion

Sayre Gomez

Fourteen30 presents Self-Expression by LA-based artist Sayre Gomez. Writer John Motley, in his continued collaboration with the gallery (writing essays for each exhibition): "[Gomez] works in many media, shrugging off the trappings of style, to insistently reiterate a single idea in countless ways, and assert the fragmented nature of identity in the process. As a result, the work in Self-Expression is diverse enough to scan as a group show."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • March 19
Fourteen30 • 1430 SE 3rd • 503.236.1430

The next round of Portland2010 openings is happening this weekend. Catch work by Holly Andres, Corey Arnold, Pat Boas, John Brodie, David Eckard, Damien Gilley, Jenene Nagy, and the Oregon Painting Society at the Templeton Building, and Stephen Slappe at the Leftbank.

Portland2010 Biennial • Openings Part II • March 20
Templeton Building • 230 E Burnside @ SE 3rd • 6-10pm
Leftbank • 240 N Broadway • 6-9pm

Crystal Schenk, "Have and Have Not," currently on view at Disjecta for the Portland2010 Biennial

March's Art Spark is happening at Disjecta. They're celebrating the Portland2010 Biennial and offering attendees a chance to win a show at Disjecta (for individual artists or curated group shows). Submit a one-page synopsis of your proposal along with images before 5pm on Thursday and be ready to present your project to the Art Spark crowd if chosen.

Art chat • 5-7pm • March 18
Art Spark @ Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate • 503.286.9449

Bob Ostertag and Pierre Hébert

Artist and filmmaker Bob Ostertag is lecturing tomorrow at PAM in conjunction with Disquieted. "Ostertag explores the common ground and points of friction among music, creativity, politics, culture, and technology. In [his] lecture, "Between Science and Garbage," Ostertag will explore the notion that today's cutting-edge technology is tomorrow's garbage. The title of his lecture is drawn from a performance and film of the same name, which Ostertag created with his partner in Living Cinema, Pierre Hébert."

Artist lecture • 2-3pm • March 13
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Portland's latest stab at a Biennial begins this weekend. Curated by Cris Moss and running from March to May 2010, exhibitions will be held at Disjecta, Elizabeth Leach Gallery, the Marylhurst Art Gym, Rocksbox, the Templeton Building, the Leftbank, the Alicia Blue Gallery, and Alpern Gallery. You can already see shows at Elizabeth Leach and the Art Gym by Melody Owen (both), and the following is opening this weekend:

Ditch Projects

Are You Ready for the Country? brings Ditch Projects to Rocksbox. "Finding inspiration in the apocalypse of vacancy that marks urban failure, Are You Ready for the Country identifies and celebrates the urban center's sudden and full submission to the rural margin. Refusing the iconography of idealized naturalism, the members of Ditch Projects opt, instead, to frame rurality as the physical lack of constant urbanity."

Opening reception • 6-10pm • March 13
ROcksbox Fine Art • 6540 N Interstate • 503.516.4777

Bruce Conkle and Marne Lucas

Six shows will be opening this Saturday at Disjecta (the hub of the Biennial): Bruce Conkle & Marne Lucas' Warlord Sun King, David Corbett's New Work, Sean Healy's Muscle Car Memory/Carcinoma, Tahni Holt's Culture Machine (in progress), Crystal Schenk's Recent Work, and Crystal Schenk & Shelby Davis' West Coast Turnaround. While you're there, pop over to the Vestibule to see Evertt Beidler's Cured of Second Chances (not part of the Biennial).

Opening reception • 6-10pm • March 13
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate • 503.286.9449

MP5 presents Avantika Bawa's yesterday. Yellow. Bawa writes: "My altered and seemingly 'perfect' construction aims to transform the objects beyond their perceived banality into a dynamic phenomenon that reinvents the mundane. Ordinary, discarded material is used to construct a landscape, where the common place is glorified. Here, the flawed is perfected and the familiar obscured, rendering an emergent and difficult communication to be examined and relearned." The exhibition is on view from March 12 - April 30, 2010.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • March 12
MP5³ • 900 NE 81st Avenue • Gallery space of lofts building

Shaun Jarvis

Alpern Gallery presents Shaun Jarvis' Hard Luck. The photographs are part of a decade-long ongoing project photographing the artist's associates in available light without post-production.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • March 12
Alpern Gallery • 2552 NW Vaughn • 503.477.7721

Whiting Tennis, "Bitter Lake Compound," 2007

PAM's artist talk series continues this week with Matthew Stadler, a novelist who also writes about art and architecture for various publications, including Frieze, Artforum, Volume, Fillip, and Domus. Stadler will discuss Mark Tobey's Western Town, 1944, and Whiting Tennis' Bitter Lake Compound, 2007. The group will meet in the Hoffman Lobby, walk around the museum, and return to the lobby for happy hour after.

Art lecture • 6-8pm • March 11
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Daniel Joseph Martinez

PNCA presents a lecture by Daniel Joseph Martinez via the MFA in Visual Studies program: "A strategic provocateur with a keen intelligence and a wicked sense of humor, Martinez deploys the full range of available media in his practice, having used at various times (and in various combinations) text, image, sculpture, video, and performance to construct his uniquely tough-minded brand of aesthetic inquiry."

Artist lecture • 6:30-8pm • March 11
MoCC in partnership with PNCA • 724 NW Davis • The Lab

David Shaner, "Garden Slab," 1964

The Museum of Contemporary Craft presents Land Art: David Shaner. The exhibition explores the relationship between craft and the Land Art movement of the 1960s and 1970s through the work of a "potter's potter." Land Art includes works from the artist's estate and the museum's collection, as well as photos and personal notes taken by the artist, which "reveal a concurrent, domestically-scaled yet quietly sensual relationship between art and the landscape of the American West."

Exhibition • March 10 - August 7, 2010
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

On the first day of the exhibition, William Gilbert will present a concurrent Craft Perspectives lecture via PNCA/MoCC on "Land Arts of the American West." Gilbert "will discuss shifts in contemporary understanding of the genre of Land Art, tracing connections from his own study of ceramics in Montana with Rudy Autio to the innovative 'Land Arts of the American West' program he co-founded with Chris Taylor."

Artist lecture • 6:30 - 8pm • March 10
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

Stefano Minzi

Gallery Homeland presents Guten Tag Meine Fruende, a collection of six contemporary emerging and established artists living and working in Berlin. The show grew out of the ongoing relationship Gallery Homeland has been building over the past 6 months with the creative community of Berlin. Featured artists include Nicole Cohen, Ali Fitzgerald, Stefano Minzi, Holger Pohl, Adam Raymont, and Katharina Trudzinski.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • March 5
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th Ave • info@galleryHOMELAND.org

(More: Transverse at Worksound, Incubate at PNCA's Hybrid Gallery, Susan Burnstine at Newspace, and Midori Hirose at the new Nationale.)

Pae White, "MetaFoil"

Reed College's annual Reed Arts Week starts today. RAW 2010's theme is Alchemy: Organized by Students to Blow Your Mind. During the 4-day arts fest, there will be exhibitions/check locations throughout campus by visiting artists Pae White, Jonah Freeman, Marko Mäetamm, and Vanessa Lang. Most will be open to the public from 12-6pm. Other public events include Saturday's Dublab: Tonalism musical event, a screening by Pierre Huyghe, a table hosted by the Independent Publishing Resource Center, and a reading by David Shields. Check the full schedule for more info on art projects and lectures.

Arts fest • March 3-7, 2010
Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd

Jordan Tull, "Shadow Traces" diagram

OCAC's Hoffman Gallery presents Schema: Craft in Context, "the first exhibition in a series exploring the intersection of art, craft, and design in the Northwest...The artists in Schema invent images and forms that exist as the material embodiment of a conceptual framework. The interaction between form and space is primary here. While many of the selections deal with an obvious plan or structure each work can be viewed as presenting actions or directions not immediately evident. As such the pieces become systems to engage multiple possibilities rather than a fixed preconception." Among the included installations is Jordan Tull's architectural intervention, Shadow Traces: "For Hoffman Gallery, Shadow Traces is meant to disrupt visible aperture while shadowing interior surfaces. The intervention offers a shifted architectural context to experience artwork in." The exhibition runs from March 4 - March 28, 2010.

Opening reception • 4-7pm • March 4
Oregon College of Art and Craft • 8245 SW Barnes Road • Hoffman Gallery

Susan Seubert, "Lovejoy Fountain"

Brian Libby presents 8 x PDX: Photographs of Portland Architecture at AiA's Center for Architecture. The show features works by Jeremy Bitterman, PORTstar Jeff Jahn, Chris Hornbecker, Shawn Records, Susan Seubert, Sally Schoolmaster and Michael Weeks, as well as two pictures taken by Libby.

Opening reception • 5:30-8:30pm • March 4
American Institute of Architects • 403 NW 11th • 503.223.8757

(More: Blakely Dadson at Chambers@916, Melody Owen at Elizabeth Leach, Future Death Toll at Tractor, Wrecking Crüe at IGLOO, Brenda Mallory at Doppler PDX, and Lucas Murgida and Autzen.)

Modou Dieng and Damien Gallery present Flashstream: New Video at the New Video Gallery at PSU. In the lobby of the PSU Art Building or projected on the outside wall after dusk will be video works by Hannah Piper Burns, Carl Diehl, Jacob Fennell, Weird Fiction, Jaclyn Fronzack, Matthew Green, MK Guth, Ryan Jeffery, George Kuchar, Chris Larson, Bob Moricz, and Randi Razalenti.

Video exhibition • March 1 - March 26, 2010
PSU New Video Gallery • 2000 SW 5th Ave • Lobby of art building or outside at night

(More: Aili Schmeltz lectures at Clark College and Of Walking in Ice opens at UO's White Box.)

A devoted patron has planned a benefit for the Portland Art Museum's Crumpacker Library, featuring Plum Sutra Trio & Alex Rudinsky in a collaborative piano and live painting experience, opera by Gino Majalca and Lindsey Cafferky, folk music by Steve Kinzie, poetry to music by Jeff Coleman, and more. There is a $10 donation requested with all proceeds going directly to the library, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

PAM Library Benefit • 7pm • February 27
PAM @ the United Church of Christ • 1126 SW Park

Jack Ryan

PCC's Cascade Gallery presents Jack Ryan's Scriabin's Mustache. "Alexander Scriabin was a Russian composer whose life and eccentricities becomes a conceptual nexus for this collection of work. Killed by combing and rupturing a carbuncle nested in his flamboyant mustache, Scriabin's life and musical oeuvre is an opportunity to construct and explore Ryan's interest in conspiracies of form and the poetics of ideas. Sound, video, light, and sculptural works tamper with time and perception. Other works playfully examine Scriabin's carbuncle, connecting it to meteor showers and marks of divinity like the stigmata..." The exhibition will be on view from February 25 - March 31, 2010.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • February 25
Artist talk • 11am-12pm • March 4
PCC Cascade • 705 N Killingsworth • TH 102

Chris Chong Chan-Fui, still from "Block B," 2008

In conjunction with PIFF, Cinema Project is presenting a series of short experimental films, Short Cuts V: Resilient Structures--Asian Film & Video, which includes "Lumphini 2552" by Tomonari Nishikawa, "Shinonome Omogo Ishizuchi" by Shiho Kano, "Trees of Syntax, Leaves of Axis" by Daïchi Saïto, "Block B" by Chris Chong Chan-Fui, and "Empire's Borders I" by Chen Chieh-Jen.

Film screening • 6pm • February 25 • $10
Portland International Film Festival @ PAM • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium
PIFF schedule and ticketing information here.

Terry Winters, "Phasescape," 2006

In conjunction with his ongoing exhibition at the Cooley Gallery, Terry Winters is lecturing on his work at Reed College. A reception at the gallery will follow the lecture. Also, check out PORT's interview with Winters on the subject of his prints a few years ago.

Artist lecture • 7pm • February 24
Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd • Vollum Lecture Hall

Mary Weatherford

LA-based painter Mary Weatherfod is lecturing at MoCC in conjunction with PNCA's MFA in Visual Studies program.

Artist lecture • 6:30-8pm • February 25
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • The Lab

W+K Atrium by Brad Cloepfil/Allied Works (photo Jeff Jahn)

This month, the New Oregon Interview Series presents a live discussion with Mayor Sam Adams, Portland Monthly editor Randy Gragg, and prominent architect Brad Cloepfil. The group will "discuss their work in shaping urban space and how our built environment is evolving."

Conversation • 7-8:30pm • February 22
New Oregon Interview Series @ Urban Grind East • 2214 NE Oregon St. • $5

The fourth lecture in UO's School of Architecture and Allied Arts ongoing Machine in the Garden series is happening tomorrow. George Gessert will present Ornamental Plant Breeding for the 21st Century. Gessert is a writer and author on art and genetics whose book, Green Light: Toward an Art of Evolution is coming soon from MIT Press. In his lecture, Gessert will discuss "past and current uses of biotechnology to create new kinds of ornamental plants... Engineered ornamentals such as the red iris raise many questions, but he will focus on just one: what aesthetic criteria or assumptions are shaping the new plants?"

Artist lecture • 12-1pm • October 30
University of Oregon White Stag Building • 70 Couch St. • Event Room

Also happening at UO White Stag this weekend: The start of the 2009 Fall PUARL symposium touching on "the theories of Patterns and Pattern Languages." PUARL is the "Portland Urban Architecture Research Laboratory." The symposium will be kicked off by a public presentation & panel by Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein, Max Jacobson, and Ingrid King, authors of A Pattern Language. (Note: the presentation will be preceded by welcomes and introductions at 5pm and followed by a reception at 8:20pm.) Visit the PUARL website for more info on the symposium.

Lecture & Panel • 7pm • October 30
University of Oregon White Stag Building • 70 Couch St. • Event Room

Appendix presents Benjamin Young's installation Material Affair. "In collaboration with collected materials, Young sculpturally explores the tension, process, and ecology of synthesized form."

Opening reception • 6-11pm • October 29
Appendix Project Space • South alley b/w 26th and 27th on NE Alberta St. • appendixspace@gmail.com

Jason Doizé

False Front presents Jason Doizé's Hikikomori. Inspired by a found online confession, Doizé began to explore the Japanese concept of Hikikomori, or acute social withdrawal. Doizé's artistic take on the phenomenon asks the question: "To what degree do we open our 'little home boxes' we inhabit and allow others in? Maybe the idea of shutting-in isn't foreign at all. Maybe in the end we're all hikikomori."

Opening reception • 6-10pm • October 29
False Front Studio • 4518 NE 32nd • jasondoize@mac.com

Architecture by Yung Ho Chang

Architect Yung Ho Chang is lecturing this week at PAM in conjunction with the ongoing China Design Now exhibition. In China Architecture Now Chang will discuss "how the rapid changes in contemporary China's economy, mobility and consumerism are profoundly affecting architectural practice in the country." Chang is founding head of the Graduate Center of Architecture at Peking University and co-founder, with his wife Lijia Lu, of Atelier Feichange Jianzhu. He is also currently the head of the MIT Department of Architecture.

Architecture lecture • 7pm • October 29
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Update: Backroompdx is hosting a dinner conversation with Yung Ho Chang this Friday. Tickets ($65/e) are still available. More info on their website.

Raphael, "La Donna Velata or La Velata (The Woman with the Veil)," c.1516

PAM presents Raphael's Woman With a Veil, on view October 24 - January 3, 2010. On loan from the Medici collection, the museum will be showing "one of the most important paintings of the Renaissance" alone for your curiosity and contemplation.

Exhibition • October 24, 2009 - January 3, 2010
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Francisco Goya y Lucientes, "The sleep of reason produces monsters," c.1798

Reed College is bringing David Rosand to speak on Things Never Seen: Graphic Fantasy and the Dreaming Draftsman. The lecture, happening in conjunction with the Cooley Gallery's ongoing The Language of the Nude: Four Centuries of Drawing the Human Body exhibition, will "address a basic tenet in the long tradition of Western aesthetics: the distinction between fantasia and mimesis." Rosand is a professor of art history at Columbia who specializes in Renaissance visual culture.

Art history lecture • 7pm • October 26
Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Vollum lecture hall

MP5 presents Blue. Curator TJ Norris invited Matthew Haggett, Todd Johnson, and Victor Maldonado to interpret the open theme of "blue" in the lofts. Highlights include Spherelab: Blue, a site-specific installation using adhesive-backed-vinyl applied directly to walls and other surfaces by Haggett, Blue Velvet, a group show interpreting the classic Lynch film organized by Johnson, and a curatorial experiment by Maldonado featuring a collection of "funny, dirty or politically incorrect jokes." The show runs October 24 - December 27, 2009.

Opening reception • 7-9pm • October 24
Milepost 5 • 900 NE 81st • 503.998.4878

This Sunday, Disjecta hosts Play, "an evening of interactive installations, performance and single channel screenings." Dustin Zemel and Ben Popp collaborated on an interactive video "environment" headlined by visiting experimental filmmaker Kenny Reed. "Installation, screenings and audio segments offer an intimate showcase and variety of media works exploring image and sound while creating an atmosphere of dialogue, wonder and PLAY."

One night interactive installation • 7pm-midnight • October 25
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate • 503.286.9449

Processions

The coordinators of Alberta' Appendix Project Space present Processions: an Elaborative Cartography at PSU's Recess Gallery (dept. of architecture). The work is a collaborative installation by Maggie Casey, Zachary Davis, Joshua Pavlacky and Benjamin Young: "Navigating the topology of the individual, the group, and emergent form, the exhibition is an exploration of process and its structure. Processions is an ecology of making. Composed of a series of hung arcs, each informed by its companion, the resulting structure exists as a material pause in an evolution of possible choices." The artists recommend that viewers show up to the reception promptly, "as the piece is best experienced over the transition from daylight to dusk."

Artist talk • 4pm • Shattuck Hall Annex • October 23
Opening reception • 5pm • Shattuck Hall Terrace • October 23
Recess Gallery • Shattuck Hall • 1914 SW Park

Zahid Sardar

Zahid Sardar, author and designer of New Garden Design and San Francisco Modern, is lecturing this week for PNCA & OCAC's MFA in Applied Craft & Design program. Sardar has written and lectured for many years on architecture, interiors, garden design, craft, and design.

Scholar lecture • 6:30-7:30pm • October 22
Craft & Design Studios • The Bison Building • 421 NE 10th

Ellen Dissanayake at UW's Burke Museum

Ellen Dissanayake will be giving next week's MFA in Applied Craft & Design lecture. Dissanayake is "an independent scholar, author, and lecturer... whose Darwinian viewpoint provides a broader understanding of the arts than is customary in most theoretical approaches: the arts are integral to human nature and they evolved to help individuals adapt to their physical and social environments."

Scholar lecture • 6:30-7:30pm • October 29
Craft & Design Studios • The Bison Building • 421 NE 10th

MFA in Applied Craft & Design students hard at work, from their blog

If you're curious about PNCA & OCAC's new MFA in Applied Craft and Design, here's your chance to get to know the students and their ideas. In conjunction with the ongoing Call + Response exhibition, the Museum of Contemporary Craft, PNCA, and OCAC present a Pecha Kucha-inspired night. Pecha Kucha is "a concept that grew out of the Tokyo design community, featuring a series of concise presentations." MFA in Applied Craft and Design students will present ideas and images in a modified format of roughly 3.5 minutes each.

Student presentations • 5:30pm • October 21
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Unrelated: Art on Alberta, the organization that coordinates community artistic endeavors in NE Portland, is seeking volunteers. In addition to an open board position, they need an Alberta street historian, an Art on Alberta historian, volunteer writers to contribute to their blog and newsletter, a media assistant, and a gallery assistant. Learn more about these volunteer positions here.

Tom Cramer's opening

Tom Cramer is lecturing this weekend at Laura Russo in conjunction with his ongoing exhibition of new work.

Artist lecture • 11am • October 17
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st • 503.226.2754

Professor and Composer Ye Xiaogang

In China Design Now-related news: PAM is hosting China Music Now, a panel discussion exploring the state of musicians in China. Eric Priest, an assistant professor at the University of Oregon specializing in Chinese intellectual property law, will join Ye Xiaogang, widely regarded as one of the leading composers in China today, to discuss the following questions: "How do musicians in China make a living? Who is their audience? And how is the business of music changing in China?"

Panel • 4pm • October 18
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

October's STOCK dinner is happening this weekend. The concept: "Stock is a monthly public dinner event and presentation series, which funds small to medium-sized artist projects. Organized by artists Katy Asher, Amber Bell and Ariana Jacob and hosted by Gallery Homeland in Portland, Oregon, diners pay a modest $10 for a dinner of homemade soup and other local delicacies and the chance to take part in deciding which artist proposal will receive the evening's proceeds. In other words, the dinner's profits immediately become an artists grant, which is awarded according to the choice of the diners. Winning artists will present their completed work at the following Stock dinner." RSVP required! Contact portlandstock@gmail.com.

Art dinner • 6-8pm • October 18
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th • portlandstock@gmail.com

Portland Mural Defense is facilitating Art Spark this month. They'll explore the importance and history of murals in Portland, and muralist Robin Dunitz will be present.

Art chat • 5-7pm • October 15
Art Spark @ Zaytoons • 2236 NE Alberta

Gretchen Hogue

Ongoing at Ditch Projects: Gretchen Hogue's ESCAPE ROUTES/disposable comfort. "Unearthing new meaning in images pilfered from the detritus bins of the electronic age, ESCAPE ROUTES/disposable comfort constructs psychic landscapes for internal weather patterns. The models from an industrial safety catalog populate a distracted world of imperfect isolation and impenetrable protection. Endless loops trace the pulse of elusive escape routes, plotted and re-plotted, the internal blueprints for self-preservation."

Exhibition • October 10-31, 2009
Ditch Projects • 305 S 5th Ave #190 Springfield, OR • info@ditchprojects.com

Deep Leap Microcinema presents Sign Languages tonight. The films in tonight's screening explore "notions of language, semiotics, translation and communication," featuring work by Stephanie Barber, Les Leveque, Oliver Laric, Ben Russell, Catarina Simoes, James Whipple, Benjamin Schultz-Figueroa, Frank Zadlo, Aleksandra Domanovic, Nathaniel Stern, Diane Borsato, Erik Bünger, and more.

Film screening • 9pm • October 12
@ Valentine's • 232 SW Ankeny

The Coney Island Amateur Psychoanalytic Society

Tomorrow Cinema Project is screening The Coney Island Amateur Psychoanalytic Society: Dream Films 1926-1972. Artist and curator Zoe Beloff will present a selection of works from the Freud-inspired Society. "Ranging from the touching to the ecstatic, these amateur films explore the inner lives of Society members and are a true combination of science and spectacle."

Film screening • 7:30pm • October 13 • $6
Cinema Project • 11 NW 13th Ave • 4th Floor

China Design Now exhibition entrance (photo Jeff Jahn)

Unless you've been hiding under a rock, you've probably heard that PAM is about to launch China Design Now, a traveling exhibition (from London's Victoria & Albert Museum) on contemporary Chinese design. The show "explores the recent explosion of critically compelling design and architecture projects created in China, contextualizing the impact of rapid economic development on these projects in the country's major cities." In conjunction with the exhibition, many spaces around Portland are hosting Chinese-related exhibitions and events - check out the CDN blog to learn more.

The show's opening weekend is being kicked off with two related lectures at the museum. On Saturday, John Jay, global executive creative director of Wieden + Kennedy and founder of their Shanghai office, will present China Youth Now, an exploration of "the latest media, technology, and fashion created to appeal to Chinese youth today." On Sunday, Beth McKillop, director of collections and keeper of the Asian Department at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, will present Creativity in the Era of Globalization, in which she will discuss "the changing economic and cultural contexts that have fueled an explosion of creativity in Chinese graphic design, fashion, and architecture in Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Beijing."

Of course, keep an eye on this space for more news & reviews related to CDN.

Exhibition • October 10, 2009 - January 17, 2010
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Carl Diehl

Another gallery celebrating the PNCA centennial this month is Worksound with Memory/Frequency. They'll be featuring sculpture, sound, video, and photography by Carl Diehl, Tracey Cockrell, and Lennie Pitkin, all faculty at PNCA.

Opening reception • 7-11pm • October 9
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

Anna Weber

Nationale is featuring a new series of paintings and drawings by Anna Weber, whose work is "inspired by geometry, architecture, maps, textiles, sign painters, symmetry, balance, falling, and floating."

Opening reception • 6-8pm • October 9
Nationale • 2730 E Burnside • nationale.portland@gmail.com

UO Portland is opening a new gallery space at their downtown White Stag building. The "White Box's" inaugural exhibition will be Inspiration China (an informal tie-in to PAM's upcoming China Design Now): "For Inspiration China, the students created individual art pieces--in various forms of technology and media--that reference and re-interpret Chinese antiquities from selected pieces of the JSMA [Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, on the Eugene campus] collection. The new work is presented in a modern context to establish a dialogue between old and new, past and present."

Opening reception • 5-7pm • October 8
White Box • 24 NW 1st • White Stag Building

Dorothea Lange, c.1939

PSU's Littman Gallery is exhibiting Dorothea Lange in 1939, a collection of FSA photographs presented by the Oregon Cultural Heritage Commission. During the Great Depression, the Farm Security Administration (FSA) hired photographers like Lange to "portray the suffering of rural Americans in terms understandable to the urban middle class." Lange became known for her extraordinary work as an American documentarian, and this series has an obvious and important relevance to our delicate economic situation today. The show will run through November 25, 2009.

Reception • 5-7pm • October 8
PSU Littman Gallery • 1835 SW Broadway • Smith Building Rm 250

(More: Mack McFarland at PSU's White Gallery and Mary Warner at PCC's Cascade Gallery.)

Anne Wilson

Chicago-based artist Anne Wilson will be lecturing twice this week in Portland. Wilson is a professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a renowned craft artist who coined the term "sloppy craft." First, she'll present Liminal Networks at Reed College: "Employing familiar, domestic materials, including table linen, bed sheets, human hair, thread, and lace, Wilson explores the larger themes of time, loss, private and social rituals." Wilson's second appearance will be a craft dialogue with Josh Faught, Nan Curtis, and Jessica Jackson Hutchins on the topic of "sloppy craft" at PNCA. The dialogue is anticipation of the exhibition on that theme at MoCC in 2010-2011, co-curated by Faught and MoCC curator Namita Gupta Wiggers. (Keep an eye on this space for an interview with Wilson.)

Artist lecture • 7pm • October 8
Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd • Vollum Lecture Hall

Craft conversation • 1-3pm • October 10
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • Swigert Commons

(Much, much more: Kartz Ucci at Clark College, MulvannyG2 at UO White Stag, Matthew Stinchcomb of Etsy at CYAN/PDX for PNCA, Jacqueline Ehlis at PAM, and Martin Kersels at MoCC for PNCA.)

Still from Janie Geiser's "Magnetic Sleep"

Cinema Project & Pacific University are screening Magnetic Sleep by Janie Geiser. The film is a nine-part serial about a woman hypnotist, Marceline, and her journey across an ever-changing landscape. This textual/cinematic project "channels" early experimental filmmakers such as Man Ray and Maya Deren.

Film screenings • 7:30pm • October 6 & 7 • $6
Cinema Project • 11 NW 13th Ave • 4th Floor

The Oregon Cultural Trust is celebrating Oregon Day of Culture... week(?!). From October 1-8 they're sponsoring music, theater, ethnic festivities, and some visual arts. Visit the official website to learn more about related events throughout the state.

Imogen Cunningham

Our neighbors up north are also exploring local artistic heritage. A Concise History of Northwest Art opens this weekend at the Tacoma Art Museum. The exhibition is drawn primarily from TAM's permanent collection and will include work from the mid-1800s to the present day from Washington, Oregon, western Montana, Idaho, British Columbia, and Alaska.

Exhibition • October 3, 2009 - May 23, 2010
Tacoma Art Museum • 1701 Pacific Ave, Tacoma, Washington

Kimi Kolba

Pushdot presents Linger by Kimi Kolba. Kolba's photography focuses on the contemporary night landscape, asking the viewer to allow themselves time to adjust to the images the way their eyes take time to adjust to the darkness of night. She explores "the new, the northwest urban and industrial, and the psychological" in the surrounding landscape.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • October 2
Pushdot Studio • 1021 SE Caruthers • 503.224.5925

(More.)

Kartz Ucci, "an opera for one"

TILT Export presents installation artists Kartz Ucci at the PCC Rock Creek Helzer Gallery. In an opera for one, Ucci hired soprano Deanna Pauletto to sing a capella Pablo Neruda's book of poetry, "Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair." The piece was recorded in a 16-story, cement-encased stairwell and a color-coded score was composed based on Ucci's interpretation of the relation between color and its emotional vibration. The resulting installation is a "hauntingly romantic" response to this effort. This ongoing exhibition runs through October 30, 2009. The artist talk will be in the school's Forum, Building 3, followed by a reception in the gallery.

Artist talk • 3:30pm • October 2
Artist reception • 7-9pm • October 2
Helzer Gallery, PCC Rock Creek • 17705 NW Springville Rd • Building 3

Léonie Guyer

The fall 2009 season of PSU's MFA Monday Night Lecture Series (hereafter "PMMNLS") begins next week with Léonie Guyer. "Guyer makes drawings, paintings, and site responsive installations. Her work explores the interconnection between idiosyncratic shapes and the spaces they inhabit."

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • October 5
PSU • 1914 SW Park Ave • Shattuck Hall Rm 212 at Broadway & Hall

Ryan Pierce at Elizabeth Leach (photo Jahn)

PORTstar Ryan Pierce is exhibiting Written from Exile, his debut at Elizabeth Leach. The large-scale acrylic paintings "examine our world after the end of the industrial era, projected human migration patterns, and the remains of civilization. Pierce poses the questions: Who will be displaced by climate change and where will they go? How will they get there and how will they be accepted? What will happen to the things they've left behind?"

Opening reception • 6-9pm • October 1
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th • 503.224.0521

(More.)

Finished mural by Jo Jackson and Chris Johanson in North Portland's Albina Green Park

Sorry for the late notice but the new Chris Johanson and Jo Jackson mural in North Portland will be unveiled today from 12-8PM at Albina Green park. It is at the corner of N Albina and Sumner and there will be bands, drum circles, etc.

British artist Mary George presents Camouflage Party at Rocksbox: "So I think, what if... what if I went outside my little cave studio to find the world blown away like in an episode of the Twilight Zone? I'd have to survive on the contents of my studio and whatever else I could find lying around. ... I could satisfy cravings for the consumer past by inventing packaged experiences that maximize on the environment's meagre offerings. If there was a crate of Hawaiian Tropic tanning oil for instance (good odds that it would survive the big one), I might invent a method for enjoying its nostalgic odour of carefree beach related memories. It wouldn't be easy to transition from this time of being able to have all kinds of things that seem like necessities, so I have started working now, before it's too late." Opening night features a live performance by PISS featuring shredder Mary George at 9pm.

Opening reception • 7-11pm • September 26
Rocksbox Fine Art • 6540 N Interstate • 503.516.4777

Jenene Nagy, "Flooded"

The Archer Gallery presents the 2009 Clark College art faculty biennial. Featured artists include Bobby Abrahamson, Lisa Conway, Ray Cooper, Kowkie Durst, Kathrena Halsinger, Beth Heron, Carson Legree, Martha Lewis, Dara Muldoon, Jenene Nagy, Stephanie Robinson, Ben Rosenberg, Blake Shell, Senseney Stokes, Jak Tanenbaum, and Sally Van Gorder. The show will run September 29 through October 24, 2009.

Opening reception • 4-7pm • September 29
Archer Gallery at Clark College • 1933 Fort Vancouver Way • Penguin Union Building (PUB)

Donald Morgan

Donald Morgan's Black Moon Rising is currently showing at Ditch Projects: "Employing imagery based in the forest, such as tangled undergrowth, spider webs and the architecture of fire look-outs, the pieces in Dark Moon Rising take advantage of the interstices between the two and three dimensional. The inter-related sculptures and paintings function together as a hard-edged geometric landscape, creating an ersatz wilderness engendered by temporal and spatial shifts, the confluence of warmth and coldness, and interplay between the flat and the volumetric as well as the near and the far." The exhibition will be up through October 3, 2009.

Closing reception • 7-10pm • October 3
Ditch Projects • 303 S 5th AVE #190 Springfield, OR • info@ditchprojects.com

Gary Wiseman and Meredith Andrews present Inside, Outside, Upside Down, a one-night Last Thursday installation at Appendix. The artists write: "...The difference between fantasy and reality seems infra-thin. I like the idea of time and space folding. I want to go home. Nine dimensions seem so ambiguous and arbitrary. In fact (after earning her PhD at Oxford my X-friend the physicist told me) kindness is all that matters. Befuddled, I am honestly trying to tell you the truth but it is hopeless. I can't talk that fast."

Opening reception •6-11pm • September 24
Appendix Project Space • South alley between 26th and 27th off NE Alberta

The other Alberta alley gallery space, now named Little Field Gallery, presents FRAME by Jordan Tull. "FRAME examines the role of the audience as subject to the object. The installation is a model of space fragmented. FRAME explores how space and time connect vision to experience."

Opening reception • 5-10pm • September 24
Little Field Gallery • North alley between 28th and 29th off NE Alberta

Neighborhood Diaries is a compilation of Portlanders' neighborhood-specific memories, compiled and put to music by Abraham Ingle, who's also spearheading the Portland version of Papergirl. The project begins its exhibitions with the King/Vernon Diaries at Together Gallery this Last Thursday - bring your MP3 player to download the tour. Upcoming events include the Downtown Diaries at ON Gallery for October First Thursday, the Buckman Diaries for First Friday at Second Nature Gallery, and the Boise/Elliot Diaries at the Waypost on October 11. Visit the website for more details.

Opening reception • 6-10pm • September 24
Together Gallery • 2916 NE Alberta • 503.288.8879

Ward Shelley, "Stability," installation view

The first lecture for PNCA's MFA in Visual Studies will be given this week by Brooklyn artist Ward Shelley, who "specializes in large-scale projects that freely mix sculpture and performance."

Artist lecture • 6:30pm • September 24
The Lab at the Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis

David Eckard, still from "Prestidigitation: A Folly in Eleven Acts"

The third and final craft conversation from MoCC's ongoing Call + Response exhibition is also happening this week. PNCA professors David Eckard and Anne Marie Oliver will discuss the artist/art historian interactions they had in the months leading up to the exhibition. (Read Oliver's essay on Eckard's Prestidigitation here.)

Craft conversation • 1pm • September 26
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Still from "MY CHINA NOW"

In conjunction with the upcoming China Design Now exhibition (lots more on that later), the NW Film Center presents Lens on China, a film series that "explores the perspectives of Chinese and western filmmakers whose works reflect on the broad currents of contemporary change in Chinese society. As China's past and future collide, the works by these media artists provide unique insight into the social and aesthetic confusions, obstacles and opportunities being navigated in the interstices between history, daily reality, and the future's promises." A long series of varied and interesting Chinese films will be screened through the end of December, 2009. The series will be kicked off this week with Good Cats by director Ying Liang at 7pm on Thursday, September 24. Check the NW Film Center website for more details and the full schedule of screenings. Unless otherwise noted, films will be shown at PAM's Whitsell Auditorium.

Jonas Mekas

The Cinema Project is screening Jonas Mekas' Walden this week. In Walden, Mekas "documents his casual visits with other filmmakers, artists, and intellectuals across the changing seasons of 1960s New York... the film's heightened spontaneity of camera movement and sense of edgy immediacy helped define New American Cinema, while Mekas' use of a simple diaristic approach fills the film with poetic reflections and charming realism." Featured luminaries include Allen Ginsburg and Hare Krishna hippies, the Brakhage family, John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Timothy Leary, and Edie Sedgwick. Of his films, Mekas writes "Of course, what I faced was the old problem of all artists: to merge Reality and Self, to come up with the third thing."

Film screening • 7:30pm • September 23 • $6
Cinema Project • 11 NW 13th • 4th floor

Jordan Stone

Deep Leap Microcinema, a new film curatorial project by Jesse Malmed, presents Palimpsests, a collection of local and international video films. Featured artists include Yoshi Sodeoka, Matt McCormick, Jesse Malmed, Antoine Catala, Jordan Stone, Benjamin Schultz-Figueroa, Joel Holmberg, Martijn Hendriks and Andrew Fillipone. There will also be specially commissioned musical performances by Jeffrey Brodsky and Banjo Performs Keyboard.

Film screening • 8pm • September 24 • $6
Deep Leap Microcinema @ the Artistery • 4315 SE Division

PAM presents Shine a Light: A Night at the Museum: "Stay up late and watch the galleries come alive with participatory art created for the evening by PSU's Art and Social Practice Program, led by artist Harrell Fletcher and Jen Delos Reyes." Events include live bands in the sculpture court, art "dowsing," printmaking demonstrations, art-inspired beer, games, video installations, and more.

Participatory museum event • 6pm-midnight • September 19
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

This month's Art Spark is hosted by Art on Alberta at Vendetta: "Fancy yourself a surrealist artist? Intrigued by all things Dada? Eager to explore the real roots of punk? Got an affinity for community and collaboration? Art on Alberta will engage Art Spark groupies in some Exquisite Corpse games with curious others..."

Art conversation group • 5-7pm • September 17
Art Spark @ Vendetta • 4306 N Williams

Brian Libby, still from "Creamery Birds"

Brian Libby presents The City Onscreen, a collection of short films featuring Portland architecture and design. In addition to four films by Libby, the screening includes work by Matt McCormick, Rob Tyler, Karl Lind, and Andrew Curtis, as well as a 1955 CBS News documentary about Portland preparing for nuclear war called "The Day Called X." The City Onscreen is part of Libby's ongoing "Designs on Portland" discussion series.

Film screening • 6:30pm • September 17
Design Within Reach • 1200 NW Everett

Pat Boas, "breathing," from "What Our Homes Can Tell Us"

The Marylhurst Art Gym presents Pat Boas - Record Record. The exhibition features four series that "comment in very quiet ways on the text and images in The New York Times," as well as a new series of digital works, What Our Homes Can Tell Us, that "captures language found in the artist's home and places of importance to her extended family." The show runs from September 13 - October 28, 2009, and includes two artist talks.

To learn more about Pat Boas, check out PORT's 2006 review of her Mutatis Mutandis show and PAM's video of Boas' recent artist talk at the museum.

Opening reception for Record Record • 3-5pm • September 13
First artist talk • 12pm • October 8
Second artist talk • 7:30-8pm • October 16
Marylhurst Art Gym • 17600 Pacific Highway Marylhurst, OR • 503.699.6243

Laura Corinne Hayes, "Illuminated Recollections" (installed)

Laura Corinne Hayes presents Illuminated Recollections at the Alpern Gallery.

Artist reception • 6-9pm • September 11
Alpern Gallery • 2522 NW Vaughn • 503.347.7689

Micah Malone

Micah Malone sells out this weekend at Worksound. In Sell Out, Malone asserts that "the desire to make a living from one's artistic practice can be as emotional, conceptual, poetic and honest as any other reason for making art." The exhibition revolves around a sculpture and its dissemination, including photographs made by capturing the sculpture's reflection and a series of text pieces made from light rope.

Opening reception • 9pm • September 11
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

Gregory Green, WCBS Radio Caroline: The Voice of the New Free State of Caroline, 89.3, 1995-2007

In their first collaboration with TBA, Lewis & Clark's Hoffman Gallery presents Broadcast, guest curated by Irene Hofmann, Executive Director of the Contemporary Museum in Baltimore. The exhibition "explores the ways in which artists since the late 1960s have engaged, critiqued, and inserted themselves into official channels of broadcast television and radio." Thirteen works will be featured by an international group of artists, including single-channel monitor-based videos, video-projection works, photography, installations, and interactive broadcasting projects. The artists employ the strategies of broadcasting and re-broadcasting, following two major impulses: "an iconoclastic, aggressive position, at times intended to question FCC regulations, or a more cooperative and collaborative position." Broadcast certainly has a heavyweight lineup with; Dara Birnbaum, Chris Burden, Gregory Green, Doug Hall, Chip Lord and Jody Procter, Christian Jankowski, Inigo Manglano-Ovalle, neuroTransmitter, Antonio Muntadas, Nam June Paik, TVTV/Top Value Television and Siebren Versteeg. The exhibition will run from September 8 to December 13, 2009.

Artist talk with Gregory Green • 4pm • September 8
Opening reception • 5-7pm • September 8
Hoffman Gallery • 0615 S.W. Palatine Hill Road • 503.768.7687

On 9/9/09 Modou Dieng is curating a one night show of 9 video artists titled Echo Gap at Valentines. Lineup includes; Arnold Kemp, Sari Carel, Posie Currin, Stephen Slappe, Kelley Rauer,Sean Carney, David Eckard, Hannah Piper Burns, and some talentless blond hack with a blog.

Echo Gap • 8:30pm • September 9 • one night only
Valentines • 232 S.W. Ankeny

Donal Mosher, from "October Country"

Disjecta presents Donal Mosher's October Country, "an investigation of the artist's life and family through photography, film, and narrative writing... considering the nature of human interaction, experience and the measures we take to find a place for ourselves within contemporary society."

Opening reception • 6-10pm • September 5
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate • 503.286.9449

Fourteen30 presents LA-based artist Bobbi Woods. She "culls from the glut of ready-made images crowding our collective consciousness, resulting in 2-D and video works that simultaneously bait and beguile."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • September 4
Fourteen 30 Contemporary • 1430 SE 3rd • 503.236.1430

(More.)

Bean Gilsdorf, "Assembly, line, image, system," installation view

Bean Gilsdorf's Assembly, line, image, system opens this week at Linfield. Using life-size prints from ten different automobiles, Gilsdorf constructs a large-scale installation from fabric, paint, dye, bleach, and thread that sweeps along the circumference and runs beyond the enclosure of the gallery's four walls, building a continuum of color and implied motion. The project explores the notion of using near-weightless materials to create monumental work. The show will be open from Wednesday, September 2 through October 10, and Gilsdorf is flying up for the artist reception on Saturday.

Artist reception • 2-5pm • September 5
Linfield Fine Art Gallery • Miller Fine Arts Center • 900 SE Baker St, McMinnville • Directions on their website.

MK Guth, From the set of Allegory of Possible Hopes and Fears, "I Will See You on the Other Side (bed)"

MK Guth presents Terrain Change, an installation of new work at the Elizabeth Leach Gallery. "Featuring chandelier clouds and umbrellas made of sweaters and hats, video and photography, loggers and mermaids, Terrain Change poses the question: Who do you become when your environment disappears? When your life is defined by your profession, who are you without it? Through the use of mythic characters, Guth examines the very contemporary issues of climate change, the changing global economy, and the American cult of the career."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • September 3
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th • 503.224.0521

(More.)

Jersey Devil, Red Cross House, Islamorado, Florida

OCAC & PNCA present the first lecture for their joint MFA in Applied Craft & Design program. Steve Badanes is a founding member of Jersey Devil, a design/build practice specializing in innovative and energy-efficient structures. Badanes, known for the both the practice and the teaching of design/build, is currently a professor at the University of Washington.

Design lecture • 6:30-7:30pm • September 2
Bison Building • 421 NE 10th

Antoine Catala, still from "TV"

Here's PORT's short list of TBA:09 picks. We're primarily a visual arts (not performing arts) publication, so consider this a by-no-means-complete list of visual arts highlights.

•Psychedelic Soul, a collaboration between Kristan Kennedy and Cooley Gallery curator Stephanie Snyder. In conjunction with Reed's upcoming exhibition, The Language of the Nude, PICA and the Cooley have organized "two unique projects that fold past and present into a vivid dream of the future." The project features a video installation by Antoine Catala and a live performance by Brody Condon, both of which relate to other pieces the artists have in the festival. Event times & details on the TBA schedule.

•National Park, an installation at THE WORKS by Fawn Krieger. "During her residency at PICA, Krieger will construct a stage set as national park. The structure takes its cues from Lewis & Clark, museum dioramas, Superstudio, and the U.S.'s post-war middle-class tourism pastime, the roadtrip."

•Forever Now and Then Again, an installation at THE WORKS by Jesse Hayward. Inviting direct audience manipulation, Hayward "builds and paints objects in his studio that are then reimagined through a collaborative installation practice, articulating a space wherein boundaries are blurred. The sculptural commingles with the painterly, the coactive with the drawn..."

•We Are Legion, a web based installation at THE WORKS by Stephen Slappe. Mining audience & participants' photo albums for evidence of "contemporary cultural indoctrination," Slappe's web project "creates a never-ending army of costumed youth."

•The Oregon Painting Society will give one of their signature performances on Friday, September 11 at THE WORKS. In collaboration with Dragging an Ox Through Water, The Slaves, Woolly Mammoth Comes to Dinner, and Kent Richardson, OPS will use home-crafted objects and sounds to "take you deeper into the mystery."

•Movements, a sound sculpture/installation by Ethan Rose at THE WORKS. Featuring over 100 carefully timed and placed music boxes, Movement's "tinkering creates a sensation of a shifting texture, housed in a visually stimulating acoustic environment."

•Block Ice & Propane, a multimedia performance by cellist Erik Friedlander. Based on recollections of childhood family car vacations, the piece evokes truck stops, long, lonely highways, and stark panoramas. The highly intimate work is accompanied by projection of photographs taken by his father, famed photographer Lee Friedlander.

Rose McCormick

The final installment in NAAU's Couture series opens this weekend. Rose McCormick's Grande Ronde is an "art environment." She writes: "The achievement of this work is in it's conception, the finished show a fossil of the experience of discovery. It may be that viewing it is not enough, it may be that you have to have made it as well. But what it strives to do is offer the blueprint for you to create your own experience." The opening reception features lemon bars and lavender iced tea.

Opening reception • 12-3pm • August 30
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny • 503.231.8294

Appendix will be showing Finder Keeper, an installation by Zachary Davis "concerned with seekers and unexplored landscapes."

Opening reception • 6-11pm • August 27
Appendix Project Space • South alley b/w 26th & 27th on NE Alberta • appendixspace@gmail.com

The Appendix folks are also helping establish a similar new space down the street. The space will be featuring Daniel Wallace's newest project, the result of the artist in residence program at The Dude Ranch, which "considers our relationship to light, materiality, and the parameters of visual perception."

Opening reception • 6-10pm • August 27
New Alberta project space • North alley b/w 28th & 29th on NE Alberta

Karl Burkheimer

MoCC's Craft Conversations series continues this week. Part of the ongoing Call + Response exhibition, these conversations give artists and art historians a chance to dialogue publicly about their craft. The second conversation features Matt Johnston, assistant professor, department of art, Lewis & Clark, and Karl Burkheimer, associate professor and head of wood department, OCAC.

Art dialogue • 5:30pm • August 27
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Shusaku Arakawa, Untitled, from the portfolio No! Says the Signified, 1973

Word and Image/Word as Image opens this weekend at PAM. "Featuring works by artists from Albrecht Dürer to Ed Ruscha, this exhibition examines the relationship between word and image in prints over the course of more than 500 years, from the Renaissance to today."

Exhibition • August 22 - November 29, 2009
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

This Saturday in support of the Art of Touring, Fontanelle gallery is presenting readings and performances from four of the touring musicians and editors in the show/book: Sara Jaffe (Erase Errata), Rebecca Gates, Tara Jane Oneil, and Julianna Bright (The Golden Bears).

Readings and Performances • 6pm • August 22
Fontanelle • 205 SW Pine St, Portland OR 97204

Avalon Kalin

Avalon Kalin presents The Idiosyncratic Element is the Precursor to Change at PSU's Autzen Gallery. "For over a year, Kalin has been working with local cafe proprietor Jonathan Legare as the artist-in-residence of his southeast cafe and community resource center, LEGARE'S. The title of Kalin's exhibition is an aphorism authored by Legare himself. Acting as an experimental documentary installation, Kalin's show uses Legare's life and times as a starting point, and engages Legare's particular interests." The show runs August 18-28, 2009.

Opening reception • 6pm • August 22
Autzen Gallery • 724 SW Harrison Street • Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, rm 205

MP5's ambitious group exhibition, performance, and music series Manor of Art opens this weekend. Following in the tradition of Portland group experiences like the Modern Zoo, Manor of Art presents over 100 artists transforming the yet-to-be-renovated rooms of MP5's Studios building. The event lasts for 10 days, and also includes a series of music shows and experimental theater performances. More information and the full schedule is here.

Opening event • 6-9pm • August 14
Milepost 5 • 900 NE 81st Ave • 503.998.4878

Ryan Sarah Murphy

Also launching this weekend at MP5: TJ Norris' The Grid will open in the MP5³ exhibition space. The Grid features 27 international artists using small-scale works to explore the concept of the grid, "seen as a way to organize, divide and separate... both ideas and formalities." The show runs August 14 - October 17, 2009, and will have its opening reception next weekend.

Opening reception • 7-9pm • August 22
Milepost 5 • 900 NE 81st Ave • 503.998.4878

"Anti-sociologist" Patrick Rock is spending 6 days living in a bunker under Ditch Projects, using the time to "obsessively and painstakingly construct a physical manifesto of Oregonian identity designed to turn the viewer into salt at a single glance." The experiment will culminate in a "neo-pagan anti-potluck" this weekend, followed by a performance by PISS at 10.

Opening happening • 7-10pm • August 15
Ditch Projects • 303 S. 5th AVE Springfield, OR • info@ditchprojects.com

Bill Brown and Sabine Gruffat

Disjecta presents the kick-off show of Bill Brown and Sabine Gruffat's Time Machine tour. Using reading, slide projection, digital video, records, and real-time rendered audiovisual performance, they'll "set the dials and push the levers while guiding you through the fourth dimension!" Matt McCormick will open for Time Machine with his musical project "Very Stereo." $5.

Time performance • 8pm • August 15
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate • 503.286.9449

Edward Jeffrey Kriksciun

Nationale presents Edward Jeffrey Kriksciun's Brickthrough, a showcase of recent cut-outs that examine negatives & positives. Kriksciun "explores how this relates to our surrounding environment and affects our internal selves: what do we see/ what do we get out of it/ how can we make things better/ do we cut away the negative/ and if we do, are we left with just with the positive."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 14
Nationale • 2730 E Burnside • nationale.portland@gmail.com

Jeffry Mitchell, "Sphinx," 2008, selected to receive one of PAM's Contemporary Northwest Art Awards

PAM's monthly artist talk series will be led this week by Jeffry Mitchell. He'll lecture about a work from the collection that "delights, puzzles, or inspires him." Meet in the Hoffman lobby before the talk; join him and others in the lobby for happy hour after.

Artist talk • 6-8pm • August 13
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

From "Incompletely"

Gallery Homeland presents Incompletely, a group exhibition curated by Calvin Ross Carl. Calvin Ross Carl, Derek Franklin, Ashley Sloan, Josh Smith, Bailey Winters and Gary Wiseman "explore themes of incompleteness and insufficiency through formal, conceptual and emotional means."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 7
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th • info@galleryhomeland.org

(More.)

Michele Russo, "Untitled (blue and gray abstract)," 2002

The final installment in the NW Film Center's summer artist spotlight series is tomorrow. Three short films exploring local artists will be shown: Jon Stewart's A Painter's Vision: Michele Russo, Wendy Wells Jackson's Louis Bunce, Portland Painter, and Sarah Swanberg's Jack McLarty: Painting is My Language.

Film(s) screening • 7pm • August 6
NW Film Center • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium

Garry Winogrand, "Centennial Ball, Metropolitan Museum of New York, 1969" c.1975

Charles Hartman presents Faces: Vintage and Contemporary Photographic Portraits. Combining 19th and 20th century photographic masterworks and contemporary images, the exhibition explores "the fundamental tension in photography between point of view and composition." Artists include Ansel Adams, Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Harry Callahan, Danny Lyon, Sally Mann, Arnold Newman, Frederick Sommer, and Garry Winogrand, with Corey Arnold, Daido Moriyama, Mark Steinmetz and Issei Suda, and more.

Opening reception • 5:30-8:30pm • August 6
Charles Hartman Fine Art • 134 NW 8th • 503.287.3886

While you're down at Tractor, check out the Everett Station Lofts' annual summer Rooftop Exhibit chaos-a-thon: "Once a year the hub of Portland's young, hip, gritty art scene merges with its seasoned career artist neighbors to throw a colossal celebration of visual art, music, performance art, gourmet food with a contemporary flair, and cash bar." There is also a Scion funded event with DJ's etc at Igloo so "The Lofts" will definitely be the scene on Thursday.

Group opening party • 6-10pm • August 6
Everett Station Lofts • 328 NW Broadway

(More.)

Bethany Hays

Bethany Hays presents I Am a Containerful of Memories at PSU's Autzen Gallery: "These domestic landscapes present a record of human activity and speak to the importance of everyday routine... The viewer is asked to consider the fictional nature of memory, which like the bronzing of baby shoes, distorts experience in an attempt to preserve it." Exhibition runs August 3 - 14, 2009.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 8
Autzen Gallery • 724 SW Harrison Street • Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, rm 205

Vanessa Calvert

Vanessa Calvert presents A Space of Flows at PSU's MK Gallery. Calvert "explores the construct of cyberspace by creating an interactive lounge where space disconnects from place and begins to operate outside linear progressions." Exhibition runs August 3 - 14, 2009.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 8
MK Gallery • 2000 SW 5th Avenue • Art Building, 2nd floor rm 210

Amy Stein, "Struggle"

Amy Stein is giving an artist talk and book signing this weekend in conjunction with her Domesticated show at Blue Sky (PORT review here).

Lecture & book signing • 3pm • August 1
Blue Sky Gallery • 122 NW 8th • 503.225.0210

Michelle Ramin

FalseFront presents Michelle Ramin's Need It/Got It. The project explores the contemporary phenomenon of collecting and trading friends: "As social networking sites expand daily, this interactive exhibit physically invites visitors to find their 'best friends,' place them on the show postcard and trade the cards during the opening reception... Participants are welcome to drop off their cards throughout the run of the show (through August 23), all of which will be added to the exhibit." Grab a postcard from the website here.

Opening reception • 6-10pm • July 30
FalseFront Studio • 4518 NE 32nd • 503.781.4609

Celebrating their one-year anniversary, Appendix presents Geofront, a multi-site project featuring 15 artists working in light, sound, soil, structure and movement. Maps to the six installation sites are available at Appendix.

Opening reception • 6-10pm • July 30
Appendix Project Space • South alley b/w 26th & 27th on Alberta

Robert Rauschenberg, "Patrician Barnacle," 1981, exhibited in "Marking Portland"

As part of the ongoing Marking Portland exhibition, PAM is having a tattoo expo this weekend. "Skinvisible" is a "one-day celebration of the art of tattoo through fashion, music, performance, multimedia, and tributes to Portland's most accomplished tattoo artists." A very high-priced 3-Ring Floor Show is happening at 3pm and 7pm.

Museum expo • 12-9pm • July 25
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Studio Gorm

The first of the Museum of Contemporary Craft's Call + Response conversations is happening this weekend. Product design team Studio Gorm (University of Oregon) and art history professor Robert Slifkin (Reed College) will discuss their interactions leading up to the exhibition and Slifkin's new essay, Studio Gorm's Anxious Utopianism.

Craft lecture • 1pm • July 25
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Disjecta presents Egocentric, an exhibition by PNCA's first group of MFA students (class of 2010): "We struggle in solidarity, yet create work which reflects our distinct voices. Superseding expectations at every juncture, we are your art destiny."

Opening reception • 6-10pm • July 23
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate • 503.286.9449

Alice Channer

Pied-à-terre presents Alice Channer's I Cannot Tell The Difference Between One Thing And Another. Open Saturdays 12-3pm.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • July 23
Pied-à-terre • 904 SE 20th Ave Apartment 5 • info@pied-terre.com

Lots going on at the U of O's White Stag Block this week. On Wednesday they're featuring Building a Collaborative City, a panel discussion about working across disciplinary boundaries to "make Portland great." Panelists include artist, dancer, and organizer Linda K. Johnson; designer, architect and developer Kevin Cavenaugh; and author, editor, and publisher Randy Gragg.

Panel discussion • 6pm • July 22
White Stag Block • 70 NW Couch

Michael Salter, "if you don't buy it from us it's not our problem"

On Thursday they're featuring Beautiful Soup: An Assessment of Current Visual Culture. The talk is presented by South Waterfront artist-in-residence Michael Salter, "an obsessive observer of contemporary visual culture, where graphics and corporate identities, signage and symbols, are used to communicate the culture of commerce."

Artist lecture • 6pm • July 23
White Stag Block • 70 NW Couch

Joseph Park, "still life #2," oil on panel

The Portland Art Museum's next APEX installation opens tomorrow. It features recent work by Joseph Park: "Inspired by film noir and animation in his early work, Seattle-based artist Joseph Park's recent paintings comprise a complex visual structure built upon reflections and foreboding narrative situations from a range of photographic sources."

Exhibition • July 18 - November 15, 2009
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Ongoing at the Portland building: Nickolus Meisel presents Lumberjack Azeltine Valentine, a mixed media installation.

Exhibition • July 10 - August 7, 2009
Portland Building • 1120 SW 5th

The University of Oregon presents Free Culture: Creating Copyright and Copyrighting Creation, a "psychedelic learning environment." Attorney and U of O alum Peter Shaver will join the members of Portland's electropop trio YACHT to talk about the current state of copyright law and its impact on creative work. They'll draw the audience into a creative re-authoring of copyright law in real time.

Interactive lecture • 6:30pm • July 16
White Stag Building • 70 NW Couch

George Johanson, with "Great Port City"

The Northwest Film Center presents In the Studio, a series of three short films produced by PCC documenting three former PNCA professors, all "established Northwest masters." The films feature Eunice Parsons, Harry Widman, and George Johanson.

Film screening • 7pm • July 16
Northwest Film Center • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium

Also happening Thursday: The NWFC is hosting Art Spark at the Hotel deLuxe. Andy Blubaugh, filmmaker and instructor will set-up and film a scene.

Art chat • 5-7pm • July 16
Art Spark at Hotel deLuxe • 729 SW 15th

The Northwest Film Center is showing a retrospective of the films of art historian, photojournalist, and filmmaker Agnès Varda, who writes: "In my films, I always wanted to make people see deeply. I don't want to show things, but to give people the desire to see." The first film, Cléo From 5 to 7 is showing this Friday and Saturday. The retrospective runs through August 9 - details and full schedule here.

Photo of "Wildlife" by Karolina Sobecka, 2007 by Frank Pichel

PNCA presents Boundary Crossings: An Institute in Contemporary Animated Arts from July 13 - 24, 2009. "With the advent of digital technologies, the appearance of hybrid moving images has emerged as the norm, affecting boundaries between live action, animation, image processing, and compositing as porous as the platforms of display that host them. Through re-defining animation and the manipulated image, animated art forms are being pushed beyond the movies to permeate our cultural landscape." The Institute is a series of private workshops and public lectures and screenings featuring instructors from the PNCA Intermedia department. It will begin with a public opening in PNCA's Feldman gallery of animated installation work by Jessica Mein, Daniela Repas (with Todd Tawd and Thornton C. Wilson), and Marina Zurkow. More details on the Institute here.

Public opening reception • 6-8pm • July 13
Pacific Northwest College of the Arts • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

Terry Toedtemeier

Worksound is hosting Portraits, curated by Mark Woolley. The show is dedicated to the life and work of Terry Toedtemeier, a gifted photographer who for over 20 years lovingly built the photographic collection at the Portland Art Museum. Work by Toedtemeier was selected in consultation with his widow Prudence Roberts and local art dealer Jane Beebee. The exhibition also features photography by 17 talented artists, both established and emerging, from Portland and Los Angeles: Holly Andres, Tim Gunther, Stewart Harvey, Wei Hsueh, Jim Leisy, Jacob Pander, Ann Ploeger, Mason Poole, Christopher Rauschenberg, Alicia J. Rose, Eric Sellers, Stephen Scott Smith, Aaron Thomas, Lorenzo Triburgo, Gus van Sant, and Carol Yarrow.

Opening reception • 7-11pm • July 10
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

(More: Gallery Homeland, 12x16, Ditch Projects, and Portland goes to Astoria.)

Nomad Museum of Body Adornment

Presumably in conjunction with Marking Portland, PAM's next installment of the artist talk series features Blake Perlingieri, local piercing artist and owner of the Nomad Museum of Body Art. As usual, the artist will lead a discussion on a work of art in the collection that "delights, puzzles, or inspires him." Meet in the Hoffman Lobby.

Artist lecture • 6-8pm • July 9
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Cyrus Smith

Cyrus Smith presents In Search of the Miraculous at PSU's Autzen Gallery. The show "is in pursuit of the epic moment in art and culture. Cyrus hopes that you will be able to make it to his exhibition, but if not, he suggests you watch the 1988 all star slam-dunk competition on YouTube, which could serve as a suitable substitute." July 6 - 17.

Artist reception • 6-9pm • July 11
Autzen Gallery • 724 SW Harrison Street • Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, rm 205

Ty Ennis

NAAU presents the next installation in the Couture series: Ty Ennis' You'll Love It Here: The Lilac City Track Murders '96-'98, a multimedia installation of drawing, photography, and sculpture. Ennis' "preparation for this exhibit has involved one of the most thorough examinations to date of Spokane's most infamous serial killer, Robert Lee Yates. His nearly 2 year endeavor documenting murder sites, scouring of all available literature and fleshing out the lives effected during this capsule of time in Spokane, demonstrate a type of artistic discovery that questions the role art can play in the historical record. By lending a sympathetic and informed eye to the memory of events more so remembered through hard-line fact alone, Ty builds a revisionist history using unique visual and written documents."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • July 3
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny • 503.231.8294

Jennifer Locke presents CRISIS 40, a performance at Rocksbox. The exhibition will remain up through August 2.

Opening performance • 9pm • July 4
Rocksbox Fine Art • 6540 N Interstate • 503.516.4777

Michael Brophy, "Start"

Michael Brophy presents Silence, an exhibition of recent paintings at Laura Russo.

Opening reception • 5-8pm • July 2
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st • 503.226.2754

(More.)

From Jeremiah Zagar's "In a Dream"

This weekend, the Northwest Film Center presents the first of their summer artist spotlights. They're screening In a Dream, a film directed by Jeremiah Zagar about his father, artist Isaiah Zagar. They'll be showing it twice on Saturday and once on Sunday.

Film screening • July 27 & 28
NW Film Center • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium

Varnithorn Christopher

Varnithorn Christopher presents Free Space at PSU's MK Gallery. The project is "is a non-curated gallery experiment by based on the belief that everyone is an artist. From Monday, June 29, 2009 to Thursday, July 9, 2009, Christopher invites anyone to come and exhibit their artwork at the MK gallery." A complete catalog will be created at the end of the exhibition.

Exhibition • M-F, 9am-5pm • June 29 - July 9
MK Gallery • 2000 SW 5th Avenue • Art Building, 2nd floor rm 210

Floating World Comics presents the 3rd annual animation festival at the Holocene, featuring "mind melting video art and psychedelic animation from the secret world of motionography." Visit their website for more info on the 3+ hour line up of Flaspar, Deelay Ceelay, Show Cave Best of Videocation and more.

Animation festival • 8pm • June 25
Holocene • 1001 SE Morrison

The ever-changing art at Store for a Month

The final week of John Brodie's Store for a Month is kicking off with a lecture by Philippe Le Blanc. "The Strategy of Sur-Distinction: building a cathedral inside the megastore" is loosely based on Le Blanc's work for sale at The Store, I Win, You Lose: The art of Art in capitalist culture. If you haven't made it down to the store yet, don't miss your chance - its last days are Wednesday, June 24 through Sunday, June 28, 12-7pm.

Artist lecture • 7pm • June 24
Store for a Month • 1216 SE Division • 503.235.8029

Elizabeth McClellan

Appendix presents Sediment, a collection of indoor/outdoor drawing environments by Elizabeth McClellan. Due to size and showing constraints, Outdoor works will be up through June 27th.

Opening reception • 6-10pm • June 25
Appendix Project Space • South alley b/w 26th & 27th on Alberta

Justin Gorman

Justin Gorman's ThirtyThousandSecons opens this weekend in Milepost 5's MP5³. "This photo documentation project derived from an increasing interest in pedestrian patterns on eight-second avenue and the responsibility of local government to stop or control these patterns..." Work by Anthony Conrad, Kalina Torino, Jessica Weitzel, and Luke Heinrich will also be opening in the Hallways spaces.

Opening reception • 7-9pm • June 20
Milepost 5 • 900 NE 81st • 503.998.4878

Gorm Studio

MoCC presents Call + Response: "Drawing on the musical concept of 'call and response,' this exhibition provides a platform for artists and art historians to engage with each with other in dynamic conversation. This multi-layered exhibition features works by eight pairs of art and art history faculty members from colleges and universities who have taught in Oregon for roughly ten years or less. Through multimedia content, contextual writing, the presentation of studio works and public programs, this project celebrates and provokes the recent influx of ideas [on craft] brought to Oregon by these faculty members..."

Exhibition • June 18 - October 31, 2009
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Continuing the tradition of slightly fluffy summer group fun, Fourteen30 presents Summer Show, featuring Mike Bray, David Corbett, Hamlett Dobbins, Alex Felton, Corey Lunn, Jenene Nagy, Devon Oder, Nicholas Pittman, Patrick Rock, Jennifer Shimatsu, and Nick Van Woert.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • June 19
Fourteen30 Contemporary • 1430 SE 3rd • 503.236.1430

This month's ArtSpark is presented by local art collective Nowhere at Rontom's. The theme is Icebreaker: "an easy way to meet new people involved with Portland arts."

Art social • 5-7pm • June 18
ArtSpark at Rontom's • 600 E Burnside

PSU & Disjecta present It's Possible, an exhibition by graduating students in the MFA in Contemporary Art Practice program at PSU. Exhibiting artists include Katy Asher, Steve Baggs, Vanessa Calvert, Varinthorn Christopher, Damien Gilley, Bethany Hays, Avalon Kalin, Laurel Kurtz, Sandy Sampson, Rebecca Shelly, Cyrus Smith, and Eric Steen.

Opening reception • 4-8pm • June 14
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate • 503.286.9449

Amar Kanwar, from "A Season Outside"

The Cinema Project is screening a series of films by New Delhi-based filmmaker Amar Kanwar. His films "exist at the crossroads of documentary, visual poetry and philosophical meditation; linking legends and ritual objects to new symbols and public events, which trigger emotional and intellectual disturbances in the viewer." The first night features two mid-length films, the second night features several shorts.

Film screening 1 • 7:30pm • June 17
Film screening 2 • 7:30pm • June 18
Cinema Project • 11 NW 13th AVE 4th Floor • 503.232.8269

Kevin Yates

Ditch Projects presents Kevin Yates' Alluvium. Yates "uses photorealistic miniature sculptures to intricately render a delicate disaster, creating a destroyed suburban landscape and the solemn reflections of the flood that ruined it."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • June 13
Ditch Projects • 190 S. 5th St. Springfield, OR • info@ditchprojects.com

Portland Art Museum

Editor-in-chief of Portland Spaces Magazine Randy Gragg is lecturing at PAM for the next installment of the Artist Talk series. He'll be discussing the museum's main building as a work of art, exploring the collaboration between architect Pietro Belluschi, Museum Curator Anna Belle Crocker, and Harry Frederick Wentz, a teacher at the Museum Art School, which brought the building to fruition in 1932. The talk meets at 6pm in the Hoffman Lobby.

Artist lecture • 6-8pm • June 11
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Aloïs Godinat, "Déchirure (Tear)," 2007

Swiss-born artist Aloïs Godinat is exhibiting at Pied-à-terre from June 11 - July 2, 2009.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • June 11
Pied-à-terre • 904 SE 20th Ave Apt 5 • info@pied-terre.com

M.C. Escher, "Relativity," 1953

Virtual Worlds: M.C. Escher & Paradox is opening tomorrow at PAM. "Printmaker Maurits Cornelis Escher (Dutch, 1898-1972) created visual puzzles that astonish with their mathematical rigor and their patent absurdity. This exhibition traces the development of the artist's work from his early stylized depictions of landscape and architecture to his later use of repeated geometric patterns..."

Exhibition • June 6 - September 13, 2009
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Louis Bunce, "Harold Street #4," 1974

Also opening at PAM tomorrow: PNCA at 100, a retrospective of the the artist-faculty, students, and alumni of PNCA, formerly the Museum Art School, since 1909. "Ranging from portraiture and regional landscapes to modernist abstraction and postpainterly idioms, the artists of the school introduced ideas from the larger world of art to Portland and made them part of the vocabulary of Northwest art."

Exhibition • June 6 - September 13, 2009
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Attush ceremonial robe, Ainu textile, photo courtesy of Sanae Ogawa

Parallel Worlds is opening tomorrow in the pavilion at the Japanese Garden. Held in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Portland-Sapporo Sister City Association, the exhibition features traditional ceremonial robes created by Ainu artists from Hokkaido and Native American artists of the Pacific Northwest.

Exhibition • June 6 - 28, 2009
Japanese Garden • 611 SW Kingston Avenue • 503.223.1321

John Brodie's much-anticipated Store for a Month is having its opening party for First Friday. This art project and temporary retail storefront is open from June 3 - 28, 2009, Wed-Sun, 12-7pm. Store for a Month features work by over 60 local artists made specifically for the store, and occasional fresh-baked pie.

Opening party • 6-10pm • June 5
Store for a Month • 1216 SE Division • 503.235.8029

(More.)

D.E. May, "Marker"

D.E. May presents Black Page, new drawings at PDX Contemporary. All of the work is presented in thick, plastic archival document holders, which offer "a surprising tactile quality and a screen-like presentation: x-ray, film, radar." May was a finalist in PAM's 2008 CNAA's.

Opening reception • 5-8pm • June 4
PDX Contemporary • 925 NW Flanders • 503.222.0063

(More.)

Social practice artist Laurel Kurtz has collaborated with local unofficial street vendor Bill Harrelson to help realize his dream of a backscratcher museum. "Harrelson and Kurtz will debut the curbside museum in the gallery setting in order to highlight their collaboration and share Harrelson's collection with others. Also on display are nine drawings of Harrelson's 'imaginary' backscratchers that have been put onto paper by the artists Lori Gilbert, Mark Jondahl, Walter Lee, Ralph Pugay, Ben Rosenberg, Sandy Sampson, Amy Steel, Vicki Lynn Wilson and Jason Zimmerman." The exhibition runs at PSU's MK Gallery June 1 - 12.

Closing reception • 6-9pm • June 12
MK Gallery • 2000 SW 5th Avenue • Art Building, 2nd floor rm 210

Micki Skudlarczyk, "Well Finished," installation view

Micki Skudlarczyk's Well Finished is currently on view at Launch Pad. During her artist residency in Mexico in 2008, Skudlarczyk "developed a relationship with the small slaughter community in & around the village of Cholul, where she experienced the process of animal slaughter from start to finish first hand. Well Finished investigates the artist's philosophical & emotional struggle between her reverence for the animals that we eat & her dismay at the pain & fear they sometimes experience at the moment of death." She'll be giving an artist talk and slide lecture on the experience and installation this weekend on the final day of the show.

Artist lecture • 1pm • May 31
Launch Pad Gallery • 534 SE Oak St. • 971.227.0072

Joshua Pavlacky

Joshua Pavlacky presents Towards the Scrambled Egg, "an installation exploring landscape and spatial manipulation" at Appendix Project Space.

Opening reception • 8pm-12am • May 28
Appendix Project Space • South alley b/w 26th & 27th on NE Alberta

The ZooBombers' Holy Pyle minibike sculpture has found a permanent home. Designed in conjunction with local artists Brian Borello and Vanessa Renwick, the Pyle has been relocated to 13th & W Burnside. The unveiling party this weekend starts at the Holy Rack at 10th & SW Oak at 4pm and will parade to the new location around 5.

Public art party • 4pm • May 29
ZooBombers • Downtown

Beth Van Hoesen, "Sally," 1979

California artist Joseph Goldyne is lecturing this week on northern California printmaking and its relationship to Beth Van Hoesen's prints, on view at PAM through August 16, 2009.

Arts lecture • 6-7:30pm • May 28
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Anna Karina, 1966

The NW Film Center presents a special screening of Jean-Luc Godard's Made in USA, his final collaboration with Anna Karina. "Boldly cartoonish, from its color schemes to its quotation-marked characters to its treatment of screen violence, Made in USA is dedicated to American crime movies (specifically those of Sam Fuller and Nicolas Ray), and is a politically fueled deconstruction of the genre." There will be two screenings every day this weekend.

Film screenings • May 22 - 24, 2009
NW Film Center • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium

Katy Asher presents Box Set: The M.O.S.T. Remastered at PSU's Autzen Gallery. For the show, "Asher reconfigures the gallery space into a museum displaying the complexities and rewards of working as part of a collaborative arts group." Box Set creates an "interpretive archive space" exploring the activities of the former M.O.S.T. art/social group. The show runs May 18 - May 29, 2009.

Closing reception • 6-9pm • May 29
Autzen Gallery • 724 SW Harrison Street • Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, rm 205

Sandy Sampson presents Parallel Conversations at PSU's MK Gallery. The show "is not so much an exhibit as it is a hub of activity. Sampson will introduce you to some people she has met and learned from. The events scheduled are all participatory, she invites you to engage with each other and the neighborhood around the gallery, and bring what you know to share with others." It runs from May 18 - May 29, 2009.

Closing reception • 6-9pm • May 29
MK Gallery • 2000 SW 5th Avenue • Art Building, 2nd floor rm 210

Mierle Laderman Ukeles

Mierle Laderman Ukeles is giving the final 08-09 PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture next week. Ukeles is a New York based artist "known for her feminist and service oriented artwork. In 1969 she wrote a manifesto entitled Maintenance Art Proposal for an Exhibition, challenging the domestic role of women and proclaiming herself a 'maintenance artist'."

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • May 18
PSU • 1914 SW Park Ave • Shattuck Hall Rm 212 at Broadway & Hall

Matthew Green presents Hunks and Punks at Rocksbox, a "humorous exploration into the myths, constructs, and visual tropes surrounding contemporary male identity."

Opening reception • 7-11pm • May 16
Rocksbox • 6540 N Interstate Ave • 503.516.4777

Sanford Biggers, "Blossom," installation view

Sanford Biggers' installation Blossom goes on view at PAM this weekend. Exploring themes of identity and history, Blossom is a "mixed media work incorporating a massive tree, found piano, and Biggers' compositional reworking of Billie Holiday's 1939 jazz anthem Strange Fruit, a harrowing portrayal of lynching in the American South." Keep an eye on PORT for a fantastic interview with the artist.

Exhibition • May 16 - August 30, 2009
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Thelma Johnson Streat, "Red Dots, Flying Baby, and Barking Dog," 1945

Art on Alberta's 10th annual Art Hop is happening this weekend. They're featuring the work of Thelma Johnson Streat (1911-1959), an internationally acclaimed artist from Portland and the first black woman to have her work exhibited at MOMA. 50 of her paintings will be on view at venues throughout Alberta. The Art Hop's theme this year is "Coming Home," and there will be a wide variety of art exhibitions, street performers, vendors, music, dance, and theater.

Street fair • 11am-6pm • May 16
Art on Alberta • 17 blocks of NE Alberta

Pat Boas, "Reading & Writing #4 (Mildred's Hand)," installation view

Local artist and writer Pat Boas is speaking this week for PAM's artist talk series. She'll discuss a work in the museum that "delights, puzzles, or inspires her." The talk departs from the Hoffman lobby, and returns after for conversation and happy hour.

Artist lecture • 6-8pm • May 14
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

901 Jefferson, ongoing project by Pyatok Architects

Architect Michael Pyatok is speaking this week at the UofO on The U.S. Housing Crisis: The Role of Design. He'll speak in Portland and in Eugene.

Architect lecture • 6:30-7:30pm • May 13
White Stag Block • 70 NW Couch St. • Event Room

Gerhardt Knodel

Artist Gerhardt Knodel is lecturing on Examining Fiber and Material Studies in Contemporary Art and Culture this week at OCAC. Inspired by the keynote address he gave at the 2008 International Fiber Symposium, Knodel's talk explores the subject of "materiality": the meaning of material-based experiences in contemporary life.

Artist lecture • 6pm • May 15
Oregon College of Art & Craft • 8825 SW Barnes Rd. • Catlin Gabel Cabell Center Auditorium

Matt Bors

Art Beat Week 2009 at PCC starts Monday. Highlights include lectures by editorial cartoonist Matt Bors (May 11), photography critic Chas Bowie (May 12), and local artist Storm Tharp (May 14). Check out the schedule of events for more info.

Frances Stark

LA-based artist Frances Stark is speaking on Monday for PMMNLS. She works in drawing, collage, sculpture, and textual commentary.

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • May 11
PSU • 1914 SW Park Ave • Shattuck Hall Rm 212 at Broadway & Hall

From Approx L

Worksound presents Approx L, a "cumulative project involving performance, curation, installation, sound and video," spearheaded by Bethany Ides. "Aiding in the project are approximately 15 participants from across the US and Canada all born with (some variant spelling of) the name, plus a coterie of non-natural L[indsay]s who have adopted transitional monikers for the project."

Opening reception • 7-11pm • May 8
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

At Pied-á-terre

Ongoing at Pied-á-terre: New York-based artist and writer Ben Carlton Turner presents The Sound of 500 Speer 9 mm. Luger Shells Dropped from a Height of 119 Inches at 550 West 21st Street New York, NY, 10011, on April 8th, 2009, 10:37 p.m. Gallery hours are Saturdays, 12-3pm. Update: Due to popular demand, Pied-á-terre will hold a reception for the show on May 14.

Exhibition • May 2 - 23, 2009
Reception • May 14 • 6-8pm
Pied-á-terre • 904 SE 20th Ave Apt 5 • info@pied-terre.com

Dinh Q. Lê, "I am Large. I Contain Multitudes (1)"

Dinh Q. Lê is exhibiting a new body of work at Elizabeth Leach this month. Signs and Signals from the Periphery utilizes sculpture and photography to "address a system of signs that have developed in Vietnam which signal the availability of certain goods and services."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • May 7
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th • 503.224.0521

(More.)

Bruce Conner

Cinema Project, NW Film Center, and the PDX Film Fest are co-sponsoring a screening Bruce Conner's film works. In Memorium is a two part exhibition of fourteen short films by Conner, "a pioneer in the art of sculptural assemblage and found footage collage film making." A list of films and more background about Conner can be found on the Cinema Project website.

Screening Night 1 • 7pm • May 5
NW Film Center • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium
Screening Night 2 • 7:30pm • May 6
Clinton Street Theater • 2522 SE Clinton

From "Bum Equipment" curated by Cartune Xprez

The second night of the Bruce Conner screenings marks opening night of PDX Film Fest 2009. Video installations will be at Gallery Homeland from May 6 - 24, featuring Bum Equipment, a 3-part video installation curated by Cartune Xprez showcasing work from over 20 international artists. Most other screenings will be at the Clinton Street Theater; learn more about the schedule and events here. Opening night performances at Gallery Homeland start at 9pm.

PDX Film Fest opening part • 7pm-midnight • May 6
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th

Paul Gauguin, "Manao tupapau (The Spirit of the Dead Keep Watch)," 1892

Richard Brettell, chair of art and aesthetics at the University of Texas at Dallas, is lecturing this weekend at PAM. His lecture, Paul Gauguin's Pilgrimmage: Lima, Paris, Pont Aven, and Papeete, explores the life and career of French Impressionist Paul Gauguin.

Art historian lecture • 2-3pm • May 3
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

MIT professor Anne Whiston Sprin is lecturing next week for UofO's Architecture & Allied Arts department at the White Stag building. In Daring to Look: Dorothea Lange's Photographs and Reports from the Field, Sprin documents hundreds of Lange's photos and the descriptions she wrote of them.

Historian lecture • 5:30pm • May 6
White Stag Building • 70 NW Couch

Mark Dion

Mark Dion is lecturing next week for PMMNLS: "Appropriating archaeological and other scientific methods of collecting, ordering, and exhibiting objects, Dion's often fantastical curiosity cabinets, modeled on Wunderkabinetts of the 16th Century, exalt atypical orderings of objects and specimens."

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • May 4
PSU • 1914 SW Park Ave • Shattuck Hall Rm 212 at Broadway & Hall

Stephen Slappe, from "Shelter in Place"

NAAU presents the next installation of Couture: Stephen Slappe's Shelter in Place, a 3-channel video installation that is "the culmination of five years of research... Freely combining fiction and nonfiction, this three-channel video installation focuses on two teenagers in West Virginia in the mid-1980s. The characters exist in a media environment that imposes and magnifies their worst fears. Yet even in such a hopeless world, they discover a miraculous way to share subcultural influences. While referencing a specific time and place, Shelter in Place presents a thematically timeless allegory of connectivity and cultural exchange."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • May 1
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny • 503.231.8294

(More!)

Lincoln Barbour, "Loading Dock"

Office PDX presents My West Coast. A group of photographers were asked to take a series of images that define the West coast with Polaroid Land Cameras. Five Polaroids will be showcased from each of the following photographers: Alicia Rose, Barbara Kinney, Chris Walla, Jan Sonnenmair, Jeff Selis, Jon Jensen, Lincoln Barbour, and Tony Secolo.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • April 29
Office PDX • 2204 NE Alberta • 888.355.7467

Maggie Casey, "Stairs"

Fiber artist Maggie Casey presents a new site-specific installation at Appendix. Casey explores "a space-based narrative in 3-dimensional drawing."

Opening reception • 6-11pm • April 30
Open critique & discussion • 7pm • May 6
Appendix Project Space • South alley b/w 26 & 27th on NE Alberta

Basil Childers, image of the Museum of Contemporary Craft

Part 5 of 5 of the PNCA+MoCC community conversations regarding PNCA's acquisition of the Museum of Contemporary Craft is happening this week. Panelists include Victoria Frey (executive director of PICA), Linda K. Johnson (founder of South Waterfront Artist in Residence program), Elizabeth Leach (owner of Elizabeth Leach Gallery), and Tom Manley (PNCA president).

Panel discussion • 6:30pm • April 30
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson

Local filmmakers Joanna Priestley and Joan Gratz are screening Words Worth a Thousand Pictures: Contemporary Animation About Language this Thursday. Priestly's Missed Aches and Gratz's Puffer Girl will be premiered in addition to five award-winning international films on the use of language and text in animation.

Film screening • 7:30pm • April 30 • $9
Hollywood Theater • 4122 NE Sandy

MP5 is having their bi-monthly opening this weekend. In MP5³ they're featuring Jenevieve Tatiana's Parlor Games: "Those in play here are between modernism and marginality: the endgames of the monochrome and the game theory of social networks, a-chronologically articulated through found web 2.0 information and reshuffled salon-style as sculptural elements." In the hallways there will be installations by Gary Wiseman and Meredith Andrews, Christine Bailey Claringbold, and John Graeter.

Opening reception • 7-9pm • April 26
Milepost 5 • 900 NE 81st Ave • 503.998.4878

Doug Blandy

Doug Blandy, director of the institute for community arts studies at the University of Oregon, is speaking this Monday for PMMNLS. He'll address community engagement, research, and education in arts institutions.

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • April 27
PSU • 1914 SW Park Ave • Shattuck Hall Rm 212 at Broadway & Hall

Basil Childers, image of the Museum of Contemporary Craft

Part 4 of 5 of the PNCA+MoCC community conversations regarding PNCA's acquisition of the Museum of Contemporary Craft is happening tonight. Panelists include Nan Curtis (PNCA faculty), Stephanie Snyder (Cooley director & curator), Linda Tesner (Hoffman director & curator), and Namita Gupta Wiggers (MoCC curator).

Panel discussion • 6:30pm • April 23
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis

*Update: Mayor Adams reverses his Coliseum position and will take another week to explore alternative sites for minor league baseball stadium. Still the basic issue will focus on the details of this "Entertainment District". Will is be a disneylandish-faux-downtown model (ugggh) or something more civic and rewarding?

Brian Libby over at Portland Architecture has been all over the ridiculous plan to demolish the Memorial Coliseum, one of the very few truly excellent mid-century modern buildings in Portland. He even interviewed one of the original SOM architects behind it.

Portland reflected in the Coliseum's curtain wall of glass

The question is, does Portland want to become known for tearing down excellent buildings for the sake of minor league sports teams? Or instead, is this an opportunity to find a better use for a civic jewel that we haven't made full use of recently? Why not turn this civic space into something even more civic?

But First, Let's Rally:

Put on by Mr. Libby, architect Stuart Emmons and AiA Portland, PORT readers have "been cordially invited to a rally opposing the demolition of Memorial Coliseum, one of the great landmarks of Portland Architecture and one of America's most architecturally significant arenas ever constructed - a mid-century modern gem."

When & Where: Tuesday, April 21 at 6PM at the American Institute of Architects' Center for Architecture, at 403 NW 11th Avenue

...(more)

Gustave Klimt, "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I," 1907

As part of the ongoing Jewish film festival, the NW Film Center is featuring Stealing Klimt tomorrow night. This documentary recounts the decades-long struggle of Austrian-born Maria Altmann to recover five Gustave Klimt paintings stolen from her family by the Nazis in 1938, and hanging in the Austrian National Gallery since 1945.

Film screening • 7pm • April 21
NW Film Center • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium

Abelardo Morell, "Camera Obscura: View of Central Park Looking North-Summer"

Photographer Abelardo Morell is speaking at PAM next week for Photolucida. "A professor of photography at the Massachusetts College of Art, Morell is known for his images of exterior scenes transposed onto quiet interior settings through the use of the camera obscura."

Artist lecture • 7-8pm • April 24
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Neighborhood Public Radio (NPR) is lecturing on Monday for PMMNLS. They're a guerrilla radio group who critique the more famous NPR through community-based, noncommercial programming broadcast streaming on the Internet or through low-power portable FM transmitters.

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • April 20
PSU • 1914 SW Park Ave • Shattuck Hall Rm 212 at Broadway & Hall

Joan Son, "Origami"

The Japanese Garden is featuring Paper Arts in the Pavilion. "Paper plays an important part of many Japanese celebrations," and the use of paper in fine arts and craft has a storied cultural history. An array of Japanese paper styles by local artists will be displayed during the exhibition.

Paper arts • April 18 - 26
Japanese Garden • 611 SW Kingston Avenue • 503.223.1321

Jim Lomamasson's "Exit Wounds" installed at NAAU

Jim Lommasson's Exit Wounds, formerly at NAAU, is currently installed at PCC Rock Creek's Helzer Gallery. In conjunction with the exhibition there will be a panel discussion with Iraq and Afghanistan vets this afternoon, followed by a gallery reception.

Panel discussion • 3-4:15pm • April 16
Helzer Gallery • 17705 NW Springville Rd. • Building 3

Still from the Ottawa Animation Festival

The NW Film Center presents the best of the 2008 Ottawa International Animation Festival. The "Best of Ottawa" program presents festival award winners, audience favorites, and other entries in a variety of genres and forms. Screenings of these short segments run from April 17 through April 25. You can view the full schedule here.

Metro Arts is leading this month's ArtSpark with a performance and discourse on arts integration for youth.

Community conversation • 5-7pm • April 16
Armory Café • Portland Center Stage • 128 NW 11th

Eric Steen presents Building in the Post Apocalypse at PSU's MK Gallery: "An exhibition that documents and explores possible options of community, collaboration, and education through socially engaged practices." In addition to the artist reception, the show features several events, including a "Public Social University" and screening of a series of sci-fi films, The Man Who Could Work Miracles and Panic in the Year Zero & The Man From Earth. The full list of events can be found here.

Film screening • 10pm • April 13
Public Social University • 3-6pm • April 16
Artist reception • 6-9pm • April 16
Film screening • 9pm • April 16
MK Gallery 2000 SW 5th Avenue • Art Building, 2nd floor rm 210

Tim Dalbow, "Hood"

The Linfield Gallery presents Volcanoes, new paintings by Tim Dalbow. He writes: "A painting is an attempt at a solution. The blank canvas is a proposed problem and the process of making a painting is a hypothesis. Painting is not an exact science but I do believe it is a science. Each painting is an excuse to ask the question again."

Exhibition • April 15 - May 13, 2009
Linfield Gallery • 900 SE Baker St., McMinnville • Miller Fine Art Center

Jessica Skloven, 2008 winner

Newspace is seeking submissions for their 5th annual juried exhibition, which will be on view in August 2009. All photographic themes and processes are accepted, but work must have been created within the past three years. Selected photographers will participate in the exhibition, and one will receive a solo show at Newspace and a $500 award. Submissions are due May 29. Details here.

(More opportunities: public art & gender identity. Larry Sultan for PMMNLS.)

Damien Gilley, "Air Math"

Damien Gilley presents Air Math at PSU's Autzen Gallery. In this exhibition, "Gilley visually reconfigures the urban environment to provide alternative viewing experiences that complicate rational space... The works question the reliability of vision through the presentation of illusionistic wall drawings, indeterminate landscapes, modular forms, and compositions that extend the parameters of 'flatness'." Gilley will be in attendance at the gallery on April 18 from 10am to 4pm.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • April 11
Autzen Gallery • 724 SW Harrison Street • Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, rm 205

Chen Qiulin, "The Garden No. 4"

China Urban opens this week at Reed's Cooley Gallery. This exhibition of contemporary Chinese art "explores the historical and contemporary Chinese city - as representation, model, catalyst, and socio-political construct." Before the reception begins, calligrapher Dr. Yang Jiyu will enact a public performance of the calligraphy of Hong Kong artist Tsang Tsou Choi (1921-2007) - the "King of Kowloon" - on the glass walls of the gallery. A full list of related lectures and events can be found here.

Opening reception • 7-9pm • April 9
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Library

(More: Michael Knutson lectures @ PAM, MoCC & PNCA continue their community conversations.)

Preston Wadley, "The Colonial Gaze"

Expanded Narrative: The Photographic Image in Mixed Media Constructions opens this week at Clark College's Archer Gallery. Featuring work by Theresa Batty, Ian van Coller, Heidi Kirkpatrick, Nathan Lucas, Amy Pruzan, Jacinda Russell, and Preston Wadley, Expanded Narrative explores the use of the photographic image within the constructed object.

Opening reception • 4-6pm • April 8
Archer Gallery • 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA • Penguin Union Building

Danielle Colen, "Untitled (panorama series)"

Pied-á-terre is featuring a pair of photographs by Danielle Colen. Interested in exploring a heightened rather than a transformed reality, Colen presents views through an anonymous office window, offering a meditation on the relationship between pictoral space, gallery space, and the outside world.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • April 5
Pied-á-terre • 904 SE 20th Apt. 5 • info@pied-terre.com

(More: SRO Video @ the Art Gym, PDX/LA collaboration @ MP5, Michael Rakowitz for PMMNLS.)

Matt King, "Tater"

Matt King's Science Diet is at Fourteen30 this month: "Seductive and sickening, King's recent sculptures aggressively assert their position as commodity while questioning the relationships between desire, comfort and the complicity that keeps the system in place. King reconstitutes the images and objects of a marketed culture in ways that reorient their latent meanings. His banal and pleasurable source materials - dollar store items, height indicator strips, drinking straws, and even cat food - feel both unexpected and significant."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • April 3
Fourteen30 Contemporary • 1430 SE 3rd • 503.236.1430

(More: Updated! Worksound.)

W.J.T. Mitchell

Scholar W.J.T. Mitchell is speaking this evening on The Future of the Image at PNCA. Mitchell, editor of the interdisciplinary journal Critical Inquiry, is associated with the emergent fields of visual culture and iconology. He is known for his work on "the relations of visual and verbal representations in the context of social and political issues."

Visual studies lecture • 6:30pm • April 1
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

(More speakers: Okwui Enwezor for FATE and Peter Kreider for China Urban.)

Terry Toedtemeier

In April, Blue Sky is featuring Early Work by Terry Toedtemeier. This body of work comes from around 1975, when he co-founded Blue Sky. In the midst of a "brief, intense investigation of the possibilities of infrared photography," Toedtemeier was still interested in capturing gestures and the human, or sometimes animal, figure. This subject distinguishes these images from his later work, when he turned primarily to landscape. Blue Sky will also be exhibiting shows by Alexis Pike and Andy Freeberg, as well as select images by Abelardo Morell, who is in town as keynote speaker for the upcoming Photolucida conference.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • April 2
Blue Sky Gallery • 122 NW 8th • 503.225.0210

(More.)

Michael Reinsch

Sponsored by the RACC, Michael Reinsch presents a temporary installation at the Portland Building that examines notions of labor. "The project will start with piles of materials and tools and will change and develop throughout the month as he explores his relationship to his art as work, the ways in which others think about work, how his job affects his art process, and how all of this is informed by current events. Reinsch states "My work is never done.'" Reinsch is launching the project with a full 8 hour shift today (March 30), and can be found working in the Portland Building from 8-10:30am Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays for the duration of the exhibition.

Installation • March 30 - April 24
Portland Building • 1120 SW 5th Avenue

Stephen Shore's poignant and jaw dropping photo taken outside "K Falls"

MoMA's Into The Sunset show charts the persistent role of photography as commentator on the West and Stephen Shore's photograph taken outside Klammath Falls is the poster child. It opens Sunday.

Ken Johnson's NYT's review discusses the trend but this is nothing new to Portlanders.

Last year Wild Beauty provided a similarly sardonic spectacle and video artist/filmmaker Matt McCormick made this very subject the core of his last solo show at Elizabeth Leach Gallery. Todd Johnson's interesting curatorial project at Gallery Homeland in 2008 also beat MoMA to the punch. I do think Wild Beauty answered Ken Johnson's longing for something that was so bleak. Luckilly the book is still available.

MK Guth, "Ties of Protection and Safe Keeping," final installation, NY Park Ave Armory

Local artist MK Guth, who works in video, sculpture and performative social exchange projects, is lecturing this week for PMMNLS. Guth's project Ties of Protection and Safe Keeping was included in the 2008 Whitney Biennial, and subsequently installed in the APEX gallery at PAM. Guth is also a founding member of the Red Shoe Delivery Service.

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • March 30
PSU • Shattuck Hall Annex Room 212 • Corner of SW Broadway & Hall

Mr. Shiro Nakane (left) & Dr. Makoto Suzuki

Renowned Japanese garden professionals Dr. Makoto Suzuki of Tokyo Agricultural University and Mr. Shiro Nakane of Nakane & Associates will lecture next Tuesday at the Japenese Garden. They will both present on the topic The Japanese Garden: Past, Present, and Future. Tickets are $10, space is limited, reservations can be made here.

Artisan expert lectures • 6-8pm • March 31
Japanese Garden • 611 SW Kingston Avenue • 503.223.1321

In case you missed White Noise or were there during the rock'n but impossible to see anything opening, here's your last chance to catch a nice warehouse show with a lot of energy and several standout pieces by Stephen Scott Smith, Damien Gilley (probably the most talked about MFA student in Portland) and the show's curator Jhordan Dahl (another must watch artist/curator combo, she's a got a great deal of verve).

White Noise closing reception • 7-11 PM • March 26
Worksound • 820 SE Alder

Herb and Dorothy Vogel

Megumi Sasaki's Herb and Dorothy is airing this weekend. The film documents the story of Herb and Dorothy Vogel, who came from modest means but still managed to put together "one of the largest and most important private collections of minimalist and conceptual art in the world... In an age of the commodification of art by wealthy 'investors,' Herb and Dorothy offer a rare and uplifting example of people for whom art is about love, not profit." Note PORT first broke the story that the Vogel's had given 50 works of art to the Portland Art Museum here.

First screening • 2pm • March 28
Second screening • 4:30pm • March 29
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park

Alice Neel, "Andy Warhol," 1970

The final installment of the NW Film Center's 2009 art film series screens next weekend. Alice Neel, Andrew Neel's documentary about his grandmother, explores the life of the portrait painter who was a "self-described collector of souls." She captured an amazing range of cultural figures, including Andy Warhol, Bella Abzug, Allen Ginsberg, and Annie Sprinkle, sacrificing much of her own life to pursue her art.

Film screening • 4pm • April 4
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park

David Horvitz's traveling box game is coming to the Pancake Clubhouse. What's in the Box! is "a multi-stage touring project, instigated by David Horvitz and Lukas Geronimas, in collaboration with Renata Christen, The Black Hole Space and curator Terri C. Smith, The Madiman Arts interaction Center, and all those that participate in the project." Breakfast will be served at 9:30 sharp.

Box Game • 9:30am • March 21
Pancake Clubhouse Historic Township and Activity Destination for the Living Arts • 906A NE 24th Ave • pancakeclubhouse@gmail.com

The Canoe Group and the Portland Center for the Performing Arts are leading this month's Art Spark. They'll be discussing PCPA's new cultural video project, and director Robyn Williams will present new opportunities for artists and arts organizations. Art Spark's host rotates monthly. Snacks this month courtesy of PCPA.

Community conversation • 5-7pm • March 19
Art Bar • SW Broadway & Main

The Portland Art Museum currently holds quarterly Museum Family Days that feature hands-on art making activities related to the current exhibition. Thanks to a recent gift to the Art Access Endowment, PAM is now offering free admission on these days, starting Sunday, March 22.

Roy Lichtenstein, "The Head," Barcelona, 1992

The NW Film Center's ongoing art film series continues this weekend with Vincent Gérard and Cédric Laty's By the Ways: A Journey with William Eggleston. The film explores the life and creative history of photographer William Eggleston. The crew tracked him from Memphis to Rome and beyond over the course of several months, "building an incremental portrait of the world as seen through the artist's eyes."

Also coming up in the series: A double-billing of The Universe of Keith Haring and Conversations with Jean-Michel Basquiat on Sunday, March 22, and a double-billing of Roy Lichtenstein: Tokyo Brushstrokes and Ellsworth Kelly: Fragments on Wednesday, March 25.

Eggleston screening • 3pm • March 21
NW Film Center • 1219 SW Park • Whitsell Auditorium

(More: PNCA Intermedia Film Fest, films by Ben Rivers.)

Mel Katz, "Four in the Center"

Sculptor Mel Katz and painter Roll Hardy are speaking this weekend at Laura Russo in conjunction with their ongoing exhibitions. Keep an eye on this space for a very special Mel Katz interview, coming soon...

Artists lecture • 11am • March 14
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st • 503.226.2754

François Boucher, "Conspiration de putti (Cupids in Conspiracy)," c.1740

Heather MacDonald, curator of European art at the Dallas Museum of Art, presents A Seraglio of Men: Female Patrons and Male Artists in the Age of Madame De Pompadour at PAM. MacDonald will discuss "how female patrons shaped the development of the visual arts in France during the 18th century." Of course, part of the ongoing La volupté de goût exhibition.

Curator lecture • 2-3pm • March 15
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Tim Colley

Tim Colley presents I Remember Everything at Rocksbox. Colley's books and videos focus on the "collection, hording, and re-contextualization of contemporary media, pop-culture imagery, and mass manufactured objects re-processed through manic, tireless re-construction."

Opening reception • 7-11pm • March 14
Rocksbox • 6540 N. Interstate • 503.516.4777

Danridge Geiger, "Work in progress"

Gallery Homeland presents TransFixed, a group exhibition curated by Victor Maldonado. Inspired by "mapping the diversity and fusion of contemporary culture," Maldonado selected artists he worked with at PNCA whose work "aided [him] in understanding the value of contemporary Fine Arts practices now." Featured artists include Sara Nyquist, Laura Hughes, Danridge Geiger, Calvin Ross Carl, and Rainbow Ross.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • March 13
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th • info@galleryhomeland.org

The Oregon Department of Kick Ass presents Hunker Down to Rise Above, a series of short films curated by Vanessa Renwick. The films "focus on folks taking matters into their own hands, be it within bike culture, hobo culture, kitchen culture or just plain ol' falling in love." Admission is $5.

Films screening • 7pm • March 13
The Waypost • 3120 N Williams • 503.367.3182

Richard Serra, from Tappeiner's "Thinking on Your Feet"

The NW Film Center's art film series continues this week with Maria Anna Tappeiner's Richard Serra: Thinking on Your Feet. This film portrait depicts Serra speaking articulately on his monumental sculpture, influences, historical context and public controversy. The next two installments in the art film series are: Wendy Keys's Milton Glaser: To Inform and Delight on March 14 and a double-billing of Adam Kahan's Andres Serrano and Lucy Allen's Damien Hirst: Addicted to Art on March 17.

Film screening • 7pm • March 11
NW Film at the Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park

Sol LeWitt, "Incomplete Open Cube," 1974

Local artist, curator, and writer TJ Norris will speak this Thursday at PAM on Incomplete Cube by Sol Lewitt and Marcel Duchamp's Boîte-en-valise, Series F. This is the second in PAM's new series of artist talks. The talk will depart from the Hoffman entrance and continue in the museum café after the tour for happy hour until 8pm.

Artist talk • 6-8pm • March 12
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

PSU's Autzen Gallery presents: I Hope This Finds You Fearless in the Wilderness, an installation by Evertt A. Beidler. The exhibition brings Messages From the Middle of Nowhere to the viewer: A code of ethics, a belief system, and the resolve to act upon them that was developed in isolation; where no one was watching.

Artist reception • 6-8pm • March 7
PSU Autzen Gallery • 724 SW Harrison Street • Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, rm 205

(More PSU! MK Gallery, Littman Gallery.)

Kim Fisher, "Lunar Eclipse"

Fourteen30 presents Under a Vanishing Night: New Work from L.A., featuring Kim Fisher, Sayre Gomez, Richard Jackson, Brian Kennon, and Natascha Snellman. Deeply connected to the city of Los Angeles and its many venerable art institutions, the artists work from the palpable energy of LA's light-polluted "vanishing night."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • March 6
Fourteen30 Contemporary • 1430 SE 3rd • 503.236.1430

(More.)

Martin Kersels, "Fat Iggy 2"

LA-based artist Martin Kersels is lecturing this weekend for RAW. Kersels works in sculpture, audio, photography and performance, and is co-director of the Program in Art at the California Institute of the Arts.

Artist lecture • 7pm • March 7
Reed College Arts Week • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Eliot 314

Jean-Baptiste Chardin, Les Attributs des arts et les rècompenses qui leur sont accordèes (The Attributes of the Arts and the Rewards Which Are Accorded Them), 1766

New Yorker art critic Adam Gopnik is lecturing at PAM this Friday. In Madame De Pompadour In The Age Of Voltaire, Gopnik will discuss "the world of luxury, wealth, and leisure reflected in the art of Mme de Pompadour's time and the growth of radical new ideas about man, nature, and liberty that began in the era." There will be a book signing following the lecture, and a parent discussion on Saturday.

Critic lecture • 7-8pm • March 6
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Michael Lazarus

In conjunction with his exhibition tend to forget at Elizabeth Leach, artist Michael Lazarus will lecture Thursday afternoon at PNCA.

Artist lecture • 12:30-1:30pm • March 5
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

Now more than ever we need to support arts education in public schools: Portland's only primary art school, Buckman Elementary, is having their annual art show & sell this Friday and Saturday. The event features food, kid-friendly entertainment, and lots of art for sale, with 30% of proceeds going to benefit the school.

Art Show & Sell • 5-9pm • March 6
Day 2 • 10am-5pm • March 7
Buckman Elementary • 320 SE 16th Ave • 503.916-3506

Mel Katz at Laura Russo Gallery

Mel Katz presents Aluminum Sculpture at Laura Russo. After 50 years of practice, Katz's work has stayed modern and clean. His sculptures have become progressively more flattened, exploring the silhouette and positive and negative space.

Opening reception • 5-8pm • March 5
Artist lecture • 11am • March 14
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st Ave • 503.226.2754

(More.)

Ken Tomita, "body"

Project Chaboo, a collaboration between fifty artists and designer Ken Tomita, will be exhibiting reinterpreted furniture at Gallery Homeland. "Chaboo was designed with the intention of creating an affordable piece of furniture made of high quality materials that is also attractive, simple, and highly versatile."

Opening reception • 6-10pm • March 4
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th • info@galleryhomeland.org

Cliff Evans, from "Empyrean"

Multimedia and video artist Cliff Evans is exhibiting Empyrean, a digital installation, at PCC Cascade. Using appropriation and photomontage-based animation, Evans draws from pop/Internet culture to create images that are "as mesmerizing as disturbing, as unassuming as complexly beautiful, and as mechanical as organically decomposed or rotten." Art historian Christine Weber will speak next week on Evans work in the Moriarty Arts Humanities Building (MAHB 222).

Opening reception • 11am-1pm • March 5
Art historian lecture • 1-2pm • March 10
PCC Cascade Gallery • 705 N. Killingsworth St.TH 102 • cascade.gallery@pcc.edu

The Linfield Gallery presents 21st Century Iconographic Clayworks. Curated by Nils Lou, the exhibition features 24 of "some of the most masterful and influential artists working with clay in the United States today."

Opening reception • 6-8pm • March 4
Linfield Gallery • 900 SE Baker St. McMinnville • 503.883.2804

Martin van Meytens, portrait of Queen Marie Antoinette at age 12, 1767-68

In connection with the ongoing Madame de Pompadour exhibit, art historian Melissa Hyde will speak this Sunday on Painted Women In The Age Of Madame De Pompadour. Her lecture explores "representations of women and the role cosmetics and fashion played in the French court during the lives of Mme de Pompadour, Mme du Barry, and Queen Marie Antoinette."

Historian lecture • 2-3pm • March 1
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

(More: George Tice lectures at PAM, Modou Dieng speaks for PMMNLS, the nowhere art collective opens at Disjecta.)

Oregon Painting Society

Student-organized Reed Arts Week begins next week. This year's theme is SUB PRIME 2009, "a celebration of uncertainty and incompleteness, and a refusal to value the pinnacle at the expense of the ascent." From March 4 - March 8 there will be exhibitions, lectures, workshops, performances, and more, so make sure to peruse the schedule. Featured artists include Kasper Hauser, Eugene Tsui, Hot Little Hands, Jason Lazarus, Martin Kersels, Tao Lin, Sarah Ross, Dan Shapiro, Oregon Painting Society, Jorge Lucero, Neal Medlyn, Jeffrey Baker, and blackblack.

Arts Festival • March 4 - 8
Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd.

(more including films on artists and the Zero Film Festival)

Michael Kenna, "Broadway Bridge, Study 2, Portland, Oregon, USA," 2004

An unprecedented amount of photography appears in this year's TAM Biennial. Participating photographers Michael Kenna, Doug Keyes, Isaac Layman, and Susan Seubert are lecturing on the subject this week at the Tacoma Art Museum. They will be discussing "photography's role in fine art and commercial imagery." Rebecca Cummins, Associate Professor at University of Washington School of Art, will moderate a panel conversation.

Lecture & discussion • 11am-4pm • February 28
Tacoma Art Museum • 1701 Pacific Avenue Tacoma, WA 98402 • 253.272.4258

Tom Holmes, "I Make Stuff Up"

Curated by Gabrielle Giattino, I know nothing of the weather when I know it is either raining or not raining. opens this Thursday at PNCA's Feldman Gallery + Project Space. Drawing its title from Ludwig Wittgenstein's Tractatus Logioco-Philosophicus, a series of statements about the nature of logic, the show highlights strategies for making art that "willingly defy the necessary usefulness of logic and language." Featured artists include Erica Baum, Ellie Ga, Tom Holmes, Justin Matherly, Andrea Merkx, Jenny Perlin, and Vicente Razo. Artist Andrea Merkx will lecture on Wednesday about the show, curator Gabrielle Giattino will give a tour before the reception, and artist Ellie Ga will give a final presentation on Friday.

Artist lecture • 12:30-1:30pm • February 25
Curator tour • 12:30-1:30pm • February 26
Opening reception • 6:30pm • February 26
Artist presentation • 12:30-1:30pm • February 27
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

Matthew Green will perform Solo Jams at Appendix Project Space this Thursday. The piece begins promptly at 7pm, and elements from it will be on view 3-7pm for the following three Thursdays.

Opening reception • 6-10pm • February 26
Appendix • NE Alberta • in the south alley between 26th & 27th

Jerry French and Charles S. Anderson

PNCA and Office PDX present a lecture by design leaders Jerry French and Charles S. Anderson. French is the founder of French Paper, the only independently owned paper mill in the US, and Anderson is the founder of CSA Design, a firm that "approaches design as a continuous evolution inspired by the highs and lows of art and print culture."

Design lecture • 6:30-8:30pm • February 25
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

Althea Thauberger, "La Mort e La Miseria," digital video still

B.C. media artist Althea Thauberger is speaking this Monday for PMMNLS. Her recent video and photography work features collaboration with her subjects, "inviting both sympathetic and critical reflection of tropes relating to individualism and self-expression, romanticism and nature and aspects of youth cultures with which she identifies."

Artist lecture • 7:20pm • February 23
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

Artist live/work space Milepost 5 is launching two new bi-monthly exhibition series, MP5 Cubed and The Hallways. Curated by TJ Norris, MP5 Cubed will feature Kate Fenkertitled's Strange Attractor. On the first floor of the hallways, which are curated by Sara Cella, Derek Franklin and Calvin Ross Carl are showing Against Peter Halley : Reconsidering Rothko. Nicole Linde is exhibiting Flights of Fancy on the second floor, and Chris Haberman's El Corridor of Love will be on the third floor. Opening night features a live musical performance by Color Guard. The shows run through April 10.

Opening reception • 7-9pm • February 21
Milepost 5 • 900 NE 81st • 503.998.4878

Bruce Conkle & Marne Lucas, "Sleepwalking Salmon Woman and Primitive Artist," as played by Lucas and Conkle

The Marylhurst Art Gym presents Bruce Conkle and Marne Lucas's Warlord Sun King: The Genesis of Eco-Baroque. Coining the term "eco-baroque," this collaborative duo "seeks to combine a sensibility to the natural world that includes acknowledgment of many of its baroque, over-the-top manifestations that are not unlike the excesses of the Baroque era. If you imagine the Palace of Versailles crossed with the Museum of Natural History in Manhattan, you will be ready for Warlord Sun King." The exhibition runs through March 25.

Preview reception • 3-5pm • February 22
Marylhurst • 17600 Pacific Highway Marylhurst, OR • 503.699.6243

Glenn Adamson

In case you missed the note in Alex's fantastic interview of Glenn Adamson, here's a reminder: He'll be lecture at the University of Oregon in Eugene on Friday, and at their Portland White Stage building this weekend for the Museum of Contemporary Craft's ongoing Craft Perspective series.

Lecture 1 • 4-5:30pm • February 20
U of O • Lillis Hall • 955 E. 13th Ave. Eugene
Lecture 2 • 2:30pm • February 21
White Stag Block • 70 NW Couch Street

Liza Ryan, "SPILL," installation view

In conjunction with her ongoing exhibition at the Cooley Gallery, SPILL, artist Liza Ryan will discuss her work this Friday in Reed's Eliot Hall.

Artist lecture • 6:30pm • February 20
Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Eliot Hall Room 304

An installation by Anna Gray & Ryan Wilson Paulsen, from OpenWidePDX

PNCA alumni Anna Gray and Ryan Wilson Paulsen have made art out of tragedy with their new book, Integrating a Burning House, which focuses on the September 2008 fire that destroyed their home. They'll read from the book tomorrow.

Artist book reading • 6:30pm • February 19
Allied Works Architecture • 1532 SW Morrison

Lise Graham, "Untitled (red)"

Considered Space opens tomorrow at Clark College's Archer Gallery. This group exhibition explores "the presentation of space in painting, real and perceived." To examine this question, artists use techniques ranging from traditional tools of perspective and scale to the integration of three-dimensionality through materials and constructions. All featured artists are regional: Jesse Hayward (Portland), Mark R. Smith (Portland), Grant Hottle (Portland), Adam Sorensen (Portland), Cara Tomlinson (Portland), Ben Buswell (Portland), and Lise Graham (Seattle). The show picks up a thread from curator Jesse Hayward's The Hook Up at NAAU almost two years ago. Spatial exploration has since become a hot theme around this town - in the words of another PORTstar, is this space camp? Considered Space will run from February 17 through March 14.

Opening reception • 4-6pm • February 18
Archer Gallery • Clark College, Penguin Union Building, 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA • 360.992.2246

Daniel Payavis, "Shadow of a Book"

For its inaugural exhibition, east side space Pied-à-terre presents two works by Daniel Payavis. Shadow of a Book and Book draw from recent movements such as Suprematism, Russian Contructivism, and early Abstraction, as well as the ancient tradition of still life, to become "playful and thoughtful, aligning a respect for tradition with a dedicated interest in pursuing the new." This project by McIntyre Parker is open Saturdays and by appointment.

Exhibition • Through February 28
Pied-à-terre • 904 SE 20th Ave Apt. 5 • info@pied-terre.com

Portland's Japanese Garden

On Monday (for President's Day), the Japanese Garden is having a free admission day. Take advantage of the opportunity to experience what has been described as the most beautiful Japanese garden outside of Japan, and while you're there, catch the beginning of the 2009 season of the Art in the Garden series. From February 15 - February 22, calligraphy by Master Calligrapher Yoshiyasu Fujii of Tokyo will be on display in the pavilion with work by members of the Meito Shodo Kai. You can find the Japanese Garden above the Rose Gardens at 611 SW Kingston Avenue.

(More... Lectures by: Clement Tobias-Lange, and PMMNLS with Mark Beasley.)

Launch Pad's 4th Annual Love Show

Launch Pad Gallery presents their 4th Annual Love Show. With a staggeringly long list of participating artists, this year's open-call salon exhibition on the complexity of love has outgrown its britches and moved to the Olympic Mills Commerce Center. Partial proceeds from the show will benefit the Oregon Food Bank and Buckman Arts Elementary. See a list of participating artists and participatory events on Launch Pad's website.

Opening party • 7pm-12am • February 13
Olympic Mills Center • 107 SE Washington

Looking for something heart-free to do on VDay? Don't miss the opening of Shoot You - Shoot Me at Rocksbox. This joint exhibition by Moudou Dieng and Damien Gilley "examines the relationship between contemporary guerrilla warfare, high fashion, and the artist's approach to the creative process, while attempting to breakdown the predictability of perceived artistic production, display, and the consumption of mass imagery." This short term exhibition will be open from February 14 through March 1.

Opening reception • 7-11pm • February 14
Rocksbox Fine Art • 6540 N Interstate • 503.516.4777

Eugene Delacroix, "Christ on Lake Genesareth"

PAM is premiering a new artist talk series with MK Guth this week. At 6pm, Guth will lead museum visitors from the Hoffman Lobby on a tour through the galleries to discuss Eugene Delacroix's Christ on Lake Genesareth and Jeff Koons's Lifeboat. Afterward there will be discourse and happy hour until 8 in the museum café.

Artist talk • 6-8pm • February 12
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Also, UPDATE: We apologize for any confusion, the Sara Greenberger Rafferty lecture is this Thursday. Rafferty is an artist/comedian who lives and works in New York, is co-editor of North Drive Press, and has published widely on art and comedy.

Artist chat • 12:30-1:30pm • February 12
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

George Johanson

PNCA emeritus professor George Johanson is lecturing tomorrow on An Artist's Look at Lascaux. Johanson will discuss his recent trip to France, re-examining the prehistoric cave art of Lascaux in terms of "what these mysterious images tell us about the nature of painting and the nature of homo sapiens as visual thinkers."

Artist lecture • 6:30-8:30pm • February 10
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

Rick Lowe in front of duplexes designed by Rice students as part of Lowe's Project Row Houses, from the NY Times

Artist / activist Rick Lowe is speaking at Jimmy Mak's this Monday for the second installation of Portland Spaces' Bright Lights Discussion Series. Lowe is the founder of Houston's Project Row Houses, "a nonprofit arts organization, established by African-American artists and community activists to create a positive presence in Houston's Northern Third Ward community." Lowe's mission is to use art and the community it creates to revitalize inner city neighborhoods, and he'll be speaking about "the new intersections of art and urbanism." The Bright Lights Discussion Series happens the second Monday of every month at Jimmy Mak's.

Artist discussion • 6pm • February 9
Jimmy Mak's • 221 NW 10th • 503.295.6542

Julie Ault & Martin Beck, "Installation" at Secession 2006

Artist, author, and curator Julie Ault is speaking Monday for PMMNLS. One of the co-founders of 30-year-old social arts collective Group Material, Ault's work "emphasizes interrelationships between cultural production and politics."

Artist lecture • 7pm • February 9
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

François Boucher, "Les Confidences Pastorales," 1745

La volupté du goût: French Painting in the Age of Madame de Pompadour opens tomorrow at PAM. "Organized in collaboration with the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Tours, France, this international loan exhibition celebrates the patronage of Madame de Pompadour. As the official mistress of Louis XV, Pompadour indulged her 'voluptuous taste' in art to inspire some of the most sumptuous and sensual paintings in history." Among the most famous mistresses in history, Madame de Pompadour was an influential 18th century arts patron whose tastes often dictated the fashion of the day. The exhibition includes over 50 paintings commission or collected by Pompadour, including works by François Boucher, Jean-Baptiste-Marie Pierre, and Carle Vanloo.

Exhibition • February 7 - May 17
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

(More: Gallery Homeland, MK Gallery, Autzen Gallery.)

Worksound presents White Noise, a group exhibition on stagnation. Inspired by Portland snow and the struggling economy, 23 artists from the Pacific Northwest & Los Angeles have interpreted this broad theme through video, installation, and other multimedia works. Featured artists include Kevin Abell, Jaclyn Campanaro, Thor Drake, E*Rock, Danridge Geiger, Damien Gilley, Evan B. Harris, Danielle Higgins, Yoni Kifle, Sarah Jane McKinley, Sarah Meadows, Tamar Monhait, Mason Poole (LA), Nick Raffel, Noah and Nathan Rice, Kent Richardson, Rebecca Shelly, Stephen Scott Smith, Corey Smith (LA), Rebecca Steele, Aaron Thomas (LA), and Dylan Walker.

Opening reception • 7-11pm • February 6
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

(More - updated.)

Sarah Greenberger Rafferty

Sara Greenberger Rafferty is lecturing at PNCA this Thursday as part of their MFA Chat series. Rafferty lives and works in New York, is co-editor of North Drive Press, and has published widely on art and comedy.

Artist chat • 12:30-1:30pm • February 5
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

Eva Lake

Eva Lake will be exhibiting Target Photomontages at PCC Rock Creek's Helzer Gallery. Building on her lifelong obsession with targets, which as a teenager she would steal from the Ashland Police Rifle Range, Lake has layered these target images with beautiful women from nostalgia to modern pop stars, exposing the complex femininity beneath the "babe."

Artist lecture • 3pm • February 6
Opening reception • 4-6pm • February 6
Helzer Gallery @ PCC Rock Creek • 17705 NW Springville Road • Building 3

Sandy Roumagoux, "Stonefield Beach Quartet"

In celebration of Oregon's sesquicentennial (150th birthday), Blackfish presents Oregon Seen. This group exhibition of Blackfish members celebrates Oregon & Oregonians, offering artists the opportunity to express both pride and concerns about their home state. On February 14, Oregon's birthday, long time Blackfish member Paul Missal will lecture on Oregon's artistic heritage. Special Oregon Modernist works will be on loan for the lecture, including works by Charles Heaney and Louis Bunce.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • February 5
Blackfish Gallery • 420 NW 9th • 503.224.2634

(More - UPDATED.)

Vanessa Renwick, from "Toxic Shock," 1983

Watch: Curator Marc Moscato presents A Not Too Distant Past: Film & Video From Underground Chicago, a collection of short experimental and documentary videos examining the Chicago's radical history. Featured filmmakers include Vanessa Renwick, Frédéric Moffet, Dara Greenwald, Kartemquin Films (a 1970s student group at the Art Institute of Chicago), The Videofreex (a late 1960s underground video collective out of upstate New York), and Marc Moscato. Tickets are $5.

Video screening • 8pm • February 5
The Waypost • 3120 N Williams • 503.367.3182

Film: Like to make film? Like to bicycle? (It's Portland, of course you do.) The 7th Annual Filmed By Bike festival is soliciting bike-themed shorts. All submissions must be under 8 minutes, and the deadline is February 15. Read all about it here.

Brain Awareness 2k9: OHSU's The Right Brain Initiative is hosting a lecture on learning, the arts, and the brain next week. The panel discussion will be moderated by John Frohnmayer, former chairman of the NEA. Featured speakers include two leading researchers on the arts and cognition, Drs. Michael Posner and Helen Neville, and two members of Portland's creative community, famous advertiser Dan Wieden and Chris Coleman, artistic director of Portland Center Stage. After the lecture there will be a "creativity reception" with major Portland/Oregon arts groups. Tickets are $20 + fees.

Panel lecture • 7pm • February 2
Portland Center for the Performing Arts • 1111 SW Broadway • 503.248.4335

Edgar Arceneaux, "The Alchemy of Comedy... Stupid" at the 2008 Whitney Biennial

LA-based multi-disciplinary artist Edgar Arceneaux is speaking at next week's PMMNLS. Arceneaux "explores the origins and laws of our physical reality, using strategy in which linear logic is subverted and destabilized to create a space of experimentation." Recent works include The Alchemy of Comedy... Stupid at the 2008 Whitney Biennial, featuring actor David Alan Grier working out an introspective and frequently awkward comedy routine.

Artist lecture • 7pm • February 2
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

Liza Ryan

Reed's Cooley Gallery presents SPILL, a film and photography installation by LA-based artist Liza Ryan. Ryan's work explores the liberation of the human psyche from the dimensions of reality, focusing on the psychological experiences of release and dispersal. The exhibition continues through March 8, featuring an artist talk in February in Reed's Eliot Hall room 314.

Exhibition • January 29 - March 8
Artist talk • 6:30pm • February 20
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Hauser Memorial Library

Stephanie Robison, "Oversight"

The Tacoma Art Museum's 9th NW Biennial opens this weekend. TAM has had one of the more enduring annuals featuring regional artists, but in past years it has been a bit overcrowded and Seattle-skewed. Once again, there are only 5 Portland artists represented, but there should be some goodies. Stephanie Robison will be taking over the courtyard with a majorly expanded version of the above installation. (Note: Due to tinted glass, her piece will not be visible at night during the opening, so make the trip north early to see this gem in daylight.) The exhibition runs through May 25.

Opening reception • 7:30-10pm • January 31
Tacoma Art Museum • 1701 Pacific Avenue Tacoma, Washington • 253.272.4258

From "Undone"

Karl Burkheimer and Jenene Nagy have organized a group show of work by post-bac students at the Oregon College of Art & Craft. Undone showcases projects in wood, ceramics, metals, photography and drawing and painting by a group of artists who have come to OCAC to "further their artistic practice in an art and craft environment," in a "re-investigation of art and learning." Featured artists include Soraya Sayani, Molly Purnell, Jacie Friedkin, Matt Wicks, Kimo Nelson, Pat Krishnamurthy, Johanna Keefe, Suzanne Lussier, Betany Porter, and Stephanie Brachmann. The show will run at Disjecta from January 31 through February 14. Gallery hours are Thu-Sun, 12-5pm, but watch out for unexpected closures- Disjecta's had some scheduling issues with performances and gallery availability in the last few shows.

Exhibition • January 31 - February 14
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate • 503.286.9449

Appendix gallery is opening its 2009 season with Pushup: new work by Calvin Ross Carl, Zack Davis and Joshua Pavlacky.

Opening reception • 6-10pm • January 29
Appendix Project Space • In the alley b/w 26th & 27th on NE Alberta

Janice Vitkovsky, "Beneath the Surface II"

Bullseye presents an exhibition of work from Scotland's North Lands Creative Glass. Due North celebrates the legacy of glass making in Scotland's highlands, featuring Jane Bruce, Lisa Cahill, Mel George, Deborah Horrell, Steve Klein, Dante Marioni, Catharine Newell, Robin Provart-Kelly, Bruno Romanelli, Louise Tait, and Janice Vitkovsky.

Exhibition • January 27 - March 21
Artist panel • 2-4pm • March 22
Bullseye Gallery • 300 NW 13th • 503.227.0222

Shigeru Takato, "Cologne V.," 2004

Lewis & Clark's Hoffman Gallery presents reGeneration, a group photography exhibition. Selected by three curators from Musée de l'Elysée, the show highlights some of the best work from emerging photographers around the globe. In an effort to explore the future of 21st century photographic practices, the curators used one question to guide their selections: Will this image be known in twenty years? Amongst over 150 remarkable images, featured work includes Keren Assaf's Untitled (Israel), an attempt to understand Israeli culture through the comparison of its aspirations with the American dream; Shigeru Takato's Cologne V. (above), part of his Television Studios series that exposes the hollow and blatantly artificial environments of the studio; and Untitled from Nicholas Prior's The Age of Man, where the photographer explores childhood as a social, not biological, construct.

Exhibition • January 22 - March 15
Hoffman Gallery • 0615 SW Palatine Hill Rd • 503.768.7687

MK Guth, Ties of Protection and Safekeeping

MK Guth will speak in the APEX Gallery at PAM this weekend about her installation Ties of Protection and Safekeeping. Read about the installation at the Whitney Biennial here.

Artist lecture • 2-3pm • January 25
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Michael Brophy, "Day"

PMMNLS is back with celebrated local artist Michael Brophy, who paints vivid and often desolate images of the Northwest landscape.

Artist lecture • 7pm • January 26
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

Jesse Durost, "Flags, Smoke, Comfort and Conflict"

Fourteen30 presents the work of Portland-based Jesse Durost and LA-based John Sisley. Durost's Fabrications explore his "own vocabulary of architectural forms." In ENDGAMES, Sisley also creates a new spatial language, through "the erased or destroyed photograph, the lost or, unseen film, and the damaged record."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • January 23
Fourteen30 • 1430 SE 3rd • 503.236.1430

Two new exhibitions are opening Thursday at the Museum of Contemporary Craft:

Mandy Greer, "Dare alla Luce," installation shot

Mandy Greer presents her installation Dare alla Luce. The term is an Italian idiom for giving birth that translates to "to give to the light." Simultaneously "mythical and mundane," the installation uses sewing, crochet, braiding, and beading processes to "collapse the language and materials of the ordinary with the spectacular and the epic."

Exhibition • January 22 - May 31
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Darrel Morris, "COACHES and athlete"

MoCC will be the first West Coast institution to exhibit Darrel Morris' large embroidered works, featuring pieces from 1999-2008. Best known for "intimate and nostalgic snapshot-sized pieces," with this body of work Morris approaches new territory in scale, color, and line. Clipping figures from print media, Morris creates sharply graphic line drawings with thread.

Exhibition • January 22 - May 31
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Don't miss the panel discussion opening night. Stefano Catalani, curator from the Bellevue Arts Museum, will join MoCC curator Namita Wiggers and artists Mandy Greer and Darrel Morris for the latest lecture in MoCC's Craft Perspectives series.

Rachel Whiteread

Internationally renowned British sculptor Rachel Whiteread will be exhibiting recent sculpture and works on paper in the Jubitz Center for Modern and Contemporary Art at PAM. Using a variety of casting techniques, Whiteread "works with the empty and unexamined spaces" of domestic objects "rendering negative space as positive sculptural form." Her work explores both the form and reimagined meanings of quotidian objects and the materials she casts them in.

Exhibition • January 17 - May 3
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SE Park • 503.226.2811

This month's Art Spark, hosted by the Gilt Club, features Oregon College of Art & Craft president Bonnie Laing-Malcolmson. She will discuss the future of OCAC, and its relationship to the Portland arts community.

Discussion group • 5-7pm • January 15
Art Spark at the Gilt Club • 306 NW Broadway

Theresa Redinger

PCC Sylvania's North View Gallery presents Making Camp, a group exhibition that capitalizes on the campus's treehouse setting. Featuring two artist-made tents, this 13 person show celebrates the outdoors with a wide range of media, from watercolor to video.

Opening reception • 11:30am-1:30pm • January 15
North View Gallery • 12000 SW 49th Ave • CT 214 Building

Chelsea Geringer

Curator Gail Brown presents The Next Iconoclasts at OCAC's Hoffman Gallery. The group exhibition focusing on altered expectations and revisionist identities, "features dramatically innovative work with evolutionary responses to historic precedents."

Opening reception • 4-7pm • January 15
Hoffman Gallery • 8245 SW Barnes Road • 503.297.5544

Darth Vader Tries to Clean the Black Sea With Brita Filter, 2000

On Monday, Bulgarian-born artist Daniel Bozhkov will speak for PSU's MFA Monday Night Lecture Series. Classically trained, Bozhkov incorporates his skill in Old Master techniques such as fresco to provide a basis for performance, video, and conceptual projects. Bozhkov invades modern worlds - from genetic science to shopping malls - as an "intruder/outsider" who introduces new strains of meaning into closed systems.

Artist lecture • 7pm • January 12
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

Stephen Chalmers

First Friday got lost in the holiday shuffle this month, but there are several interesting shows opening this weekend. Newspace is featuring the work of photographers Stephen Chalmers and Nan Brown. Chalmers explores "psychologically charged spaces... while he coolly detaches such imagery from its popular tropes." His series Transience depicts Snowbirds, and the culture surrounding full time RV habitation. Brown's work looks at a similar American subculture. Trailers Collected depicts "the individualism and freedom intrinsic to American rural life," combating the trailer trash stereotype with an honest look into the diverse community of trailer owners and travelers.

Opening reception • 7-10pm • January 9
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th • 503.963.1935

(More: Autzen Gallery, MK Gallery, PAM.)

Jason Adkins

PCC's Cascade Gallery presents Modern Salvage, a group exhibition that reexamines late Modernist formal aesthetics. The show asks what it means to create work in this vernacular when it has been co-opted by the sleek commercial lines of IKEA. How do we reconcile the "classical" reductive aesthetic with the highly marketable department store Modernism? Featured artists include Matthew Letzelter, Kim McKenna, Sterling Lawrence, Matthew Green, Jason Adkins, and Jeff Koons.

Opening reception • 5-8pm • January 9
Curatorial lecture • 4-5pm • January 26
PCC Cascade Gallery • 705 N. Killingsworth • Terrell Hall Room 102

The Social Practices students in PSU's MFA program present Extraordinarily Ordinary in PSU's White Gallery. The exhibition is the first in an experimental series showcasing the ongoing work of the Social Practices students. Student work and interactive projects will be on display in the White Gallery on a rotating basis - and this week's opening reception features a larger-than-life crossword.

Opening reception • 5-8pm • January 8
PSU White Gallery • 1825 SW Broadway • Smith Building South Wing 2nd Floor

Drake Deknatel, "Watch the Night," 2003

Elizabeth Leach presents Berlin Portraits, an exhibition celebrating the life and work of Drake Deknatel (1943-2005). Deknatel began this series after discovering a photograph of himself as a child, dressed in his father's flight jacket. The paintings explore childhood memory and experience, repeating the forms of child and adult until representational figures begin to blur back into abstraction, recounting the greater narrative of the image. Deknatel lived and worked in Seattle for over 20 years, but continued to maintain a studio in Berlin, where he exhibited widely.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • January 8
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th • 503.224.0521

(More.)

Laura Fritz, Evident (installation/detail view)

The first big show of 2009 opens this week: Laura Fritz will launch the 2009 segment of NAAU's Couture exhibitions with Evident, one of the most anticipated shows of the series. Conceived and designed specifically for Couture, Evident also marks Fritz's first full scale solo appearance in Portland since 2003. (Although Interspace and Caseworks 13 made notable appearances.)

Critically well-received, Fritz's installations elegantly manipulate and distort their surroundings, exploiting the cognitive dissonance created when space is subverted and no explanation is provided. She retains a high degree of control over her material even as she leaves meaning fully open ended, allowing "human nature to expose itself as a response and rationalization of the unknown."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • January 7
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny St. • 503.231.8294

Lucky Dragons photographed by Michael Demeo

PSU's MFA Monday Night Lecture Series (PMMNLS) returns next Monday for winter quarter. The first presenter of 2009 will be the music/performance/installation group Lucky Dragons. Made up of Luke Fischbeck, Sarah Rara, and collaborators, "Lucky dragons are about the birthing of new and temporary creatures--equal-power situations in which audience members cooperate amongst themselves, building up fragile networks held together by such light things as skin contact, unfamiliar language, temporary logic, the spirit of celebration, and things that work but you don't know why."

Lecture • 7:30pm • January 5
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

Left: Jerry Walker, "Target For One," Right: cary doucette, "blau 1 (detail)"

12x16 is bringing in the new year with Jerry Walker and gallery member cary doucette. Walker was a Portland Pop Pioneer, who adopted the 1960s & 70s NYC Minimalist edge. Although he exhibited in the Portland Art Museum, his work remained largely obscure until his estate sold the collection after his death. Complementing Walker's Minimialist constructions are the parts and pieces of cary doucette. This show exposes the concept behind his work through raw materials, presenting unfinished structures like an architect might present a model.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • January 2
Artist reception • 2-4pm • January 4
12x16 Gallery • 8235 SE 13th #5 • 503.432.3513

Terry Toedtemeier's Soliton, Oregon Coast, 2004

The Northwest Photography Archive has established a memorial fund in honor of Terry Toedtemeier, which will fund a book of his photographs, more info on the fund at the bottom of the page here.

The NPA site also states that a memorial service will be held at the Portland Art Museum on Sunday, January 4. It will begin at 2 p.m. with a viewing of the Wild Beauty exhibition, followed by a memorial program at 3 p.m. in the Fields Ballroom in the Museum’s Mark Building. The program will include remarks by friends and family and a slide show of Terry’s work.

Suggestion for the cabin fevered in our unthawing city... if you do nothing else this weekend check out Wild Beauty at PAM, the show ends January 11th.

Ready to brave the snow? Catch the artist reception for Mixed Magic at PSU's Autzen gallery. This group exhibition uses comedy and playfulness to address more complex subject matter, approaching humor as an important tool to get us through difficult social and economic times. The show closes on December 22.
Update! The reception is canceled due to inclement weather. Check to see if PSU is open before stopping by to see the show.

Artist reception • 6-8pm • December 19
Autzen Gallery at PSU • 2000 SW 5th Ave • 2nd Floor Neuberger Hall

KBOO's Art Focus will hold a tribute to Terry Toedtemeier this Thursday morning. Guests include Jane Beebe of PDX Contemporary (his dealer), John Laursen (co-author of Wild Beauty), and his widow and co-curator, Prudence Roberts.

Radio Tribute • 10:30-11am • December 18
KBOO 90.7fm in Portland

Ben Peters

The 46th Ann Arbor film festival is coming to the NW Film Center. The longest running experimental film festival in the country, this year's tour features 31 of the best short films in the festival, split into two programs. Wednesday's program features works from Ben Peters' Frog Jesus to Josh Rankin's I Met the Walrus. Thursday's program includes Kelly Sears' The Drift, Semiconductor's Brilliant Noise - and many, many more on both nights.

Film Screening Part I • 7pm • December 17
Film Screening Part II • 7pm • December 18
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium at PAM • 1219 SW Park

This weekend, a group of PNCA students will screen movies, a collection of short experimental film, at Gallery Homeland. Featured artists include Jacob Winfield, Ryan Tesar Freeman, Kevin Tinnell, Morgan Alexandra Ritter, Joey Lusterman, Chris Bovden, Bryan Colombo, Adrienne Huckabone, Israel Lund, Sarah Burke, Julia Perry, Brennan Broome, and Jim Hill.

Film Screening • 7pm • December 12
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th

Fourteen30 presents Impossible Instruments / Future Flags, a group exhibition organized by artist Nathaniel T. Price. Using science fiction as a point of departure, the show takes on manifestations of the uncanny and the strange in human experience. Exhibiting artists include Alex Felton, Kristan Kennedy, Corey Lunn, Chris Johanson, M Blash, Dana Dart-McLean, Rob Halverson, Steven Wirth, Jo Jackson, Nathaniel T. Price, Arnold J. Kemp and Bobo.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • December 12
Fourteen30 Contemporary • 1430 SE 3rd • 503.236.1430

The Mmm...Video series has started at PSU's MK Gallery. Lasting through most of December, the series begins with Robert Barta's Capri (through the 7th), followed by Alex Hubbard's Collapse of the Expanded Field 1-3, and Matthew Green's Home of the Radical.

Video series • December 1 - 22
PSU MK Gallery • 2000 SW 5th AVE • 2nd Floor

Michael McManus and Alexandra Schmidt

The Cooley gallery presents a performance orchestrated by Stephanie Gervais and Alexandra Schmidt. In Love: Personified, Schmidt and fellow performer Michael McManus "embark upon a journey from one kind of fear to another." This romantic/erotic performance, exploring youth and beauty, begins with the blast of a shofar, and ends with the pair embracing in a bathtub "replete with a thousand goldfish." The performance will be followed with music by Zoe Roller from 5-6pm. After the music, stay at the Cooley for Dreamtime with David Reed - bring your sleeping bag, and get comfy in the gallery to watch a screening of two video works by David Reed, in conjunction with the end of David Reed's Lives of Paintings at the gallery.

Performance • 4-5pm • December 8
Music • 5-6pm • December 8
Screening • 6-9pm • December 8
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Hauser Memorial Library

Alexander Herzog, "picture 10"

Alexander Herzog presents I Found the Cure at 32 at Gallery Homeland. He writes that his work is "a collision of cultural anthropology and phenomenological experience." Extrapolating many formal elements from the history of painting, Herzog "pushes and pulls the segments of the image into space."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • December 5
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th • info@galleryhomeland.org

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Tony Fry

Australian design theorist Tony Fry will be the next PNCA+Five Ideas Studio speaker. Design Futuring, Culture and the Coming Age of Unsettlement will address two major questions: "How can design, as a positive force for change, be made to happen? And, how can design become a re-directive practice leading towards sustainment?" Fry is a contributing editor to the Design Philosophy Papers as well as director of "sustainability consultancy" Team D/E/S.

Design lecture • 12:30pm • December 5
PNCA • Gerding Theater at the Armory • 128 NW 11th Ave

Stephen Scott Smith, "Bunnysmith"

The Mark Woolley Gallery is celebrating their 15th anniversary this month with Stephen Scott Smith's Selections from ME9. Smith's provocative work explores identity, competitive art world marketing and artist branding, narcissism, modernity vs. nature and more through photography, video, installation, performance and painting.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • December 4
Mark Woolley Gallery • 817 SW 2nd Ave • 503.224.5475

(More.)

This Monday, come to the Holocene to celebrate the release of Psilo Design's 3rd Portland Funbook. The last two were fabulous proof that art and music in Portland are fun, and this year's is even oversize. Monday's release party will also be a benefit for Amnesty International.

Funbook3 Release Party • 9pm • December 1
Holocene • 1001 SE Morrison • $9

Orlo, publisher of the Bear Deluxe magazine, is celebrating their 15th birthday this Wednesday at the Someday. Exploring a variety of methods to "use the creative arts to explore environmental issues," Orlo's primary recent focus has been on Bear Deluxe. They'll release issue 28, their special contemporary arts issue (featuring images by PORT's own Ryan Pierce), at the party. The party will also feature cupcakes, cake, games and a placard-drawing contest. Free to Orlo members, or $5-$10 donation.

Orlo Birthday Party • 6:30-10pm • December 3
Someday Lounge • 125 NW 5th AVE

Hamza Walker

Before the Funbook party, don't forget PMMNLS! This week's lecture features curator Hamza Walker, interviewed a couple of years ago on PORT here. Since 1994, Walker has served as Director of Education/Associate Curator for The Renaissance Society at The University of Chicago, a non-collecting museum devoted to contemporary art, and has received the 1999 Norton Curatorial Grant and the 2005 Walter Hopps Award for curatorial achievement.

Lecture • 7:30pm • December 1
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

Still from "Zidane"

This weekend, work off the holiday madness from the perspective of famous soccer player Zidane. The NW Film Center is screening Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait, directed by Douglas Gordon and Philippe Pareno, on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. You can learn more about this ground breaking experimental film from Arcy's September review. Check out showtimes, and buy tickets online, at the NW Film Center site.

From "Wild Beauty" at PAM

In conjunction with PAM's ongoing exhibition, Wild Beauty: Photographs of the Columbia River Gorge, the NW Film Center will present three film series that reflect the history of the Columbia River and the enormous changes the river has undergone. The first is happening this Sunday, and features three short films: The Columbia River Gorge: A Natural History, Sagebrush Sailors, and Singing Waters: Where Rolls Oregon. Visit the NW Film Center for showtimes and more information, and keep an eye on their site for the next two installments, on December 14 and December 28.

Matthew Higgs, tonight's PMMNLS speaker, will be following his lecture with a dance party at SE industrial night club Branx. Sponsored by the PSU Art dept., "Art is to enjoy disco" features Matthew Higgs on the decks, and a last chance to shake your tailfeathers before weighing them down with turkey.

Dance Party • 10pm-2am • November 24
Branx • 320 SE 2nd

François Boucher, "Portrait de Madame de Pompadour," 1756

Patrice Marandel, Chief Curator of the Center for European Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, is speaking this Sunday at PAM. Marandel will explore Madame de Pompadour, trendsetter in 18th century French culture, in a special advance lecture for PAM's February exhibition, La volupté du goût.

Curator Lecture • 2-3pm • November 23
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Matthew Higgs, "What Goes Around Comes Around"

Next week's PMMNLS features NYC-based curator, critic, and artist Matthew Higgs. Since the early 1990s, Higgs has sought to explore the overlapping connections between the three practices, developing an ongoing, inter-generational dialogue between artists through exhibitions and his own work.

Lecture • 7:30pm • November 24
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

Rae Mahaffey, "Fig. 704 Brackets"

Rae Mahaffey and Sherrie Wolf are speaking this weekend at Laura Russo. Mahaffey's Engineering, an exhibition of painting, prints and glass, and Wolf's Animal Life paintings are on view at the gallery through the end of November.

Artists Lecture • 11am • November 22
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st • 503.226.2754

Jiro Yonezawa, "Araumi"

Jiro Yonezawa's Dream Weaver is on view in the pavilion at the Japanese Gardens through November 30. Traditionally trained in bamboo arts in Beppu, Japan, Yonezawa lived and worked for many years outside of Portland before his recent return to Japan. His bamboo basketry and sculpture combine a mastery of traditional forms with a unique, elegant contemporary sensibility.

Exhibition • November 15 - 30
Japanese Gardens • 611 SW Kingston Avenue • Garden Pavilion

Allora & Calzadilla, still from "Under Discussion," from "Beyond Green" at Lewis & Clark

Next week: Stephanie Smith, director of collections and exhibitions and curator of contemporary art at the Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago, will speak at PSU. Smith, who has published and curated widely on issues of art and sustainability, curated Beyond Green: Toward a Sustainable Art, originally exhibited at the Smart Museum, currently on view at Lewis & Clark's Hoffman Gallery.

Lecture • 7:30pm • November 17
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

The Boxlift Building artists are having their annual open studio. Come by this weekend for music, refreshments, and work by 16 artists, including Eugenia Pardue, Mark and Rae Mahaffey (who has a show up at Laura Russo this month).

Open Studios • 4-10pm • November 15
12-5pm • November 16
Boxlift Building • 333 NE Hancock St. • boxliftbldg@gmail.com

Icelandic artist Asmundur Asmundsson's The Good Works opens this weekend at Rocksbox. Asmundsson "creates a subterfuge," believing that "our foundation as a civilized people has eternal possibilities and is despite (or because of) the dreadfulness of contemporary tastelessness, based upon freedom seeking the genuine." Asmundsson will also be lecturing this Friday at PSU.

Artist lecture • 6-8pm • November 14
PSU • 2000 SW 5th AVE • Room AB200, 2nd Floor Art Building

Opening reception • 7-11pm • November 15
Rocksbox • 6450 N Interstate AVE • 971.506.8938

Jens Hoffmann

Jens Hoffmann, international curator, art critic, and author, will present "What is a Curator? From Exhibition Maker to Author" this week at PNCA. Curating is difficult business, and this lecture should be an interesting exploration of questions of contemporary art.

Curatorial lecture • 6:30pm • November 12
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • Swigert Commons

Don't miss this: For the holidaze, PAM is offering two for one admission every Thursday night, 4-8pm, through January 8, 2009 (the end of the Wild Beauty exhibition).

Dan Gilsdorf's Interiotrope is opening at Disjecta tomorrow. Gilsdorf "creates subtle and mysterious narratives from simple mechanisms." With Interiotrope, he has transformed the exhibition space, "infiltrating the gallery and breach[ing] surfaces which normally delineate interior space."

Opening reception • 6-10pm • November 8
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate Avenue • 503.286.9449

(More! And PMMNLS.)

LEFT: Nick van Woert, RIGHT: Nicholas Pittman

Nick van Woert and Nicholas Pittman are bringing New Construction to Fourteen30. Responding to changes in technology and contemporary life through invention rather than reflection, the artists attempt to create a sense of order out of our times through abstract works of relief construction, sculpture, and painting. It's good to see Fourteen30 bringing this space back to participating in First Friday.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • November 7
Fourteen30 • 1430 SE 3rd AVE • 503.236.1430

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Storm Tharp, "Twins at a Funeral"

Storm Tharp is exhibiting ARM & ARM at PDX Contemporary. This new body of work continues his "lengthy investigation into the relationship between human nature and artfulness, form and function." Nine major works will be featured, exploring portraiture, painting, film, and one ambitious sculptural piece. Tharp, who was reviewed by PORT last year, named this exhibition such that "in all forms of its meaning, 'two' is revealed. 'Two' and what it conjures, is the basis by which the work for this exhibition was made."

Opening reception • 6-8pm • November 6
PDX Contemporary • 925 NW Flanders • 503.222.0063

(Many more - updated!)

Chang-Ae Song, "MASS - Black Disaster"

Pacific Currents opens this week at Clark College's Archer Gallery. The show features nine contemporary artists of Asian heritage working in a broad range of mediums to explore Asian historical traditions through modern issues and experience.

Opening reception • 4-6pm • November 5
Archer Gallery • Penguin Union Building, 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA • 360.992.2246

Roxanne Jackson, "Soft Spot"

Clay As Sculpture is currently showing at the Alexander Gallery at Clackamas CC. The exhibition, which explores the use of ceramics in sculpture, features work by Roxanne Jackson, J.D. Perkins, and Micki Skudlarczyk. It is open through November 19.

Reception • 3-5pm • November 6
Alexander Gallery • Niemeyer Center, 19600 Molalla AVE, Oregon City

Sherrie Wolf, "Courbet's Allegory"

The Art Gym at Marylhurst presents Homage, re-enactments, copies and tributes by Sherrie Wolf, Brad Adkins, Christopher Rauschenberg and Michelle Ross. Originally conceived when Wolf presented her full scale copy of Gustave Courbet's 1855 oil painting The Painter's Studio: Allegory of Seven Years of My Artistic and Moral Life, curator Terri Hopkins decided to seek out other artists who were exploring imitation and homage: Rauschenberg's Eugène Atget project, Adkins's visual performance re-enactments, and Ross's Small Wild Things. Hopkins suggests that these artists projects are inspired less by a Levine-like desire to question authenticity, then an interest in homage, re-creation, and experimentation. The show runs through December 7.

Preview reception • 3-5pm • November 2
Marylhurst Art Gym • 17600 Pacific Highway (Hwy 43) Marylhurst, OR • 503.699.6243

Mammalian Diving Reflex, from "Accepting the Possibility That I May Ruin My Eyes

Next Monday's PMMNLS speaker is Darren O'Donnell, writer, director, social acupuncturist, designer and artistic director of Mammalian Diving Reflex. MDR claims to "smash ideas together at high speeds to see what pops out, inadvertently producing ideal entertainment for the end of the world." Here's to hoping the world doesn't end on Tuesday, but just in case, go see this lecture.

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • November 3
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

MK Guth's project at the Whitney Biennial

MK Guth is bringing her installation at the Whitney Biennial to PAM's APEX gallery. For Ties of Protection and Safe Keeping, Guth traveled across the country, asking community members "What's worth protecting?" Their answers were handwritten on red flannel ribbons, and incorporated into a continuous braid, referencing Rapunzel's epic braid. PAM writes that the project "poignantly embodies the diverse voices of America in today's complex times." Don't miss PORT's exclusive interview with the artist last January.

Exhibition • November 1, 2008 - March , 2009
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park AVE • 503.226.2811

The North Coast Seed Building, one of Portland's many great artist work spaces, invites the community to join them "on the wrong side of the tracks" for an open house this weekend. The building is made up of three separate warehouses constructed over thirty years, beginning in 1911. Originally zoned only for industrial use, artists working in the space in the early 1990s were nearly evicted by the fire marshal. Due to the intervention of a sympathetic member of the City of Portland's Bureau of Buildings, an artist's work was reinterpreted as a manufacturing process, and the North Coast Seed Building became an officially sanctioned artist space. Artists currently working in the building include Cynthia Lahti and Jason Traeger.

Open House • 5-9pm • November 1
North Coast Seed Building • 2127 N. Albina AVE

History of Honey

In conjunction with the ongoing Beyond Green exhibition at L&C's Hoffman Gallery, PORT's own Ryan Pierce is exhibiting The End of Death and Taxes. The large-scale paintings depict humans rebuilding society after the end of industry. It is a utopian exploration of what it would mean to create a sustainable environment by "redrafting human society around the health of natural systems." The exhibition is on display on the first floor of the Miller Center for the Humanities.

Exhibition • Through December 7
Hoffman Gallery • 0615 SW Palatine Hill Rd. • 503.768.7687

David Reed, "#453," 1996-2000, Collection Neues Museum Nürnberg

Abstract painter (and Reed alumnus) David Reed is speaking this Wednesday at Reed College. The lecture will be followed by a public reception at the Cooley for David Reed: Lives of Paintings, on view through December 9.

Artist lecture • 7pm • October 29
Reed College Vollum Lecture Hall
Exhibition • October 29 - December 9
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Hauser Memorial Library

Ursula von Rydingsvard, "Damski Czepek"

Ursula von Rydingsvard will launch this year's Visiting Artists & Scholars program at OSU. She came to PAM a year ago to speak on the occasion of the exhibition of Pod Pacha last year. von Rydingsvard is best known for her extraordinary monumental cedar sculptures and installations.

Reception • 6pm • November 6
Lecture • 7pm • November 6
OSU • 875 SW 26th St. Corvallis • C&E Auditorium LaSells

Matt McCormick, still from "Towlines"

Artist / filmmaker Matt McCormick will be next week's PMMNLS speaker. Locally and nationally acclaimed, McCormick is known for such films as The Subconcious Art of Graffiti Removal, Towlines, and The Problem With Machines (That Communicate). His playful films offer "witty, abstract observations of contemporary culture and the urban landscape."

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • October 27
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

Been following development of the new bridge with us? An urban design panel is convening next Tuesday to discuss the "process, design considerations, and the next step." Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail: A New Bridge Over the Willamette will feature international bridge designer Miguel Rosales, AIA, and TriMet Design Manager Sean Batty, ASLA. You can preview documents related to the planning process on TriMet's site.

Urban Design Panel • 12-1:30pm • October 28
AIA Portland • 401 NW 11th AVE • Main Conference Room

Melody Owen, "Giraffe"

Over the past decade, philanthropist Leslie Durst has been privately commissioning a different local artist each year to create a unique edition of twelve objects. The Butterfly Effect will showcase the works publicly for the first time. The visual effect may be somewhat hodge podge, but it should be an interesting chance to see a somewhat rare example of the role of modern patronage. Artists include Christine Bourdette, Inge Bruggeman, Rachel Denny, Kristy Edmunds, Eleanor Erskine, Sally Finch, Kay French, Jörg Jakoby, Melody Owen, and Jenny Rideout.

Exhibition • 12-6pm • October 21 - 25
PICA • Leftbank Building • 240 N Broadway

Buster Simpson, "Incidence," installed at the Tacoma Museum of Glass. Photo by Russell Johnson.

Next week's PMMNLS features Buster Simpson, a widely known environmental and site-specific artist. His public installations seek to actively engage the viewer and the surrounding environment, such as Incidence shown above, which responds to ambient atmospheric conditions of light and the reflections on the water. Simpson's work includes major infrastructure projects, site master planning, signature sculptures, museum installations, and community projects.

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • October 20
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

logo ©Drive By Press

This Saturday, Drive By Press is holding a printing party at The Life, featuring their mobile print making studio. Come by, make your own print or t-shirt, and enjoy a Saturday night art party at the Everett Station lofts.

Printing party • 6:30pm • October 18
The Life Art • 625 NE Everett St. #107 • 971.544.1365

Reminder: Nominations are due Monday, October 20 for the Henry's new Brink Award. Nomination guidelines can be found here.

Todd Johnson

Ongoing: Photographer Todd Johnson's Dangerous Territory is on view at PNCA. This politically timely exhibition "revolves around the ideas of competition, survival, technology and destruction."

Exhibition • October 12 - November 30
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson

Cloud Eye Control, from "Under Polaris"

PICA presents Under Polaris, a "multimedia Arctic experience" by Cloud Eye Control. Created while the group was in residence with PICA, the hybrid performance is "a multi-media quest through expansive arctic landscapes, mythical creatures and the ethereal Aurora Borealis." Cloud Eye Control is a collaborative performance group from Los Angeles, comprised of Chi-wang Yang, Miwa Matreyek, and Anna Oxygen. Tickets to the event are $10.

Performance • 2:30-6:30pm (all ages) • 8:30pm (21+) • October 19
PICA • Leftbank Building • 240 N Broadway

Thomas Zummer, 2002, Portrait of 'Odex', graphite and pure carbon on paper, 42 x 30

PNCA & FIVE Idea Studio present "Models of Critical Production," a series of workshops, seminars, and lectures led by Saul Ostrow and Thomas Zummer. Ostrow and Zummer are both established artists, critics, curators, and scholars, and will critically examine modes of contemporary art practice. The noon-time chats are free and open to the public.

Saul Ostrow Lecture #1 • 12:30 - 1:30pm • October 14
Tom Zummer Lecture • 12:30-1:30 • October 15
Saul Ostrow Lecture #2 • 12:30 - 1:30pm • October 16
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson, in Commons • 503.226.4391

Jim Lommasson, "Arturo Franco: Wilsonville, OR"

The next NAAU Couture show opens this Friday. Jim Lommasson presents Exit Wounds, a documentation of the lives of returning veterans, exhibiting concurrently with the November elections. The exhibit combines Lommasson's photographs with photographs and words by the participants, exploring their transitions from the battlefield back to home life.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • October 17
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny St. • 503.231.8294

The Linfield gallery is opening .meta, a group show curated by TJ Norris.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • October 15
Artist discussion • 4-5pm • November 12
Linfield Gallery • 900 Baker St. McMinnville • Miller Fine Arts Center

Tired of talking heads? There are some arts amazing lectures coming up in the next week.

Garth Clark, courtesy of MoCC

Craft "visionary" Garth Clark will be speaking at PNCA on Thursday. Clark works out of NYC as a gallery owner, curator, writer, historian, and one of craft's preeminent intellectuals. He'll be presenting How Envy Killed the Crafts Movement: An Autopsy in Two Parts, co-sponsored by the Museum of Contemporary Craft, the Oregon College of Art & Craft, and the Pacific Northwest College of the Arts. The lecture is free and open to the public, but he sold out the Whitsell auditorium the last time he was in town, so get there early.

Craft lecture • 6:30pm • October 16
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • Swigert Commons

Andrea Zittel, A-Z Raugh Furniture, 2007

The PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture Series (hereafter known as PMMNLS) is kicking off with a bang this Monday with Andrea Zittel. This internationally acclaimed artist focuses on creative, sustainable living through the development of hand-crafted furniture, clothing, homes, and vehicles for "contemporary consumers." The O interviewed her in anticipation of her presentation. Keep an eye on Friday posts for a truly fantastic list of weekly speakers in this season's PMMNLS series.

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • October 13
PSU • 1914 SW Park • Shattuck Hall Room 212

This might be a little far to go for a screening, but we wanted to give a nod to Portland artists abroad: United State of Mind, v.4 of the Portland-based Odds and Ends video series, will be screened on October 11 at the Taipei Biennial as part of the Urban Nomad Film Festival. Congrats to the filmmakers listed above!

Happening a little more locally: Rererato is featuring the film and sculptural installations of Brandon Boan. Preserve Then Rewind explores the disruption of history through the slow recording of the process of everyday objects changing over time.

Opening reception • 6pm • October 11
Rererato • 5135 NE 42nd AVE • 732.407.4418

April Surgent, "An Afternoon with Ethan"

Bullseye presents Traces of Ourselves, an exhibition developed through the joint residency of Jiri Harcuba and April Surgent. Harcuba is a master Czech engraver whose work explores the dialog between self, society, history, and present. During their residency, Surgent, an up-and-coming American artist, refined her technique in glass engraving, expanding upon the themes of contemporary travel and culture. The exhibition runs from October 7 through November 22.

Opening reception • 5:30-7:30pm • October 10
Bullseye Gallery • 300 NW 13th AVE • 503.227.0222

Ben Killen Rosenberg

Ben Killen Rosenberg's Thank You For Having Me opened today at PSU's MK Gallery. Last year, Rosenberg began a series of paintings to introduce the PSU Monday Night Lecture Series. The paintings vary from an interpretation of the lecturing artist's work, imitation, portraiture, etc. Open through October 30.
Artist reception • October 23 • 5-7pm
MK Gallery at PSU • 2000 SW 5th AVE • 2nd Floor

Peter HappelChristian, "Familiar Wilderness"

Peter HappelChristian's Near the Point of the Beginning opens this Thursday. HappelChristian researched a cartographic site along the Ohio River called "The Point of Beginning," which marks the beginning of a grid system that constructs boundaries in the American landscape. Through his research, HappelChristian explores human interaction with the natural world. The exhibition runs from October 9 through October 30.

Artist lecture • 5-7pm • October 9
Artist reception • 5-7pm • October 11
Autzen Gallery at PSU • 724 SW Harrison St. • 2nd Floor

Harry Dodge & Stanya Kahn, still from "Masters of None"

TBA:08 On Sight: The New Absurdists closes tomorrow! Don't miss your last opportunity to experience the installations of Tamy Ben-Tor, Harry Dodge & Stanya Kahn, Lizzie Fitch, Jacob Hartman, Corey Lunn, Jeffry Mitchell, and Ryan Trecartin.

On view 12-6pm • Last day October 4
On Sight at THE WORKS • Leftbank 240 N Broadway

drawing by Samantha Wall

Curated by Selina Ho, Reverse Reality is an artist residency and exhibition project that sent four Hong Kong young artists to Portland for a month to create new work informed and inspired by their experiences. Artists Beatrix Bang, Doris Wong, Hanison Lau, and Florian Ma translated their tradition working methods through the lens of their experiences in Portland, fostering a cultural dialogue between contemporary American and Chinese art. Included in this mix Portland artist Samantha Wall has a room devoted to her highly kinesthetic drawings of grappling women.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • October 3
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

(More.)

Alfred A. Monner, "Sand Dunes Along the Columbia River with the Snow-Capped Peak of Mt. Hood in the Distance," 1934

Wild Beauty: Photographs of the Columbia River Gorge 1867-1957 opens this weekend at PAM. The exhibition features roughly 250 historic photographs that illustrate "the majesty of the Columbia River Gorge through nine decades of profound transformation." Check the exhibition website for related lectures and events.

Exhibition • October 4, 2008 - January 11, 2009
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Also coming soon to PAM: Making Merry: The Circus and Carnival in Graphic Art. October 11, 2008 - January 4, 2009. More details can be found on the exhibition page.

Jen DeNike, still from "Flag Girls"

Quality Pictures presents Jen DeNike's Flag Girls, the first video installation in their "Video Trifecta" series. Recreating a found 1918 postcard depicting women wrapped in the American colonial flag, DeNike's Flag Girls are able to free themselves from the flag's "oppressive hold," humming the national anthem as they unwrap themselves and exit off-stage nude. The video has been well received in England and New York, described in the Guardian as "a suggestion of American nationhood perhaps being transfixed by almost terminal self-doubt."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • October 2
Quality Pictures Contemporary Art • 916 NW Hoyt • 503.227.5060

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Bean Gilsdorf, "Tinker, Tailor"

Bean Gilsdorf's Handsome opens this week at the Albina Press coffee shop, featuring nine mixed-media panels. "Each work in Handsome features a single figure: a stylized company man in the mode of mid-century advertising illustrations. Each man observes, gestures, or manipulates as he is engaged in some mysterious pursuit, the motive for which is unseen."

Show • October 1 - 31
Albina Press • 4637 N. Albina AVE • 503.282.5214

Christopher James Brown

PCC's Cascade Gallery is featuring the work of Christopher James Brown. Tooling Around breaks free of the binary of art/craft, using glue, ink, and wood to create "non objective works of art." Utilizing extensive knowledge of furniture making and the basic forms of Modernist design, Brown "formulate(s) new conjectures of mastery." His exhibit will be on view October 1st through November 5th.

Opening reception • 4-7pm • October 1
Artist talk • 4-5pm • October 8
PCC Cascade Gallery • 705 N Killingsworth in Terrel Hall, Room 102 • 503.978.5326

Mark Dombrosky, APEX installation view

This Sunday, current PAM APEX artist Mark Dombrosky will speak about his "artistic process and intentions." Dombroksy's work examines the social atmosphere of an American town, typically utilizing found scraps of paper to offer a glimpse into the lives of strangers. This installation presents a series of cardboard homeless signs found in the streets of Tacoma and Seattle, his careful embroidery over the script "reveal[ing] as much about language and place as human relationships and individual psychology," (Jennifer Gately). The exhibit will be on view at PAM through October 26.

Artist lecture • 2pm • September 28
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Vicki Lynn Wilson, conceptual drawing for "Fung-US"

Opening this weekend: The 2008 Natural Cycles installation on Trillium Trail at Tryon Creek State Park. A collaborative project between the RACC, Oregon State Parks, and Friends of Tryon Creek State Park, the Natural Cycles project brings temporary forest art installations to the Trillium Trail each year. The five artists featured this year are Brennan Conaway, Portland, Oregon (Invader); Lee Imonen, Dexter, Oregon (The Source Series); Julie Lindell, Seattle, Washington (Nontrivial Pursuit); Jen Pack, Warrenton, Oregon (Forevergreen Tuffet) and Vicki Lynn Wilson, Portland, Oregon (Fung-US). The 2008-2009 installations will be unveiled on Saturday, followed by a $100/plate fundraising dinner. A free family day will be held on Sunday with hands-on art activities along the trail.

Forest art installation • September 27, 2008 - Summer, 2009
Tryon Creek State Park • Close-in Portland, see website for directions

Bruce Conkle's Do You Feel Lucky Punk?

Rocksbox presents Bruce Conkle, "de facto king of the Pacific NW eco-art-geeks," currently showing Eco Takers at the State University of New York at SUNY Oswego. Friendlier Fire is "an exhibition of the prime-evil, using the primordial poop of the earth and the detritus of our caffeine fueled society hell bent on self-destruction."

Opening reception • 7-11pm • September 27
Rocksbox • 6540 N Interstate • 971.506.8938

Devon Oder, "Bleed #7 (Cloud)"

Jeanine Jablonski's new gallery, Fourteen30, debuts this Friday with Devon Oder's Breaking Light. Oder's work uses film and lenses to manipulate photography and create surreal, mysterious landscapes. The exhibition's title refers to the physical processes of breaking up the Polaroid chemical emulsion and distorting light through trees, prisms, lenses, etc. Her images challenge "both the technical processes [of photography] and the phenomenological experience of the viewer."
A specialty art bookstore will also open inside the gallery, including works published by Museum Paper (Stockholm), 2nd Cannons (Los Angeles), Nieves (Zurich), and JRP|Ringier (Zurich).

Inaugural Reception • 6-9pm • September 26
Fourteen30 Contemporary • 1430 SE 3rd AVE • 503.226.1430

Hilary Pfeifer, "Natural Selection," installed at Ogle

This week's Art Focus on KBOO will feature Hilary Pfeifer. She'll be speaking about her Natural Selection exhibition on view at Ogle Gallery this month. The installation consists of a small greenhouse, filled with plants following a very human process of mate selection. You can also hear her speak at the gallery this Saturday.

Radio Interview • 10:30-11am • September 25
Art Focus • 90.7 FM • Live Stream

Artist lecture • 1pm • September 27
Ogle Gallery • 310 NW Broadway • 503.227.4333

Eric Tillinghast, "Verticle Multichrome"

Tonight the Oregon Arts Commission is unveiling two new site-specific public works at PSU. Eric Tillinghast's Verticle Multichrome and Steven Beatty and Laurel Kurtz's JUICY II will appear in the ceiling alcove on the second floor of the Ondine residence hall. Learn more about recent and upcoming OAC public art exhibitions in this PDF.

Unveiling • 6-8pm • September 19
PSU Ondine Hall • 1912 SW Sixth Avenue

Lena McGrath Welker, "[chart] folio"

PCC Rock Creek's Helzer Gallery presents Lena McGrath Welker, winner of the Pollock-Krasner Foundation award. The latest work in her Navigation cycle, Navigation [chart] is "an intellectually and physically complex installation that investigates our responses in times of grief and loss." Using maps, texts, and symbols, Welker charts our search for answers in the night sky. Welker will speak on this and related work in early October in PCC Rock Creek's Forum (Building 3).

Exhibition • September 22 - November 12
Artist talk • 3pm • October 3
Helzer Art Gallery • 17705 NW Springville Rd. Building 3 • 503.244.6111 x3434

Hildur Bjarnadottir, "Blue Doodle"

Icelandic artist Hildur Bjarnadottir will speak this weekend at Pulliam Deffenbuagh. One of four artists currently featured in Blurring the Line: art of thread, Bjarnadottir adopts the "handwork" of her native Iceland as she "unravels its traditions within the context of contemporary art."

Artist talk • 11:30am • September 20
Pulliam Deffenbaugh • 929 NW Flanders • 503.228.6665

Also happening this weekend: Come to PAM this weekend for their annual book sale. Get your hands on art books, auction catalogs, and more for great prices and a great cause: All proceeds benefit the museum.

Saturday, September 20, 10am - 5pm
Sunday, September 21, 12pm - 5pm
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • Mark Building

From suddenly.org

The Cooley Gallery is holding a reception & "unfolding event" for Suddenly: where we live now. Swing by the gallery from 5-7pm to check out the installed works, then head over to the Student Union for Psychedelic Sprawl, "music, conversation, disorientation, food, and drink," featuring presentations and performances by Mostlandia. You can follow this ongoing series of exhibitions and public events at www.suddenly.org.

Reception • 5-7pm • September 21
Psychedelic Sprawl (Student Union) • 7-10pm • September 21
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Hauser Memorial Library

From "Volume"

Don't miss Volume's curator tour by PORTstar Jeff Jahn this weekend. He'll be joined by several artists to talk about the work in the show, which was positively reviewed by the Mercury and the Willamette Week. Learn more about the exhibition here, and check out photos from the show on Flickr. Also, don't miss the lecture next week by Arun Jain, Chief Urban Designer, City of Portland.

Curatorial tour • 2pm • September 21
Lecture • 7pm • September 23
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

Fanny Van Duyn, ca. 1907

Tomorrow night, Newspace hosts an Oregon Chautauqua program from the Oregon Council for the Humanities. Carol Glauber will lecture on four distinctive female Northwest photographers between 1852 and 1917. These women emerged from at least 233 women working at the time, documenting "the Columbia River Gorge, Native Americans, and the early development of the Klamath Basin [to] provide a window into [Oregon's] history that reflects community, culture, and gender."

Lecture • 7pm • September 17 • Free
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th AVE • 503.963.1935

This month's ArtSpark has relocated to the ArtBar in the PCPA building. The discussion will be hosted by Arts Partners, an initiative to connect artists and arts organizations with schools. They'll be outlining upcoming opportunities for artists interested in working in classrooms.

ArtSpark • 5-7pm • September 18 (and every 3rd Thursday)
ArtBar • SW Broadway & Main • 503.432.9205

"The sculpture competition that's one part Iron Chef and two parts Junkyard Wars."
That says it all- come check out the festivities, featuring a wild and crazy sculpture competition, music, food, a beer garden, and more. All proceeds benefit the School & Community Reuse Action Project (SCRAP). More info and schedule of events can be found here.

Competition 11am - 2:30pm • Festivities until 7pm
September 13 • SE 2nd @ Main & Salmon

Michael Rakowitz, "paraSITE"

Lewis & Clark's Hoffman Gallery presents Beyond Green: Toward a Sustainable Art. The exhibition features an international group of artists exploring "the convergence of art, design, and sustainability," and this is its only stop in the Northwest. Three overlapping themes guide the grouping of the works: objects, structures, and processes/networks. Each features a creative restructuring of humans' relationship to our world, such as Michael Rakowitz's paraSITES (above). These portable structures, inflated and heated by the air from city buildings, offer an "unconventional" shelter for the homeless. The exhibition runs through December 7.

Opening reception • 5-7pm • September 11
Hoffman Gallery at Lewis & Clark • 0615 SW Palatine Hill Rd. • 503.768.7687

PSU's second year MFA candidates in studio & social practice will be showing their work at the Autzen gallery. Side by Side features artists Katy Asher, Steve Baggs, Vanessa Calvert, Varinthorn Christopher, Damien Gilley, Bethany Hays, Avalon Kalin, Laurel Kurtz, Sandy Sampson, Rebecca Shelly, Cyrus Smith, and Eric Steen. The exhibition runs from September 8 through October 4, and there will be a closing reception for the artists.

Closing reception • 5-7pm • October 4
PSU Autzen Gallery • 724 SW Harrison St.

Jim Kazanjian

Jim Kazanjian's Untitled works seek to produce an "entropic" series of images. Fragmenting photographic space, Kazanjian attempts to break down the "linear" visual plane, and create something entirely new in its reconstruction.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • September 5
Pushdot Studio • 1021 SE Caruthers St. • 503.224.5925

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The Yes Men

TBA starts this week, and hidden amongst the opening night activities is one of the most exciting shows on this month's First Thursday circuit: The first major exhibition of The Yes Men. This artist/activist group has become (in)famous for infiltrating events like the GO-EXPO, Canada's largest oil conference, and successfully obliterating perceived limits of social and business norms. For TBA, they've installed KEEP IT SLICK: Infiltrating Capitalism With The Yes Men at PNCA. KEEP IT SLICK features "elaborate costumes, slapstick videos, outrageous posters and props ... exhibited alongside new works produced for this exhibition." The Yes Men will also present a workshop this weekend giving insight into their methods and How to be a Yes Man.

Opening reception • 5-8pm • September 4
Workshop • 3-4pm • September 6
PNCA Feldman Gallery • 1241 NW Johnson St. • 503.226.4391

Much more!

Eugenia Pardue, from "Anomaly"

Described as "almost sculptural," Eugenia Pardue's painting transforms the Linfield Gallery into a site specific installation. Using tools to "braid, mold, and weave" her thick paint, Pardue's work crawls off the canvas to interact with the viewer.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • September 3
Artist talk • 4pm • September 24
Linfield Gallery • 900 SE Baker St. McMinnville at the Miller Fine Arts Center • 503.883.2804

Portland's art community has truly been stepping up to reexamine and re-imagine our fair city as it grows, and, more importantly, to guide its growth. Continuing the discourse opened by exhibitions like last month's PDXplore and the recently opened Suddenly, PORT's own Jeff Jahn is curating Volume, which opens this weekend at Worksound. Volume, Jahn's first non-institutional warehouse show since 2005, surveys "how Portland's art scene addresses, redirects, abuses and redefines space." Housed in one of the oldest buildings on the eastside, Worksound is especially well suited to the exploration of the development of the city and its once gritty/industrial Central Eastside (Arts) Industrial District. The exhibit features a lecture in late September by Arun Jain, Chief Urban Designer, City of Portland.

Opening reception • 7-9:30pm • August 30
Also open for First Friday
Lecture • 7pm • September 23
Worksound • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

More, more, MORE happenings this weekend after the jump.

$Wilcox_Manufractured.jpg$
Dominic Wilcox, "War Bowl"

Manuf®actured opens this Thursday at MoCC. The exhibition explores the use of "labor-intensive craft practices" to take apart and remold mass produced objects and materials. The wide variety of work examines questions of "overabundance, appropriation, [and] reuse." MoCC will, as always, stay open for the First Thursday artwalk next week.

Exhibition • August 28, 2008 - January 4, 2009
Lecture • 6:30pm • September 18
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Jesse Hayward's installation, progressed

Jesse Hayward's innovative and interactive installation at Jáce Gáce has been building since it opened for First Friday. Come experience and celebrate the results this Friday.

Closing reception • 6-10pm • August 29
Jáce Gáce • 2045 SE Belmont • 503.239.1887

Artist Fritz Haeg w/ naturalist Mike Houck

Suddenly: where we live now opens today at Reed's Cooley Gallery. It is "an ongoing set of visual art exhibitions, a reader, and a series of public programs" seeking to explore new ways to shape the natural and urban landscape. Featured artists include Fritz Haeg, Marc Joseph Berg, Michael Damm, Zoe Crosher, Frank Heath, Oscar Tuazon, and Metronome Press. During TBA, curator Stephanie Snyder will lead a tour through Fritz Haeg's Animal Estates. In late September, there will be a public reception in the Cooley Gallery, followed by the "unfolding event" Psychedelic Sprawl in the Reed Student Union, put on by the citizens of Mostlandia and others. Finally, a series of symposia on the exhibit is happening in October.

Exhibition • August 26 - October 5
Public reception • 5-7pm • September 21
Unfolding event • 7-10pm • September 21
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Hauser Memorial Library

Andrew Brandou

Painter Andrew Brandou presents his lush landscapes at Grasshut. Innocent at first glance, his playful animal characters often reveal a mischievous - or downright twisted - twist that adds a wicked delight to his bright colors and careful brushwork. This weekend's opening reception of from the Funk Drawer, Brandou's Grass Hut mini-show, features a breakfast catered by the Screen Door, so RSVP soon to grasshut.corp@gmail.com.

Opening reception (and breakfast!) • 11am - 1pm • August 31
Grass Hut • 811 E Burnside • 503.445.9924 • RSVP to grasshut.corp@gmail.com

Diane Jacobs, "Doing Time"

The first solo show at Disjecta's new space is opening tomorrow. Formerly scheduled at PAC, Diane Jacobs presents The Writing's on the Wall. Taking an "an interactive and experiential" approach to American racism, the exhibition looks at the impact of incarceration and the ramifications of institutional racism.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 23
Disjecta • 8371 N Interstate AVE • 503.286.9449

This weekend at Rererato, Dustin Zemel brings us a series of video installations titled Stare Hard. Using a variety manipulated footage and loops, Zemel's work "explores the visual density of our highly produced films and television programs."

Opening reception • 6-8pm • August 23
Rererato • 5135 NE 42nd AVE • info@rererato.com

Not coincidentally, Episode 2 of Rererato TV will air at 4pm the same day, featuring music, performance, and a discussion of Zemel's work.

Ethan Jackson, from "Polyopticon VI"

NAAU's next Couture exhibition opens this week. With Orbis Viridus Obscurus, photographer Ethan Jackson will convert the entire gallery space into a "living camera obscura." The project is a continuation of his exploration of the camera obscura in Polyopticon VI, where he used mirrors, lenses, and "baffles" to distort and convert space in an abandoned ranch dwelling in Wyoming. Jackson defines the camera obscura as a "participational optics... that defines a conceptual space that is difficult to tackle directly."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 20
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny St. • 503.231.8294

Michihiro Kosuge, "Arbor Series Sculpture"

Michihiro Kosuge and Gina Wilson are speaking this weekend on their current exhibitions at Laura Russo. Kosuge's Recent Sculpture explores "the relationship between man and nature seen in an influence by both architectural form and the natural environment." Featured works include The Arbor Series, towering columnal forms that are "solemn and spiritual." Wilson's New Paintings are playful abstractions of the human figure, "offbeat and distinctive... soft and intimate."

Artists' talk • 11am • August 16
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st AVE • 503.226.2754

Rocksbox is bringing us a pair of solo exhibitions by Jo Nigoghossian of NYC (left) and Natascha Snellman of LA, CA (right). Nigoghossian's Happy Hour "create(s) a psychologically charged atmosphere of visual discomfort" using "voyeuristic" video and sculpture in a psychosexual explorations of bar scenes, 70s film aesthetics, crowds, anxiety, and more. Snellman's We Children of the Zoo takes a different path through the human psyche via the "unstable frontier between what we consider human and what we still define as animal." Borrowing her exhibition title from the film Christiane F., she combines site-specific sculpture and collage.

Opening reception • 7-11pm • August 16
Rocksbox Fine Art • 6540 N. Interstate • 971.506.8938

Vicki Lynn Wilson

Surface Tension opens this month at Gallery Homeland. The exhibition features past and future artists from the gallery's annual summer series, Scratching the Surface. The series "embrac(es) the Willamette River's powerful role in promoting culture through community and exploration." Featured artists include Josh Arseneau, Vicki Lynn Wilson, Marc Dombrosky, Shannon Eakins, Tim Folland, Jesse Hayward, Sean Healy, Ben Stagl, Grace Luebke, Mack McFarland, Gary Wiseman, Dana Vinger, Jo Ann Kemmis, John Vitale, and Adam Ross, as well as video recaps of several past projects.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 8
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th AVE • 503.819.9656

Bobby Grossman, "Andy Warhol: Cornflakes," 1978

Traveling exhibition Bande à part (Band of Outsiders) is coming to Augen Gallery NW this month. A reference to the 1964 film by Jean-Luc Godard, the show is a collection of photographs from the New York underground scene in the 60's, 70's, & 80's. It is an "inside" look at the self-proclaimed "outsiders," including photography by Billy Name, Danny Fields, Leee Black Childers, Anton Perich, Roberta Bayley, Godlis, Marcia Resnick, and Bobby Grossman. This show is timed nicely with the Famous Faces exhibition at the Maryhill Museum.

Opening reception • 5-8:30pm • August 7
Augen Gallery NW • 716 NW Davis • 503.546.5056

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Dan Attoe, "You Are Vulnerable Just Like the Rest of Us," 2006 (View 1)

Dan Attoe & graphic novelist Craig Thompson are speaking this week at PAM. They'll present their shared artistic influences, and "reflect on the contemporary American experience." Attendees are invited to visit the CNAA galleries for a discussion following the lecture. Unfortunately, the event conflicts with the First Thursday artwalk... So scheduling might be an issue.

Artist lecture • 6pm • August 7 • Museum Admission applies
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park • 503.226.2811

Gertrud and Otto Natzler

Gertrude and Otto Natzler, "pioneers in modern ceramics," have been collaborating for almost forty years. They came to California in 1938 after fleeing from Austria during WWII, and have since produced over 25,000 works out of their LA studio. MoCC presents The Ceramics of Gertrud and Otto Natzler, a retrospective and tribute. If you missed the members-only preview, come by MoCC next week during First Thursday.

Exhibition • August 2, 2008 - January 25, 2009
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

Jesse Hayward's installation in progress

Jáce Gáce describes Hayward's character as one "in the spirit of throwing caution to the wind and letting the chips fall where they lay," and in The Nursed Meeting of Fallen Renewal he "has created a situation of controlled chaos." His work breaks boundaries and allows the viewer to reset them, building a "living installation that will inevitably change throughout the course of the month."

Opening reception • 6-10pm • August 1
Closing reception • 6-10pm • August 29
Jáce Gáce • 2045 SE Belmont • 503.239.1887

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Andy Warhol, "Marilyn" (1981)

The Maryhill Museum of Art is exhibiting Andy Warhol and Other Famous Faces. The show features an impressive collection of Warhol's pop icon portraits. It also traces his influence on pop and contemporary art, including portraits by Jasper Johns, Chuck Close, Takashi Murakami, Robert Rauschenberg, and many more. It's worth the trek - the museum is open 7 days a week, including all holidays, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., through November 15.

Exhibition • July 19 - November 15
Maryhill Museum • 35 Maryhill Museum Drive Goldendale, Washington • 509.773.3733

Alexis Pike, "Red Chairs, Bliss, Idaho"

Photolucida promotes dialog and development in the photography community through annual spring Portfolio Review sessions between photographers and reviewers. This year, they've added a summer review session, and this weekend you can check out the work of participating photographers in the Portfolio Walk. Half the photographers will present from 6-7:30, and the other half will present from 7:30-9. In addition to the portfolios, the winners of Photolucida's first Oregon Awards (M. Bruce Hall, Alexis Pike, and Sika Stanton) will be exhibiting their work.

Portfolio Walk • 6-9pm • July 26
Art Institute of Portland • NW Davis & 11th • 2nd Floor

Brian Borrello installation view

Brian Borrello will talk about his wonderful current exhibition of paintings, drawings and sculpture, Ars Brevis, Vita Longa Saturday, July 26, 11:30 at Pulliam Deffenbaugh.

A quintessential Portlander, I often run into him in coffee shops. He is also the author of some of the most successful public art in the city, like his Max train yellow-line stops.

Here's his statement,"My work is an interpretation of the relationship between nature and man's place in its continuum. I look for the evidence of the becoming, the existence and the death of the living being - the marks and residual signs of the activity of life."

Cat Clifford

Cat Clifford, one of the recipients of the recent Contemporary Northwest Art Awards, will be speaking as part of the NW Film Center's Northwest Tracking series. She'll discuss, and screen excerpts from, her influences, from Joan Jonas' Wind (1968) to The Wizard of Oz.

Artist lecture • 6pm • July 24 • $7
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park AVE

Also, for you early birds: Happening today: Interested in learning more about Portland's alternative art venues? Rererato is chatting with Cyrus Smith on KPSU this afternoon. They'll be talking about the art space, Rererato the movie, Rererato TV, and more...

Rererato on the air! • NOON - 1pm • July 21
KPSU • 1450 AM or streaming on their website

It's Disjecta, again... and again... and again. Long time Portlanders are probably pretty familiar with this promotional routine, and have already formed their opinions. For those of you who don't know the history, PORT takes a look back and a look forward after the jump. (More.)

From Promenade, photo by Yalcin Erhan

Bill Will, July South Waterfront Artist in Residence, has collaborated with AiR director Linda Johnson on an "an unrepeatable episodic performance event." Featuring dance and lighting against Will's installation "set," they have prepared "a thoroughly orchestrated and singular event in which every gesture and offering, explicit to nuanced, is performative." The event is free, all ages, and picnics are encouraged.

Live Performance • Gathering an hour before sunset • July 19
South Waterfront Neighborhood Park • SW Moody & Curry

Melody Owen, "useless, incorruptible, secret"

In addition to her current show at Liz Leach, Melody Owen is exhibiting useless, incorruptible, secret at Caseworks in Reed's Library. She'll be lecturing on her work this week at Reed College.

Artist talk • 7pm • July 17
Reed College Theater • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • 503.777.7251

We're notorious around Portland for our struggles with money management. This weekend: Come to Newspace for It's Not About the Money, But Let's Talk About it Anyway, a lecture by Erik Schneider of Quality Pictures. The talk explores the photography marketplace, and from the perspective of both artists and collectors.

Fiscal Lecture • 11am-1pm • July 20
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th AVE • 503.963.1935

Pearl District "Art Boxes"

Orlo is a non-profit organization that uses a creative arts approach to environmental issues. They publish Bear Deluxe, an environmental magazine, and have launched a new project in the Pearl and Alphabet districts. Artboxes are boxes containing Bear Deluxe magazine that have been decorated by local artists, including Chris Haberman, Jennifer Mercede, Lukas Ketner, Jason Lockett, and Annette and Joe Thurston. ("Read more" for locations.)

Also currently installed in the Pearl District: The RACC presents an installation by Scott Sonniksen. Falling Light, which is incorporated into the structure of the MachineWorks building, is constructed of concrete blocks coated with colored epoxy glaze, installed in such a way that it creates a surface that subtly reflects light. The installation looks at the interplay of light created by dense downtown building, and the use of red is "a nod to the many historic brick buildings that once populated this district."

Downtown installation • Through July 25
MachineWorks • 1455 NW Northrup

First, a party: MoCC is hosting their second annual Craft PDX Block Party this weekend. The free event features demonstrations by local craft artists, live music, lectures in MoCC's "Lab," and lots of kid-friendly activities. Last year's was a lot of fun, so make sure to come down and celebrate the beginning of MoCC's second year in the DeSoto building.

Block Party • 11am-6pm • July 13
Museum of Contemporary Craft • North Park Blocks, NW 8th & Davis • 503.223.2654

Next, some discourse: Bridges are a big deal in this city. Just as the Willamette defines our geographical (and in some ways cultural) boundaries, its bridges, as well as that "little" one to the north, define much of our city's urban landscape. PORT has long advocated for creative, aesthetic bridge design: See our bridge design contest, and recent coverage of the urgent need to build a beautiful and "green" new I-5 bridge. This Monday, Portland Spaces magazine invites you to learn more about the proposed bridge from OMSI to OHSU. It will be the first new bridge across the Willamette in "a generation," and play an important cultural role in connecting our two major science institutions. OHSU Provost Lesley Hallick and OMSI President Nancy Stueber will be presenting their proposals for the bridge, and how this relates to both institutions' future expansion plans. This is part of the magazine's "Bright Lights Discussion Series."

Bridge lecture • Doors at 5:30, Talk at 6pm • July 14
Portland Spaces Magazine Hosted by Jimmy Mak's • 221 NW 10th AVE

Gregory Grenon, "Unspeakable Hair"

Husband and wife team Mary Josephson and Gregory Grenon are exhibiting (individually) at Laura Russo this month. In Full Length Feature, painter Josephson has expanded her media to deepen her exploration of narrative and storytelling traditions. Grenson's Unspeakable Hair is a survey of lithographs and prints that take an "incredibly honest" look at the human form and character. They'll both be presenting lectures on their work this weekend.

Artist talk • 11am • July 12
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st AVE • 503.225.2754

Cat Clifford, "Two Chairs"

The Contemporary Northwest Art Awards will be on view at PAM through September 14. They're hosting a unique event in for the exhibition: An open to the public celebration, featuring the exhibition, live music, light refreshments, and a no-host bar. The best part? It's free! But space is limited, so reserve your ticket ASAP.

Exhibition celebration • 6-9pm • July 25
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park AVE • 503.226.2811

Many eastside galleries skipped their openings last weekend due to the 4th of July, so here's our Friday artwalk picks, part II.

Taylor Deupree

Newspace is showing their annual juried exhibition, curated this year by accomplished Portland artist TJ Norris. He describes the chosen photographs as an exploration of the "essence and fragility" of the "selective and concealed moment in time."

Opening reception • 7-10pm • July 11
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th AVE • 503.963.1935

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Rose Bond, installation

The NW Film Center presents an evening with media and installation artist Rose Bond. They'll screen stories and images from several of her installation pieces, including her recent ELECTRO-FLUX, originally created as a multi-channel public installation for the Platform Animation Festival. Bond's work "explor(es) the intersection of high art and low art, film and architecture, and interior/exterior installation."

Screening • 7:30pm • July 10
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park AVE

Since Friday is 4th of July, many east side galleries are postponing their openings for a week (keep an eye out for those picks next week). Here's a sampling of galleries that are rocking it for the holiday weekend:

Grasshut is having an all day party to celebrate Fireworks, The Americans, a group show featuring around 40 artists and their take on Americana. Hot dogs, lemonade, beer, and fireworks will accompany the art to make you truly feel proud of your Independence.

Opening reception • Noon • July 4
Grass Hut Gallery • 811 E Burnside • 503.445-9924

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Installation view of scale photo of Portland metro, 1ft = 1 mile

PDXplore: Designing Portland opens tomorrow at PNCA. The project invites members of the local design and architecture community to reimagine Portland and construct a model of its growth in the next few years. It's being launched with a talk next week by five local designers and architects; Rudy Barton, Carol Mayer-Reed, Michael McCulloch, Richard Potestio, and William Tripp. As Brian Libby points out, Portland's at a crucial moment of development, and it's essential to get the community involved in the discussion of where - and how - to go from here.

Designer talk • 6-9pm • July 8
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson St. • 503.226.4391

There will be a second panel discussion later in the month, In the Round: Collective Leadership, featuring five local leaders: Sam Adams (mayor elect of Portland), David Bragdon (president of Metro), Tom Hughes (mayor of Hillsboro), Gil Kelley (Director of Planning, Portland), and Alice Rouyere (Executive manager, Gresham). It's a golden opportunity to actually bring design and city leadership together to confront the issues at hand.

Leader Roundtable • 6-9pm • July 22
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson St. • 503.226.4391

In a somewhat bewildering move, there's another interesting talk on the future of art and Portland's fabric conflicting with the first PDXplore talk. Milepost 5 is hosting a panel discussion on the future of living and working for artists in Portland...(more)

Robert Rauschenberg

Blue Sky Gallery will be honoring Robert Rauschenberg this month with an exhibition of some of his recent photographs. The prints originate from a trip to China in 1985 as part of the Rauschenberg Overseas Cultural Exchange. Many of the images had remained unused until 2008, when he collaborated with Bill Goldston to create this series of 12 prints. It is a rare opportunity to see some of the work that was in process when this great artist died earlier this year.

Opening reception • 5-8pm • July 3
Blue Sky Gallery • 122 NW 8th AVE • 503.225.0210

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Northwest Designer Craftsmen

This Thursday, High Tech/Low Tech is opening at the Oregon College of Arts & Crafts. The exhibition, comprised of work by members of the Northwest Designer Craftsmen, explores the dichotomy of old and new present in craft design. While craft is based in low tech artisan roots, craft artists are still often "the first in the art world to explore the development of new materials and methods." The exhibition runs through August 24.

Opening reception • 4-7pm • July 3
OCAC Hoffman Gallery • 8245 SW Barnes Rd. • 503.297.5544

The influential Jacqueline Ehlis (a favorite of collectors) is the next Couture stipend show at NAAU. As always, her work explores the perimeters of painting, material and space but what really differentiates her work this time out is the fact that this is a non-commercial show. Previous solo outings at Savage in 2005 and 2002 were critically and financially successful. Thus, expectations are high as the first A-list Portland artist in NAAU's Couture series, which previously opened with the quirky Lo-Fi & geek-tastic BYOTV, followed by the ambitious but slightly scattered multimedia melange of Infinitus (decent but not quite Lee Bul or Doug Aitken's level of multimedia focus). By comparison Ehlis tends to bring a no nonsense, rigorous studio-oriented approach that makes her top shelf shows a must see (even for other dealers).... be there.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • July 2
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny St. • 503.231.8294

Eva Lake, "New Duo 1 & 2" from the "Richter Scale" series

ArtTalk's summer season has started. Although the PSU MFA Monday night lecture series is taking a break, they're still interviewing artists each Monday afternoon on KPSU. This Monday, they're interviewing local painter Eva Lake.

Art Radio • Noon-1pm • Mondays through July 28
ArtTalk • 98.3FM on campus • Streaming on KPSU.org

Historic image of the Waterfront, from Linda Wysong

Linda Wysong, the June Artist in Residence on the South Waterfront, will be giving her final performance tours in her Backyard Conversations series. Footprints Along the River explores the Waterfront's history, and you can join the tour tonight at 5pm or Saturday, June 28 at 11am. Tours meet at the AiR studio, 3623 SW River Pkwy @ Gains in the John Ross Tower. Don't miss Wysong's closing reception on Saturday night, where she'll air the series of video portraits she's created to put a human face on the construction projects. You can preview an excerpt on YouTube here.

Closing reception • 8-10pm (Screening at 9pm) • June 28
AiR Studio • 3623 SW River Parkway

The closing event for the Portland Mural Show is happening this weekend. It's your last chance to check out the "snapshot of extant murals around Portland," as well as work by new Portland muralists. The rocking block party features 37 artists painting live, as well as a painting performance and a variety of musical guests.

Closing party • Noon-6pm • June 28
Olympic Mills Gallery • 107 SE Washington St.

Tahni Holt's Information Studio is happening this weekend. Participants (four at a time) will be following instructions given over headphones to the best of their ability. The "audience"-created performances will be recorded, and put online in a secret place where only you - and the people you choose to share the link with - can see. Participation is free, but spots must be reserved (see times below) by contacting Holt at hello@tahniholt.com or 503.708.5801.

Performance times: Every 30 minutes from 3pm-7:30pm Friday June 27, from 5pm-9:30pm Saturday June 28, and 2pm-4pm Sunday June 29.
PSU Smith Center • 1825 SW Broadway

This is the beginning of a series of nine interactive projects in, around, and about the Smith center commissioned by PSU through Oregon's Percent for Public Art program.

Brittany Powell

Brittany Powell's Smith Project started running last week. Powell has created six postcards of rarely celebrated views of the Smith Center, placing stacks of them at each site. The postcards are free while supplies (30,000) last, so come get one to send your loved ones a little view of PSU.

Raquel, Portland Comic

It's happening TONIGHT. Spanish friend of Worksound Raquel created a fabulous comic about her experiences living in Portland for the last three months. Worksound is throwing a release / goodbye party for her and her comic, as well as the release of Suspect Parts' 7". Music features Sad Horse, Suspect Parts, Fred Valez and Philip Kruse, and DJ: Nolita. It's also a good chance to catch the PNCA MFA show if you missed the opening.

Release Party • 9:30-midnight • June 19
Worksound PDX • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

Eliza Ferdinand & Molly Enright

PNCA graduate Eliza Ferdinand is back in town for "a night of multidisciplinary artwork and fun" at Gallery Homeland. Interactive sculptures will be installed throughout the space, and Ferdinand will be debuting a duo performance with Molly Enright, followed by a musical set by her group Dang Momma.

Installation & performance event • 8pm • June 20
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th • info@galleryhomeland.org

The "cool school" of the Ferus Gallery, circa 196?

The documentary The Cool School is airing tomorrow night on Public Broadcasting's Independent Lens series. The film looks at the history of the Ferus Gallery, "which nurtured Los Angeles's first significant post-war artists between 1957 and 1966." Founded initially by Walter Hopps and Ed Kienholz, the small gallery launched and/or solidified the careers of the likes of Ed Ruscha, Craig Kauffman, Robert Irwin, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Frank Stella... and on, and on, and on. The documentary of this incredibly important institution was co-produced by our very own Oregon Public Broadcasting. (And one has to wonder: If OPB has such success getting funding, why can't Portland arts institutions do the same?)

View it locally on OPB at 11pm, June 17. You can learn more about the film here, and view the OPB schedule here (look for "Independent Lens").

nakane lectures a portland japanese gardens

Shiro Nakane at work

The Japanese Gardens and PNCA are co-sponsoring a lecture by internationally renowned Japanese garden landscape architect Shiro Nakane. Nakane will address the challenges of preserving and revitalizing traditional methods with modern design aesthetics, and the unique problems presented by designing for longevity.

Artist lecture • 6:30pm • June 16
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson • Swigert Commons

Experimental music, art, and performance space Rererato is celebrating their first anniversary this weekend with Rererato TV. The above list of artists and performers will come together to create a "music and art variety show in front of a live studio audience" - you! The show will later be broadcast online.

Live TV! • 6pm • June 14
Rererato • 5135 NE 42nd • info@rererato.com

From the Ottawa Animation Film Festival

There's lots going on at the NW Film Center. This weekend, they're airing the best of the 2007 Ottawa Animation Festival. In its 32nd year, the festival drew submissions from over 70 countries, and this 90 minute screening features the best of the final 97 entries.

First screening • 7pm • June 13
Second screening • 6pm • June 15
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park AVE

On Thursday, they're screening the best of the 34th Northwest Film & Video Festival. This touring program features the best of the best in contemporary northwest film making, and several visiting artists will be in attendance.

Film screening • 8pm • June 12
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park AVE

Do you make film? The NW Film Center is seeking submissions for the 35th Northwest Film Fest. Entries are due by August 1. More info can be found here.

The final lecture for the 2007-2008 season of the PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture Series is happening tonight. Director, activist, and writer John Malpede will speak about his socially radical performance art. In 1985, Malpede founded the Los Angeles Poverty Department (LAPD), "the first performance group in the nation comprised primarily of homeless and formerly homeless people." Malpede's work through the LAPD and other radical performance pieces, which often include collaborations with dancers, poets, artists, architects, and other directors, has earned him a reputation as "a nationally acclaimed theater radical and social visionary." This lecture is especially relevant in light of our fair city's struggles with gentrification.

Artist lecture • 7:30-8:30pm • June 9
PMMNLS • 5th AVE Cinema • SW 5th & Hall

Susan Harlan

Susan Harlan is delivering a different take on the glass mania invading Portland this month. Her series Invisible Territories features natural specimens preserved in glass slides, then digitally printed onto fused enamel glass panels. Fusing organic specimens into glass, Harlan's work explores and exposes the natural world in a way that breaks from the "organic" forms often found in blown glass sculpture.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • June 6
Artist Glass Conference reception • 6-9pm • June 20
Pushdot Studio • 1021 SE Caruthers St. • 503.224.5925

More below the cut.

Holly Andres, "Untitled" from "Sparrow Lane"

The slightly unnerving photography of Holly Andres will be featured this month at Quality Pictures. Her Sparrow Lane series explores adolescent girls "on the cusp of acquiring forbidden knowledge" - a metaphor for the transition to womanhood, as well as a tribute to the rich fantasy life of childhood. Each photograph is carefully posed, using familiar iconography to suggest discovery, while withholding narrative cues to force the viewer to come to his or her own conclusion about the action in the scene. This mystery, combined with Andres' use of twins and other girls eerily similar in appearance, creates a strange and surreal atmosphere that invites the viewer into the other-world of the young girls.

UPDATE: Amber, the young woman in the above photograph, was recently diagnosed with Ewig's Sarcoma, a rare form of juvenile cancer. Andres and QPCA are selling 50 limited edition signed 8x10 prints of the above photograph for $50 each. All proceeds from these sales will go to Amber, as well as partial proceeds from the sales of larger prints. Please contact QPCA at 503.227.5060 or info@qpca.com to inquire.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • June 5
Quality Pictures Contemporary Art • 916 NW Hoyt • 503.227.5060

Much more below the cut, including a selection of local glass shows happening in conjunction with the upcoming Glass Conference.

Amy Yoes, "Sign Language", in Socrates Sculpture Park, Long Island City, NY

Amy Yoes is lecturing tonight for the ongoing PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture Series. Yoes' work focuses on ornamental and architectural space. She has recently began to integrate animation and light, as her work simultaneously becomes more and more three dimensional.

Artist lecture • 7:30-8:30pm • June 2 • Free!
PMMNLS • 5th AVE Cinema • SW 5th & Hall

Klaus Moje, "The Portland Panels: Choreographed Geometry" (detail)

PAM's Klaus Moje retrospective opens this weekend. Spanning thirty years of his career, the exhibition explores his extensive work in glass, "from his early carved crystal glass pieces, to the development of layered patterned glass vessels, to his recent multi-panel fused works." In preparation for the show, Moje has been working at Bullseye Glass to create a special installation, The Portland Panels: Choreographed Geometry. This massive four-panel work, composed of more than 22,000 strips of fused glass, is "a stunning technical achievement."

Exhibition • May 31 - September 7, 2008
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park AVE • 503.226.2811

In June, Ted Sawyer, Director of Research and Education at Bullseye Glass Company, will lecture on the Portland Panels and their relationship to Moje's body of work.

Lecture • 2-3pm • June 8 • $10
PAM • 1219 SW Park AVE • 503.226.2811

In July, Rae Mahaffey, Martha Pfanschmidt and Tom Prochaska will lead a panel discussion exploring their own work in glass, and how it relates to Moje's work and the greater context of glass art.

Panel discussion • 6pm • July 10 • $10
PAM • 1219 SW Park AVE • 503.226.2811

Horatio Hung-Yan Law tai chi on portland south waterfront

Horatio Hung-Yan Law, "T'ai Chi for 1,000"

As part of the South Waterfront's Artist in Residence program, Horatio Hung-Yan Law presents China-on-Willamette. The project, which was exhibited for the month of May, consists of two installations, Chopsticks Terrace Rice Field and Bamboo Great Wall. With these installations, Law has sought to explore how Portland might have developed if the Chinese population hadn't been driven out by the anti-immigrations laws passed by Congress in 1882. The project culminates this weekend with a final installation, T'ai Chi for 1,000. This is a rain or shine participation event for people of all ages and levels of T'ai Chi experience - wear comfortable clothing and shoes!

Closing event • 10-11:30am • May 31
South Waterfront Park • SW Moody & Curry

Back in February, NE art, music, and delightful mayhem space Rererato was in serious danger due to zoning issues. They closed up shop for a while, but in the last few weeks they've reemerged with their experimental music series. This Friday, the art space makes its triumphant return with An Evening of Mad Science. This multimedia performance features "the off-kilter music, collaborative stage props, storytelling and thespianism of local Portland bands Les Flaneurs, Dr. Something and the Poppin' Fresh Love Engines and Spirit Duplicator." Music, drama, and audience-participating quiz shows - they're back with a vengeance.

Multimedia performance • 7pm • May 30 • $4
Rererato • 5135 NE 42nd AVE • info@rererato.com

madids by sean carney at pancake clubhouse historic township

madids by sean carney at pancake clubhouse historic township

Sean Carney, attribution unspecified

'Tis the week for exciting and eccentric performances. The Pancake Clubhouse presents Sean Carney's lecture on "the lost species Madids." The lecture is part of Carney's Modern Conditions of Production, a series of performances aimed at "retaliat[ing] against the mundane nature of our day to day lives." Carney keeps a blog of his projects here.

Performance Presentation • 8pm • May 30
Pancake Clubhouse Historic Township • 906a NE 24th AVE • 503.936.6513

Melissa Dyne, from "Glass"

Melissa's Dyne's Glass opens this week at the Museum of Contemporary Craft. Using industrially produced skyscraper glass, Dyne explores "the line between art and craft," through the properties of the window pane, glass in its simplest form.

Exhibition • May 29 - August 10
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis • 503.223.2654

There will be a series of related events this summer at MoCC. This Thursday, there will be a panel discussion led by the Cooley Gallery's Stephanie Snyder. From Idea to Production: Craft in Conceptual Art Making features Melissa Dyne, M.K. Guth, and Namita Gupta Wiggers as they discuss "the relationship between concept-driven art, industry and craft." Thursday, May 29, 7pm. Free.

Three more Dyne events below the cut.

Keith Boadwee, "Intersection"

Rocksbox presents This is a New Low, by shock artist Keith Boadwee. (In)famous for anal painting and a general obsession with his genital region, Boadwee's work has been described as "intelligent and irritating, repulsive and appealing". Intensely, inescapably physical, Boadwee toys with, and perhaps overextends, the visceral metaphors of the body. It is, indeed, an "uneasy alliance."

Opening reception • 7-11pm • May 24
Rocksbox Fine Art • 6540 N. Interstate Ave. • 971.506.8938

Louis Bunce mural at PDX, 1953, from the Portland Public Art blog

There's some interesting art programming happening this week on OPB television.

The Art Makers explores the idea that Modern art is a century old in Portland. Although critics have a habit of positing a radical split - even conflict - between the young Portland art scene and preceding generations, the truth is that Portland has been an edge-of-contemporary art city for many, many years, and today's artists are deeply rooted in that history. The Art Makers goes back to the early 20th century to explore how Portland became such an "art-friendly place," drawing a relationship between early innovators such as Harry Wentz, C.S. Price, and Louis Bunce, and modern artists (interviewed) such as Lucinda Parker, George Johanson, Jack McLarty and the late Mike Russo. It airs at 9pm on Thursday, May 22, on OPB TV.

Earlier in the evening, you can catch this week's Art Beat, Everybody's Art. The episode explores the role of public art in Portland's community: "Whether you love it or hate it, or don't even notice it, public art is all around us. Where does it come from, who makes it, and what does it add to our communities and our state?" The show first airs at 8pm on Thursday, May 22, on OPB TV. It will re-run on Sunday, May 25, at 2am and 6pm.

From the Journal of Short Film

The Ohio-based quarterly DVD series The Journal of Short Film has featured over a hundred filmmakers in its first ten volumes, exploring a wide range of genre and video style. The first geographically-themed collection, the eleventh volume features Portland's extraordinary film culture. It was assembled by local film maker and curator Karl Lind, and will be released on May 20.

The NW film center will screen the DVD at 7pm on May 28 at the Whitesell Auditorium. There will be an after-screening party at 9pm at Valentine's, 232 SW Ankeny.

From the scavenger hunt

The students of the PSU MFA Social Practice Program are launching a weekly summer events series, A lot of ______. The events will take place each Sunday, May 18 - June 29, at Neighborhood Projects, a vacant lot on 15th & Alberta made available by architect Matthew Beitz as an off-site classroom space for the MFA students. The series aims to "engage the surrounding neighborhood by providing a platform for communication and collaboration." The first event is the Pepsi Rocket Ship Moon Voyage Launch!, hosted by Cyrus Smith. The full schedule of events is behind the cut.

Weekly Event • 3pm • Sundays, May 18 - June 29
Neighborhood Projects • 15th & Alberta • cyruswsmith@yahoo.com

Also happening this weekend on Alberta: Art on Alberta's Art Hop. The festival features four musical stages, as well as over 150 artists, guilds, face painters, and street performers. The three featured artists this year are Adrienne Cruz, Tripper Dungan, and Analee Fuentes. Alberta will be closed off for the festival between 12th and 30th on Saturday, 11am-7pm. The parade starts at 3pm.

Jess, "Echo's Wake"

In conjunction with the Cooley Gallery's Jess exhibition, the back room and Cinema Project present Jess: An evening of experimental film, music, food, and conversation. Bring your own dinner, and come discuss the work of seminal Beat artist Jess Collins, before previewing a series of films "directly or indirectly inspired by Jess."

Film presentation • Doors at 6:30, Film at 7:30 • May 16 • $6
Cinema Project • Podkrepa Hall • 2116 N. Killingsworth

Also: Come down to Reed this weekend for a public tour of the Jess exhibition with curator Stephanie Snyder.

Curator tour • 2pm • May 17 & 18
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Reed College

Cyan Bott

Each year at the Oregon College of Art and Craft (OCAC) ends in the undergraduate thesis and Post-baccalaureate exhibitions. The exhibition showcases the culmination of work developed during the students' education at the college, displaying a wide range of media and multidisciplinary approaches. Because there are forty students exhibiting this year, the show has been split into two venues.

BFA Thesis: May 5 - 27
Opening reception • 4-7pm • May 16
Worksound PDX • 820 SE Alder • mojomodou@gmail.com

Post-baccalaureate: May 5 - 27
Opening reception • 4-7pm • May 15
OCAC Hoffman Gallery • 8245 SW Barnes Rd. • 503.297.5544

Also happening soon at OCAC: The Metal & Ceramics Sale. "Buy local and support Portland artists" - the sale features functional ceramic pieces and affordable handmade jewelry created by OCAC students.

Art sale • 10am-5pm • May 17 & 18
OCAC • 8245 SW Barnes Rd. • 503.297.5544

Cloepfil's Anne Sachs building in NW Portland

Tonight, local starchitect Brad Cloepfil will be the guest for Portland Spaces' bright lights discussion series. It all goes down at 6:00 at Jimmy Mak's, no cover... Doors open at 5:30 (get there early). Will Cloepfil and Gragg jam out? ....on kazoo's? ...or at least have a drummer for wise-ass rimshots?

Let's hope the increasingly bleak design outlook for the I-5 interstate bridge is addressed. We need a serious architect to shepherd this increasingly penny-wise pound foolish project... the only way to insure the billions of dollars spent on the largest new bridge project on the west coast doesn't simply become a XXL overpass. How... (more)

Harry Widman, "Mother and Daughter"

PCC's ArtBeat Week starts next Monday. The annual festival, which has run since 1989, boasts over 80 events on PCC's five campuses, all of which are free and open to the public. This year's featured artist is internationally recognized painter Harry Widman, whose work Mother and Daughter (above) has been added to PCC's permanent collection.

The festival runs May 12 - 16 on the Cascade, Rock Creek, Southeast Center, and Sylvania campuses. For a list of artists and activities and a schedule of events, visit the ArtBeat website.

TJ Norris, "Infinitus" (still)

The next Couture exhibition opened this week at NAAU. TJ Norris' Infinitus, the third and final component to the installation series Tribryd, is a "multimedia video lounge" that asks you to experience "the entire globe manifesting itself through interconnected man-made mini malls." The show runs May 7 - June 22, with an opening reception this weekend.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • May 10
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny St. • 503.231.8294

Jess Collins

Reed's Cooley Gallery presents an exhibition of work by seminal Beat Generation artist Jess Collins, known simply as "Jess" (1923-2004). Originally a chemist who worked on the Manhattan Project, Jess abandoned science and became an artist to protest nuclear weapons. Jess: To and From the Printed Page explores his relationship with printed materials, "as food and inspiration for his literary, esoteric vision." The traveling exhibition was organized by iCI.

Exhibition • Tue-Sun 12-5pm • May 9 - July 20
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Reed College

Also: Don't miss the artist talk by Margot Voorhies Thompson at Laura Russo, in conjunction with her Inventing/Adapting exhibition.

Artist talk • 11am • May 10 •
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st AVE • 503.226.2754

Leigh Ledare

Opening this week at Small A: Every Picture Tells a Story... Or At Least is a Picture, curated by Jo Jackson and Chris Johanson, featuring the work of twelve contemporary artists.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • May 8
Small A Projects • 1430 SE 3rd • 503.234.7993

Justine Kurland

Photographer Justine Kurland is lecturing at PNCA this week. Kurland became well known after her participating in the 1999 group show Another Girl, Another Planet, in which she displayed "large tableau pictures of neo-romantic landscapes inhabited by teenaged girls." Her work continues to explore issues of feminine identity, including her PICA exhibition in 2005. We're lucky to have Kurland around these parts quite frequently.

Artist lecture • 12:30pm • May 7
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson St. • 503.226.4391

Also: Roger Ballen is lecturing in conjunction with his exhibition at QPCA.

Artist lecture • 7pm • May 7 • $5
PICA • 224 NW 13th AVE

Heejung Kim, "Karma"

This Monday, two exhibitions curated by Midori Yoshimoto are opening at OSU's Galleries. The combination of Heejung Kim's series The World Between and Sarah Pucill's video installation Stages of Mourning creates "an unexpected, cross-cultural encounter of two women artists." Kim's sculptures and handmade books, in the Fairbanks Gallery, use unusual materials to create objects that explore Buddhist symbolism and Kim's own meditations on the great questions: meaning of life, meaning of death, meaning of existence... In the adjacent West Gallery, Pucill's video installation takes a Western approach to the symbolism of death, exploring the depth of psychological anguish one experiences when trying to cope with the loss of a loved one.

Opening reception • 11:30-1:30 • May 5
Fairbanks Gallery • 106 Fairbanks Hall • OSU Campus

Curator lecture • 6pm Reception 7pm Lecture • May 7
LaSells Stewart Center • 100 LaSells Stewart Center • OSU Campus

Joe Glasglow

Newspace presents Peripheral Vision by the Inner Light Group. Founded in 1986 by Shedrich Williames, the photography group now includes over 20 members working in a wide variety of styles. This exhibition explores the physical and metaphorical possibilities when considering our visual periphery: "Does it exist only in the mind of the photographer? Or is seeing with peripheral vision a physical process that keeps one alert to all that may be happening in the corners and around the edges of an image."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • May 2
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th AVE • 503.963.1935

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Werner Herzog film still

During the month of May, the NW Film Center will be featuring A Quest for the Sublime: The Films of Werner Herzog. A central figure in the 1970s New German Cinema movement, Herzog has risen to prominence with acclaimed films from his early Aguirre to the more recent Grizzly Man. His films are characterized by his "disregard [for] the distinction between narrative film and documentary in pursuit of a more profound truth."

The series begins on Friday, May 2nd with his 2007 film Encounters at the End of the World, an exploration of Antarctica in "all its stark beauty." The film airs at 7pm in the Whitsell Auditorium.

For the full schedule and ticket purchasing information, visit the NW Film Center site.

Roger Ballen, "Untitled"

South-Africa based artist Roger Ballen will present the U.S. debut of nine images from his new series this month at QPCA. Acclaimed for his documentary portraits of the small villages of South Africa, Ballen has recently begun taking a more directorial approach. In addition to his new images, Ballen will be showing select works from his Outland and Shadow Chamber series, in which he initially began to explore the theatrical methods that allow his subjects to become active participants in the making of his photographs. There will be a book signing in the gallery following Ballen's May 7 lecture at PICA. For those up north, visit the QPCA website for the Seattle lecture date.

Opening Reception • 6-9pm • May 1
Quality Pictures Contemporary Art • 916 NW Hoyt • 503.227.5060
Artist lecture • 7pm • May 7 • $5
PICA • 224 NW 13th AVE

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The 2008 PDX Experimental Film Fest starts this week. Check out our review of last year's festival right here. For a full schedule of film fest 2008 events, visit their website.

The festival will open with a reception at Gallery Homeland for the installation Surreal Systems. Curated by Mack McFarland and Stephen Slappe, the installation features work by 13 artists "[e]xamining networks of colonialism, nature, motion, observation, pyramid schemes, and memory." Other PDX Experimental Film Fest events at Gallery Homeland include Proving Ground with Travis Wilkerson on May 1, and The First Ever Experimental Filmmaker Karaoke Throwdown on May 2.

Opening reception • 6:00pm - 12:00 AM • April 30
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th AVE • info@galleryhomeland.org

Coming up this weekend: The Fifth Annual Stumptown Comics Fest! This year's guest of honor is Mike Richardson, writer and publisher at local favorite Dark Horse Comics. Other exhibitors include Nicholas Gurewitch, Scott McCloud, Craig Thompson, and many more. And don't miss the opening party, put on by Spark Plug Comics.

Opening party • 8pm-late • April 25
Guapo Comics & Books • 6416 SE Foster Rd. • 503.772.3638

Comics Festival • 10am-7pm • April 26 & 27 • Tickets Required
Lloyd Center Doubletree • 1000 NE Multnomah

Chris Haberman

The Goodfoot is opening a duo show this week for Last Thursday featuring Chris Haberman and Mario Robert III. The two artists share a colorful, "folk"-like style, created on and with a variety of untraditional media. Haberman is a highly prolific local artist and curator, and Robert III hails from El Paso, TX, with a background in carpentry.

Opening reception • 5-11pm • April 24
The Goodfoot • 2845 SE Stark • 503.239.9292

Rudolph M. Schindler, "Lovell Beach House," Newport Beach, CA, photographed by Marvin Rand

The NW Film Center presents German experimental filmmaker Heinz Emigholz's Schindler's Houses. The latest in Emigholz's series Architecture as Autobiography, the film explores "a selection of buildings designed by the Viennese architect Rudolph M. Schindler," who completed his most important work in the 1920s in Los Angeles.

Film Showing • 7pm • April 23 • $4-$7
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park AVE

Setareh Shahbazi, "Secret Affinities"

PICA and the PSU Monday night lecture series present a talk by influential curator Regine Basha, who has worked for the past 15 years in Montreal, New York, and Austin. Her career has primarily focused on "realizing context-specific situations for the production of new work," including her work in the 90s with artist collectives Mayday Productions and the Brewster Project. Her "recent and upcoming exhibitions include an exhibition about listening with Steve Roden and Stephen Vitiello (Lora Reynolds Gallery), an exhibition with Berlin-based Setareh Shahbazi (Contemporary Arts Forum, Santa Barbara [see above]), and a town-wide sound sculpture project in Marfa, Texas called The Marfa Sessions (Ballroom Marfa)." Read more about Basha here.

Curator lecture • 7:30-8:30pm • April 21
PSU Lecture series • 5th Ave Cinema • 510 SW Hall

Jeff Jahn, "Eutrophication" (detail) site specific installation

PORT's own Jeff Jahn will be speaking next week on his site-specific installation, Eutrophication. Jahn will discuss his wide artistic influences, including Robert Irwin, Robert Smithson, Donald Judd, Paul Klee, Sol LeWitt, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and Frank Lloyd Wright, as well as his relationship to architecture and the aesthetic effects of his musical interests.

Artist talk • 7-8pm • April 22
PNCA • 825 NW 13th• Manuel Izquierdo Gallery (3D building)

On Saturday April 19th @ 7pm, The Video Gentlemen present "Media Archeology," the second in-studio live broadcast as they continue to program their BYOTV installation at NAAU. Featuring research and analysis, questions and answers from Stephen Slappe and a really intriguing presentation by art historian Kate Mondloch (come to the gallery and phone in your ?'s):

Static Age: The Early Years of Television Culture A presentation by Stephen Slappe
This program of archival 16mm films examines the early years of television as a technological and cultural phenomenon. The program includes behind-the-scenes glimpses at television studios as well as references to television in popular culture from the 1930's to the 1960's.

Look at This: The Problem of Participation in 1970s Video Installation A presentation by Kate Mondloch
Look at This scrutinizes how media objects and their customary viewing regimes actively define the relationship between bodies and screens in media installation art. The talk complicates the notion of an inherently progressive, liberatory "spectator participation" that is celebrated in most accounts of media installation by detailing the ways in which screens are also capable of generating oppressive viewing conditions that strictly delimit the viewer's interaction with the work.

Mondloch states: "As in everyday life, screens and their illuminated moving images can offer a sort of siren song-calling spectators to largely involuntary behavior, begging them to look and pay attention, and to discipline themselves and their bodies in the process. The talk analyzes a series of influential closed-circuit video installations that intentionally explore the "architectures" of media spectatorship, including Frank Gillette and Ira Schneider's pioneering Wipe Cycle (1969), Bruce Nauman's video corridor works (1969-72), and Dan Graham's Present Continuous Past(s) (1974). I analyze how these early video works employ two apparently contradictory processes. Artists underscore the coercive nature of screen-based viewing by varying the arrangement of cameras and monitors-combining live and pre-recorded feedback, inverting viewers' images, divorcing cameras from their monitors, introducing time delays, and so on. Simultaneously, however, the technological apparatuses themselves arguably impose precise kinesthetic and psychic effects upon their audiences. This discrepancy between active and passive viewership presents an unresolved paradox for the artform's criticism."

The new Milepost 5 building is launching its arts programming this week with Self Projections. Video, film, sound and installations by 19 artists will be exhibited throughout the first floor of condos. Curated by Gary Wiseman, the show explores the idea that perception is innately personal and unique, and that art is in many ways about sharing that perspective.

The venue itself is an interesting Portland development. Milepost 5 is a new condominium development in far-out NE that is styling itself as "affordable and sustainable live/work spaces for artists in a supportive and interactive, community setting" - that is currently being pushed by Gavin Shettler. With the economic and real estate situation being what it is, one has to wonder if selling condos to build an artist's community from scratch might be even an more ambitious project than the recently closed Portland Art Center. It's another intriguing idea... But is it viable? I suppose you can come to the opening and find out.

Opening reception • 8pm-midnight • April 18
Milepost 5 • 900 NE 81st AVE • 503.724.6933

Nan Curtis

In True Colors, Nan Curtis uses quotidian objects such as cotton, lighters, and carpet to explore "family, social taboos, sex, and pregnancy." At once playful and slightly unnerving, her work challenges the social conventions that we rely upon to approach these touchy and yet utterly human subjects.

Opening reception • 6pm • April 16
Linfield Gallery • 900 SE Baker St. McMinnville • 503.883.2804

chris bennett at chambers

Chris Bennett, "Fence (diptych)"

Chambers presents New Antiquarians, a group photography exhibition. Five artists toy with 19th century "antiquated" photography techniques, updated with modern sensibilities and aesthetics. Featured artists include Leanne Hitchcock, Rachel Heath, Christine Laputa, Chris Bennett, and Sika Stanton.

Opening reception • 5:30-8:30pm • April 17
Chambers Fine Art • 207 SW Pine St. #102 • 503.227.9398

Marie Watt, "Space Between Clock and Bed"

PSU has launched a radio program to complement their Monday night lecture series. From 12-1pm each Monday on KPSU, hosts Alex McCarl and Cyrus Smith will be interviewing the visiting artists from the lecture series. (Note: You can stream KPSU broadcasts live from their website.) Tomorrow's guest will be Marie Watt.

Check the schedule and learn more about the interviewees on the ArtTalk Blog.

MidTown Arts Center, Eugene, OR

In 2005, Carole Zoom purchased a building in Eugene with the goal of providing a shared space for non-profit arts organizations. By offering them highly reduced rent for three years, the organizations were able to raise sufficient funds to purchase the building from her, and it is now the Eugene MidTown Arts Center (above), home of the Eugene Ballet and 7 other arts organizations.

Zoom is interested in creating a similar space in Portland. It would follow a similar model: She would purchase the building, non-profit arts organizations could move in for very low rent, and over time the building would be purchased from her. This is an excellent opportunity to create a much-needed hub for non-profit arts in Portland, but Zoom needs to assess interest in the project before she can go forward.

To that end, she will be hosting an informal meeting to discuss the project at 6pm on Wednesday, April 16. For more information about the project and the location of the meeting, please contact Carole Zoom at carolezoom@mac.com.

Jenene Nagy & Stephanie Robison, "Sitelines" (detail)

Sitelines, a joint exhibition by Stephanie Robison and PORT's own Jenene Nagy, explores ways that painting and sculpture can intertwine and reinvent the gallery space.

Opening reception • 3-5pm • April 13
Gallery talk • 12pm • April 30
Art Gym Main Space • Marylhurst University, 17600 Pacific Highway (Hwy 43) • 503.636.8141, ext. 3383

pdx oregon bikes

Oregon Handmade Bicycles at PDX Airport

Ten custom bicycles are currently on display at PDX airport's artOBJECTS showcase in Concourse E. The bikes are all handmade in Oregon, and "demonstrate [the] combination of engineering skills, precision metal craftsmanship, cutting edge design, and passion for cycling" that has made Portland (& Oregon)'s bike culture so legendary. Because the bikes are only viewable by passengers, a short video about the exhibit and participating framebuilders will be available at the RACC's website. You can also view pics on bikeportland.org.

Ongoing exhibition • April 3 - early October
PDX International • 7000 NE Airport Way

Damien Gilley in the Portland Building

Damien Gilley, "PlusMinus" (detail)

Damien Gilley's PlusMinus is currently on view at the Portland Building. The large-scale installation uses vinyl tape to create elegant architectural drawings on the walls, playing with "the phenomenology of perception."

Ongoing exhibition • On view 7am - 6pm, M-F • April 7 - May 2
Portland Building • 1120 SW 5th AVE

Joe Thurston, "Strenuous Life"

This Friday, the Jupiter Hotel is hosting the Buckman Bash, an art auction and benefit for Buckman Elementary, Portland's own arts elementary school. The event features emcee Andrew Dickson and solo musical performances by James Mercer (The Shins) and Stephen Malkmus (The Jicks), as well as a student art show including animated shorts. Some excellent local artists have donated their work, including Storm Tharp, Joe Thurston, Scott Wayne Indiana, Marlana Stoddard Hayes, Eugenia Pardue, PORT's own Jenene Nagy, and more.

Buckman Bash • Doors at 7pm • April 11 • $50
Jupiter Hotel • 800 E Burnside

Can't make the bash? Swing by the school for the 18th annual Art "Show & Sell":
Friday, April 11 • 5-9pm
Saturday, April 12 • 10am-5pm
Buckman Elementary • 320 SE 16th AVE

Ken Shores at Museum of Contemporary Craft

Ken Shores, "Feather Fetish"

Generations: Ken Shores opens this week at the Museum of Contemporary Craft. The exhibition "seeks a new understanding of Shores' work in the context of his role as a student, teacher, leader, artist and foundational figure in the American Craft Movement," placing his work in the context of his "home, travels, and experience."

Exhibition • April 10 - July 23
Artist Lecture • 2pm • May 4 • Free, in The Lab
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis St. • 503.223.2654

MoCC's next "Excellence in Craft" lecture is also happening this week. Paul Smith, Director Emeritus of the American Craft Museum (now Museum of Arts & Design), will speak on Reflections: Twentieth Century Studio Craft Movement - Current Observations.

Lecture • 7pm • April 10 • $5
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis St., The Lab • 503.223.2654

Storm Tharp, "The Duke of Albuquerque"

Storm Tharp will be lecturing tonight as part of the ongoing Monday night MFA lecture series at PSU.

Artist lecture • 7:30pm • April 7
PSU Lecture Series • 5th AVE Cinema • 510 SW Hall

Lauren Clay, "Prism Pile"

The Archer Gallery at Clark College presents Dialogue: A group exhibition of six artists whose work "spans the divide between two-and three-dimensional art, creating a dialogue on image and form." Many of the artists are Seattle-based, which adds a more buttoned-down formal quality to the show than the more energetic Portland-based work.

Opening reception • 4-6pm • April 8
Archer Gallery • Clark College, 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA • Penguin Union Building (PUB) attached to Gaiser Hall

Matt McCormick, from "The Problem of Machines that Communicate"

As part of the Northwest Tracking series, the NW Film Center presents An Evening with Matt McCormick. The Portland filmmaker will be present at the screening of two of his recent films, The Problems of Machines that Communicate (2008 - premiered at SXSW), and Future So Bright (2007), as well as a series of short music videos and experimental projects.

Film Showing • 9pm • April 9 • $4 - $7
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park AVE

Kate Simmons, "Storm Warning"

The PSU graduating MFA exhibition series begins next week. The shows run in two week cycles, and feature "work ranging from obsessive marks on paper to video and mixed-media installation ... that demonstrate[s] intellectual rigor and aesthetic diversity." There will always be two shows running simultaneously, in the Autzen and MK Galleries. The first run is from April 7-18 (opening receptions listed below). You can view the full list of future exhibitions on the art dept.'s website.

Kate Simmons • Opening reception • 6-8pm • April 10
Autzen Gallery • PSU, Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, 724 SW Harrison St.

Amy Steel • Opening reception • 6-8pm • April 10
MK Gallery • PSU, Art Building, 2nd Floor rm 210, 2000 SW 5th Ave.

Chris Held, "Overstock," installation view

"o•ver•stock v: 1. vti to stock more of something than is necessary or desirable 2. vt to graze an area with more livestock than it can support n an excessively large supply of something."

Chris Held explores the quasi-religion built around the modern commodity in Overstock, on view this month at Jáce Gáce. Positing that in modern culture, products have replaced the promise of love and happiness that once came from religion, Held has created an immense shrine of boxed goods, topped with a microwave in place of a religious figure.

Opening reception • 6pm-midnight • April 4
Jáce Gáce • 2045 SE Belmont • 503.239.1887

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24 hour drawpocalypse at cosmic monkey comics

David Chelsea

It's a comic marathon! Comic artists from all over the region will gather this weekend at Cosmic Monkey Comics to create a 24 page collaborative work in 24 straight hours of work. Come watch, cheer them on, enjoy refreshments, and get pumped up for the upcoming late April Comics Fest.

Comic Marathon • 10am - 10am • April 5 - April 6
Cosmic Monkey Comics • 5335 NE Sandy Blvd • 503.517.9050

Eva and Franco Mattes, "Jenna Varun"

On view this month at the Augen Gallery is Eva and Franco Mattes' Avatars and Other Images from Alternate Universes, an extension of their recent exhibition 13 Most Beautiful Avatars. The prints emerge from avatars built in the Mattes's exploration of Second Life, an online virtual world where users can create the ultimate idealized self. Borrowing from Pop Art sensibility, the Mattes have brought Warhol's influence into the 21st century, "scrutiniz[ing] simultaneous concepts of 'beauty' and 'reality', [and] pointing to the heightened relevance of a post-20th-century cult of superficiality."

Opening reception • 5-8:30pm • April 3
Augen Gallery NW • 716 NW Davis • 503.546.5056

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Katherine Ace, "Animals on the Inside"

The 19th Annual CAP art evening and auction is happening this Saturday. The auction, which features artist Katherine Ace amid many wonderful works, benefits the Cascade AIDS Project. This year's theme is Cirque (whimsical), and the event will also feature the finest in Portland food and entertainment.

Art auction & social • Doors open at 5pm • April 5
Oregon Convention Center • 777 NE MLK Blvd. • Exhibit Hall C

Jenene Nagy

Jenene Nagy will be lecturing on her APEX show at PAM this Sunday. The talk will explore "her working practice, its history, and inspirations."

Artist talk • 2pm • March 30 • Free to members, or with cost of admission to the museum.
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park AVE • Andrée Stevens Room

Coming up at PAM: The next Miller Meigs show will be Ed Ruscha - on loan from the Broad collection. As PORT pointed out when everyone was all in a tizzy over the Broad revelation, LACMA's loss is already turning out to be our gain.

Brittany Powell & Jill Bliss

Opening on Last Thursday is Brittany Powell & Jill Bliss's project Califoregon. Powell is a native Oregonian and Bliss is a native Californian. After meeting at CCA and both finding themselves landing in Portland (it's the northern expansion!), they decided to unite their native aesthetics and bring us this collaborative exhibition of drawings, cut-outs, screen prints, and more - all celebrating the growing hybrid that is Califoregon.

Opening reception • 7-10pm • March 27
Office PDX • 2204 NE Alberta • 888.355.7467

Make sure to check out the review of BYOTV below.

If you like what you read, come down to NAAU this week for the following Week One transmissions: "From infomercials to local news, genre westerns and classic sitcoms, familiar forms are aflutter. Amplified to the point of distortion, these audio-visual vernaculars are rewired by: Linda Austin, Lili White, Nerve Theory, Jesse England and Taly & Russ Johnson. This week's offerings also include abstract illusions from Marchi Wierson and elusive allusions from Ryan Dunn. And don't miss Bosko Blagojevic's typo-corrected rendition of Richard Serra and Carlotta Fay Schoolman's famous media critique Television Delivers People."

New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny • 503.231.8294

The Living Room Theater is launching Art Spark: Every third Thursday, interested parties gather in their lounge to chat about art. It's a private business looking to break into the art scene, but it sounds like it could be a promising event. Each month there will be a different host from the local art scene, who gets "6@6" - 6 minutes at 6pm to say or do whatever they want, followed by open discussion. March's host is Arts & Culture Commissioner Sam Adams. The event is free, but space is tight, so they ask that you RSVP.

Creative discourse • 5-7pm • March 20 (and every 3rd Thursday)
Living Room Theaters • SW 10th & Stark

ellen lupton at museum of contemporary craft

Ellen Lupton

In conjunction with PNCA, the Museum of Contemporary Craft presents a lecture by Ellen Lupton. Theorizing that design is a form of creativity that is accessible to all, Lupton's The Design-It-Yourself Revolution "explore(s) how technology is combining with social movements to create greater access to design tools and creativity."

Excellence in craft lecture • 7pm • March 20 • $5
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson St. • The Commons

The first exhibition in NAAU's Couture series opens next week with The Video Gentlemen's BYOTV. The show is in response to the U.S.'s decision to end all analog television broadcasting in February, 2009: "Pre-empting the scheduled program of obsolescence, The Video Gentlemen's BYOTV network launches a six-week season of special reports engaged with this technocultural turn." The signal will be broadcast from NAAU, and visitors are encouraged to "Bring Your Own TV," or borrow one from the gallery, "intercepting transmissions from their immediate airspace."

Exhibition • March 19 - April 27
Update! Opening reception • 5-8pm • March 22
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny • 503.231.8294

If you're looking for a little more action this weekend, check out these events:

k sims fashion at pancake clubhouse

K Sims

The Pancake Clubhouse presents local designer K Sims' recycled fashion show. She'll be debuting designs that explore "deconstruction, luxury, reincarnation, beauty, and individuality," all accompanied by a saw and theramin performance.

Fashion show • 8pm • March 15
Pancake Clubhouse • 906a NE 24th Ave • pancakeclubhouse@gmail.com

UCA theater

Gallery Homeland will be hosting the United Church of America, a traveling political theater group, featuring the constitutional Prophet "BCG" and his newest political sermon "Make America." GH invites you to "Come celebrate your country with a Constitutional Communion!"

Political theater • 7pm • March 14 & 15 • $6
Gallery Homeland 2505 SE 11th AVE • info@galleryhomeland.org

Dave O'Johnson, "Loiter"

Rocksbox presents Man Friends Forever, a joint-show with California's Dave O' Johnson & Brian Wasson. Rumor has it there will be a pig roast at the opening!

Opening reception • 7-11pm • March 15
Rocksbox Fine Art • 6540 N Interstate AVE • 971.506.8938

Anissa Mack's The Last Full Weekend Each September is opening this weekend at Small A. The show collects pieces from Mack's Durham Fair and Durham Fair (10th Anniversary Edition) series. Having grown up attending the Durham Fair, for these projects Mack created pieces to enter in all 73 craft categories at the fair, exploring and interrogating American craft rituals and traditions. This show is the first time these pieces have been exhibited outside the fair.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • March 8
Small A Projects • 1430 SE 3rd AVE • 503.234.7993

In conjunction with the exhibit, Mack will be speaking for this Monday's (March 10) PSU lecture series at 7:30pm at the 5th Ave Cinema, SW 5th & Hall.

Ann Ploeger

Pushdot Studio is celebrating the gallery's official reopening in their new location with Ann Ploeger's In Between. The series reinvents the self-portrait, exploring "uninhabited spaces... in which stillness lends itself to the specificity of being there." The photographs encourage the viewer to reflect on how these images represent moments in the artist's life and self, while using light and color to create a sense of location that invites the viewer into the moment.

Opening Reception • 6-9pm • March 7
Pushdot Studio • 1021 SE Caruthers • info@pushdotstudio.com

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laura fritz at quality pictures contemporary art

Laura Fritz, still from "Interspace"

QPCA will be unveiling their fourth "Qproject." Interspace is a "fully immersive" video installation by Laura Fritz. The installation continues Fritz's exploration of what happens inside the viewer's mind as expectation and perception are manipulated by a "purposeful and provocative vacuum."

mark hooper at quality pictures contemporary art

mark hooper at quality pictures contemporary art

Mark Hooper, "Untitled (from the series There:Here)"

Also opening at QPCA: Mark Hooper's There:Here, an exhibition of large-scale photographs that "use metaphorical events and tools to address enabling and predicting change on the physical, psychological or spiritual level."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • March 6
Quality Pictures Contemporary Art • 916 NW Hoyt • 503.227.5060

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Nubar Alexanian, "Man on the Box (recreation)"

Join curators Stephanie Snyder, Stuart Horodner, and Mack McFarland this Saturday for a walk-through of the latest exhibition in PNCA's Feldman Gallery & Project Space. Untraceable explores "artists' responses to political control, violence and torture."

Artist & Curator walk-through • 11am • March 1
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson St. • 503.226.4391

French Philosopher Jacques Ranciere's lecture at PNCA promises to be the heaviest talk we will experience in 2008. He's pretty much the art world's favorite intellectual these days. To familiarize yourself a tiny bit here's what he thought of Guantanamo Bay and here's a decent interview related to his book "The Politics of Aesthetics."

According to PNCA's press release, Ranciere as emeritus professor at the University of Paris VIII, is considered "one of the five leading intellectuals in the world today." (Either that or he has one of the five best publicists...) Ranciere will be making his first visit to Portland to speak as part of FIVE Idea Studios, and will speak on the subject of "What Makes Images Unacceptable." I rather doubt he will discuss what makes philosphers unacceptable though.... (kidding aside, this should be good.)

PNCA
February 29, 2008, 6:30pm, Swigert Commons

Fresh Impressions: Letterpress Printing in Contemporary Art @ OCAC
Opening reception on Thursday, February 28 from 4:00-7:00pm

Curated by artists Inge Bruggeman and Heather Watkins, the show explores the relevance of letterpress printing in contemporary art, while seeking to define its significance to current art making practices.

The exciting lineup of participating artists include Abra Ancliffe, Jan Baker, Amy Borezo, Sarah Bryant, Macy Chadwick, Julie Chen, Wendy Fernstrum, Heather Green, Carl Haase, Diane Jacobs, Alicia McKim, Heidi Neilson, Erin Newell, Amy Pirkle, Robin Price, Harry Reese, John Risseeuw, Regula Russelle, Wilbur Schilling, CB Sherlock, Amy Sterly, and Rachel Wiecking (an artists to watch).

OCAC's Hoffman Gallery
8245 S.W. Barnes Road
Portland, OR 97225

Miguel Rio Branco, "Blue Panther"

This weekend, Quality Pictures is hosting a lecture/brunch. Curator Erik Schneider will discuss the concept, technique, and market behind the photographic exhibition The Man Show. Admission is free, but space is limited, so RSVP to info@qpca.com or 503.227.5060. Note: It will also be your last chance to check out Brian Ulrich's Thrift.

Artist lecture & brunch • 10:30-11:30am • March 1
Quality Pictures Contemporary Art • 916 NW Hoyt • 503.227.5060

Happening further south this weekend in LA: Portland's own GLARE Quarterly is having the release party for issue #3 this Saturday at MOCA @ 4:30PM (Pacific Design Center).

Happening tonight: Photojournalist Joel Preston Smith will be lecturing at Newspace on the four months he lived in Iraq in 2003, documenting "Iraqis' daily lives, rituals, and struggle to survive-both before and after the U.S. invasion."

Artist slide lecture • 7pm • February 26 • Free
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th AVE • 503.963.1935

Later this week, Newspace will be hosting their third annual silent auction. The proceeds benefit their educational programs and "contribute to the strength of the organization." The auction is on February 29, and is $10 at the door for non-members. For more information, visit their website.

Reed is also hosting the final lecture in the Working History series. Kianga Ford will discuss her Counting installation, which "examines racial identity through an intermingling of textual narrative and abstract mathematics." The lecture will be followed by a closing reception for the exhibition in the Cooley Gallery.

Artist lecture • 6:30pm • February 27
Reed College, Eliot 314 • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd.

Stephen Scott Smith, "gorillasmith series"

For their final exhibition in their space below the Wonder Ballroom, the Mark Woolley Gallery presents ALPHABET SOUP: Labeling, Identity, Stigma, Pride. They're still looking for artists to submit work that explores "the external and internal dimensions of the sexual labels G, L, B, T, Q, I, A, SGL, 2S and more." The exhibition will also include a non-juried wall for all artists to express themselves on the subject.

Click here for submission guidelines. The deadline is March 1, at 5:30pm.

Opening reception & dance party • 5pm - late • March 8
Woolley at Wonder • 128 NW Russell St. • 503.224.5475

Closing party / Goodbye to the space • 5pm - late • March 21

WNTR WRKS drawing

PICA and Cartune Xprez present an animation festival with "the last breaths of winter." There will be screenings of videos by Takeshi Murata, Bruce Bickford, Josh Mannis, and more, as well as music/video/theater performance featuring Hooliganship and others, and musical interludes by DJ Beyonda.

Animation festival • 9pm • February 24 • $6, 21+
Holocene • 1001 SE Morrison

Installation Shot of Io Palmer & "Janitorial Supplies" 2007-8

Continuing the Working History lecture series, Io Palmer will speak this Friday at Reed College. Her installation Janitorial Supplies "explores the history of African American labor, class, and physical adornment."

Artist lecture • 6:30pm • February 22
Reed College Eliot 314 • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd.

Faith Ringgold will also be lecturing at Reed on her work Marlon Riggs: Tongues Untied, A Painted Story Quilt on Sunday, Feb. 24, at 3pm in Kaul Auditorium.

Philippe Blanc, from "Limelight"

There will be a curatorial talk on Limelight this weekend, featuring PORT's own Jeff Jahn. Check out the gallery website for statements on smelly cheese, video, and the excellent body of work that makes up this exhibition.

Curator talk • 2pm • February 24
Alexander Gallery • 19600 Molalla AVE, Oregon City • 503.657-6958

roadside attraction at PSU autzen gallery

Stephanie Robison, "Cloud Cover with Bricks"

On Monday, Stephanie Robison and Paula Rebsom's Roadside Attraction will be opening at PSU's Autzen Gallery. Using landscape photography and studio sculpture, Roadside Attraction "explores ways in which we, as a culture, mediate our interactions with nature. "

Opening reception • 5-7pm • February 18
Autzen Gallery • PSU, Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, 724 SW Harrison St.

The reception is immediately before the Monday night MFA lecture series. This week, the Center for Land Use Interpretation will be speaking.

Jenene Nagy false flat at Portland Art Museum

Jenene Nagy, from "False Flat"

PORT's own Jenene Nagy will be bringing her site specific installation work to PAM's APEX series. Open through June, the exhibition pushes Nagy's exploration of "the need to invent idealized spaces ... that blur the boundaries between built and natural environments." PORT reviewed her breakout False Flat show last fall.

Exhibition • February 16 - June 22
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park AVE • 503.226.2811

Nick Cave, installation at the Chicago Cultural Center

One of the artists from Working History (previously reviewed here) is speaking this week at Reed. Nick Cave will discuss his Sound Suit installation, a series which was originally inspired in 1991 by the beating of Rodney King. The lecture is the first of four lectures from the exhibition. There will be a reception held after Cave's talk.

Artist lecture • 6:30pm • February 15
Reed College Vollum Lecture Hall • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd.
Opening reception • 8-10pm • February 15
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd.

While you're there: Don't forget to check out Laura Fritz's Caseworks 13, which closes February 17.

Liz Obert

The Linfield Gallery will be showing Liz Obert's Observations from the Nicoya Peninsula. This is the first exhibition of Obert's work inspired by her travels to Costa Rica - and a chance for chilly Portlanders to fantasize a little about warmer cultures and climes.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • February 13
Linfield Gallery • 900 SE Baker St. McMinnville • 503.883.2804

Whether or not you're sick of the bumper sticker campaign, this is a great opportunity to bring the quirky side of Portland art to the politicos. Keep Portland Weird is looking for work for a March exhibition in City Hall. There is no submission fee, and the deadline is Friday, February 15. Visit their website for more info.

Art on Alberta Annual Meeting

If you're more interested in talking about how to keep Portland weird (or just artistic), come to the annual Art on Alberta meeting, featuring keynote speaker Commissioner Sam Adams. Buffet is $5.

Meeting • 6:30-8pm • February 13
Zaytoon in the Alberta Arts District • 2236 NE Alberta St. • info@artonalberta.org

Army Private First Class John E. Brown of Troy, Ala. (left) was killed in Iraq on April 14, 2003, Private First Class David N. Simmons of Kokomo, Ind. was killed on April 8, 2007 in Baghdad (right) Images courtesy of Kent Gallery, NYC

Ok, I must admit... I'm easilly annoyed by a lot of political art that simply rides a wave of dissatisfaction (most war art is just propoganda) but maybe Emily Prince has found a way to keep from merely "taking dictation" from the nightly news and making one-dimensional art. Sure, she makes drawings of servicemen killed in Iraq but there must have been more to this than just that if Robert Storr had decided to put her in the Venice Biennale last year. Storr is notoriously wary of political art as this pre-biennale interview points out.

5th Ave Cinema | Monday, February 11th, 7:30pm | 510 SW Hall St. (free)

Richard Deacon's Dead Leg, 2007

In 1987 Richard Deacon won Britain's prestigious Turner Prize, tomorrow he will speak on his work and concerns as they relate to his wonderful current installation in the Jubitz Center for Modern and Contemporary Art. Deacon's show is part of the Miller-Meigs series (aka the best curatorial programming arc the city of Portland [or Seattle, only the Frye come close] has ever experienced... considering weve already seen Roxy Paine, Damien Hirst, Richard Rezac, Kehinde Wiley, Pierre Huyghe, Ursula von Rydingsvard and Sophie Calle. In other words, this is a must see... and you can hear the artist this time.

February 8th
6:00 PM @ Portland Art Museum's Whitsell Auditorium
$5 members - $10 nonmembers

The 31st Portland International Film Festival starts today! This 17 day festival, hosted by the NW Film Center, includes award winning film from all over the world, showing at several venues around the city. For more information, including film listings and schedule updates, visit the PIFF website.

Motoya Nakamura, "Hoop"

23 Sandy presents March Fourth, an exhibition of Motoya Nakamura's photography of the beloved Portland marching band. The highly cinematographic images explore the band performing and behind the scenes, providing a lush insight into the circus-like world of March Fourth.

Artist reception • 6pm • February 8
Slide lecture • 7pm • February 20
23 Sandy Gallery • 623 NE 23rd AVE • 503.927.4409

Cherie Hiser at 23 Sandy

Cherie Hiser, "1972"

While you're at the gallery, head back to the slide room to check out Visions of One. Cherie Hiser has been "model and muse" for many of photography's legends, from Ruth Bernhard and Jerry Uelsmann, to Lee Friedlander, Judy Dater, and Stu Levy, and this exhibition showcases her collection of portraits.

Opening reception • 6pm • February 8
23 Sandy Gallery • 623 NE 23rd AVE • 503.927.4409

In pursuit of beauty and social commentary, IGLOO presents the mixed-media work of Modou Dieng. !Hey Lover combines painting, photography, found objects, and installation to explore the "humanity, topography, and pastiche of forms" in contemporary life.

Opening reception • 6-10pm • February 7
IGLOO • 325 NW 6th #102 • 503.724.7300

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Since First Friday came so quickly this month, a couple of galleries decided to bump it to First Wednesday. Opening this week:

Michael Patterson-Carver at Small A

Michael Patterson-Carver, "1967 School Children's March"

This month, Small A Projects will be featuring the drawings of Michael Patterson-Carver. State of the Union explores the history of social injustice and protest in the United States. Each drawing displays a group of protesters fighting one of the many battles that has shaped American history. By contrasting drawings of such historical groups as the suffragettes with modern illustrations of the "state of the union" (and his own struggle against the Patriot Act), Patterson-Carver seeks to highlight the dark hypocrisy at work in politics today. However, the smiling faces on the protesters reminds us that with action, there is hope.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • February 6
Small A Projects • 1430 SE Third • 503.234.7993

Julia Gardner at Vino Paradiso

Julia Gardner

A more local history can be found at Vino Paradiso. Julia Gardner will present her (literally) layered personal view on the buildings and spaces that have shaped Portland and its history. Beginning with industrial urban photographers, Gardner uses resin to layer found objects, paint, and ink, creating a uniquely Portland narrative within each work.

Opening reception • 7-9pm • February 6
Vino Paradiso • 417 NW 10th AVE • 503.284.4471

Kate Pocrass is a social practice artist from San Francisco who uses a telephone messaging service to direct people to "off the beaten path" destinations. She prefers to make people "stop and look with intention, not going from point A to B quickly." An alumnus of the Bay Area Now 4 triennial it should be interesting to hear about any off the beaten path destinations in Portland.

5th Ave Cinema | Monday, February 4th, 7:30pm | 510 SW Hall St. (free)

Lucy Orta

Designer and artist Lucy Orta will be lecturing next week at Reed College. In projects such as "Refuge Wear," "Body Architecture," and "Nexus Architecture" (1992-2002), Orta's work explores ways to visualize the concept of "Social Link." She's a pioneer in the development of "socially driven and sustainable design solutions, alternative systems, and products."

Artist lecture • 7pm • February 5
Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • Vollum lecture hall

This group exhibition, curated by Todd Johnson, examines "the mythology and romanticism of the American western frontier." What lingering effect does the notion of the pioneer and Manifest Destiny have on the making of contemporary photography? The artists in this show explore what is still captivating about "the legends and myths of the Wild Wild West."

Opening reception • 6-9pm • February 1
Gallery Homeland • 2505 SE 11th AVE • info@galleryhomeland.org

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Philippe Blanc, from "Limelight"

This weekend, Limelight, curated by PORT's own Jeff Jahn, is opening at the Alexander Gallery at Clackamas Community College. The show explores the tricks and techniques that artists use to catch the eye - and, more importantly, how an artist goes about holding the viewer's attention.

Opening reception • 4-6pm • February 2
Alexander Gallery • 19600 Molalla AVE, Oregon City • 503.657-6958

Opening this week at Rererato: Two Thousand Kilometers in Two Weeks: Photographer Michael Cogliantry Takes on India in a Rickshaw. In December 2006, Cogliantry traveled from the Malabar Coast of Cochin (Kochin) to Hyderabad, documenting his travels along the way. For this exhibition, Cogliantry presents a series of self portraits taken during the trip, forming a "unique narrative" that expresses his journey of self discovery through the eyes of a fictional character. There will also be a book signing at the opening.

Opening reception • 7-10pm • January 31
Rererato • 5135 NE 42nd AVE • info@rererato.com

Johann Neumeister

This weekend, ROCKSBOX presents Austrian artist Johann Neumeister's Psychopsychoanalysis. For this installment of the project, Neumeister will be focusing on the concept of "mother." On opening night he will be available as Dr. Herbert Dreadful, setting up office in the gallery for free Psychopsychoanalytical sessions. Neumeister cites chance, improvisation, connecting people and working with his surroundings as influences on his work.

Opening reception • 7-11pm • January 26
ROCKSBOX • 6540 N Interstate AVE • 971.506.8938

Jesse Hayward at Tilt and Tilt 2 Year Anniversary

This weekend, Tilt is celebrating two fabulous years as an increasingly integral part of the Everett Station Lofts. The party features excellent food, drink, and company, and the closing reception for Jesse Hayward's One None Done.

Anniversary party + closing reception • 7-11pm • January 25
Tilt Gallery & Project Space • 625 NW Everett #106 • 908.616.5477

Nice Trim at IGLOO

While you're in the neighborhood, swing by IGLOO for the closing reception of Nice Trim, a group show featuring animation and works on paper.

Closing reception • 7-10pm • January 25
IGLOO • 325 NW 6th AVE #102 • iglooarts@gmail.com

Arline Fisch, "Silver Anemone necklace"

This week, Arline Fisch is speaking at the Museum of Contemporary Craft as part of the Excellence in Craft series. In Elegant Fantasy: A Journey through Textile Techniques in Metal, Fisch will discuss her 50+ years weaving together the techniques of jewelry, sculpture, and metal working with the structure of textiles and fabric.

Artist lecture • 7pm • January 24 • $5
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis St., The Lab • 503.223.2654

Sarah Johnson, "I Still Want to be Popular (detail)"

Chambers is launching a solo exhibition by Sarah Johnson this week. Johnson uses colorful gum drops to write billboard-sized messages, combining "candy's seductive veil with taboo confessions" to explore the conflict of expectation and disappointment.

Opening reception • 5:30-8:30pm • January 24
Chambers Fine Art • 207 SW Pine St. #102 • 503.227.9398

Kianga Ford, "Counting (installation detail)"

Working History opens next week at Reed's Cooley Gallery. The exhibition pairs work by contemporary African American artists with related historical artifacts and ephemera. As they share semantic space, the relationship between the objects reflects upon the ways that African American artists have "re-purposed historical documents, material craft histories and folk art forms as indispensable vehicles for social and political critique."

Working History: African American Art & Objects • January 22 - March 2
Cooley Gallery • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • 503.777.7251

Harriete Estel Berman, "Yellow & Orange UPC Identity BEAD Necklace"

Two wearably lovely exhibitions are opening this weekend at the Museum of Contemporary Craft. Framing: The Art of Jewelry explores the distance created between the viewer and the object when jewelry is presented to the public as an art object, and how this distance can be played with to bend the art/adornment relationship.

Framing: The Art of Jewelry • January 19 - May 11
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis St. • 503.223.2654

Mindy Herrin, "Abstracted Fruit necklace"

The second exhibition, Touching Warms the Art, uses the medium of jewelry to obscure that distance. The jurors of this show asked artists to "put aside preciousness," focusing instead on creating work that engages the viewer physically and mentally and invites touch and delight.

Touching Warms the Art • January 19 - March 23
Museum of Contemporary Craft • 724 NW Davis St. • 503.223.2654

James O'Keefe and other artists show at the MHCC Visual Arts Gallery

James O'Keefe

There are several interesting group shows opening this Friday, beginning with Weight, an installation exhibition curated by Pat Barrett. Each piece explores the physical, psychological, and/or psychic impact of "weight." The show features northwest artists Charles L. Forster, Ellen George, Tim Miller, James O'Keefe, Penitents, Kirsten Rian, Stephanie Speight and Jack Walsh, and PORT's own Jeff Jahn.

Opening reception • 6-8pm • January 18
Artist talk • 1pm • January 30
MHCC Visual Arts Gallery • 26000 SE Stark St., Gresham • 503.491.6075

(more exciting shows under the cut)

Hap Tivey speaks at Elizabeth Leach Gallery

Hap Tivey, "Blue for Barnett"

Hap Tivey will be speaking at the Elizabeth Leach Gallery this week in conjunction with his Sands of the Ganges exhibition, on view through March 1, 2008.

Artist talk & reception • 5:30-7:30pm • January 18
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th AVE • 503.224.0521

Henk Pander speaks at Laura Russo Gallery

Henk Pander speaks at Laura Russo Gallery

Henk Pander, "Tower"

Also speaking this weekend: Henk Pander and J.D. Perkin will be lecturing at the Laura Russo Gallery. Pander, a Dutch painter, will be discussing his plein air and studio watercolors currently on view at the gallery. Portland native Perkin will be discussing his figural ceramics that are showing at the gallery, inspired by yoga and meditative poses.

Artist(s) talk • 11am • January 19
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st AVE • 503.226.2754

Ryan Jacob Smith, "Sorry"

As part of their Winter 07-08 workshops, the IPRC is hosting three talks by artists who've made a career out of their art. Each workshop will explore the business side of the artist's field, and the insights and wisdom they've gained from their experience. All of the talks are free, but pre-registration is required.

The first talk is Thursday, January 17, by freelance illustrator and gallery artist Ryan Jacob Smith. The second talk is by comic artists Jesse Reklaw and Dylan Williams, and the final talk is by graphic designer Briar Levit.

More information is available on the IPRC Calendar.

Emily Ginsburg at OSU's Fairbanks Gallery

Emily Ginsburg, "Social Studies #14"

PNCA professor Emily Ginsburg will be exhibiting her work at OSU's Fairbanks Gallery. Habitual combines selected prints from Ginsburg's Social Studies series with her video Blink to explore "the idiosyncrasies of the familiar." Ginsburg's work encourages us to consider the processes of social interaction, communication, and behavior in our day to day lives.

Exhibition • January 14 - February 6
Fairbanks Gallery • 106 Fairbanks Hall • OSU Campus

Chris Haberman, "Cindy Sherman"

Opening this weekend at 23 Sandy is Chris Haberman's Something for Nothing. Haberman is a strong presence in Portland, working prolifically from the curating side as well as the production side. This exhibition features his vibrant paintings, inspired by "comic books, curbside discards and popular culture." There will also be an artist slide show and lecture a few days after the opening, titled Something for Nothing: My Life.

Opening reception • 4-6pm • January 12
Artist lecture • 7pm • January 15
23 Sandy Gallery • 623 NE 23rd AVE • 503.927.4409

Portland is unique as a scene defined mostly by its artists, not its institutions or galleries and there are several interesting out of town art shows for Portlanders opening in the next few days.

Adam Sorensen's National Park

Today Adam Sorensen makes his debut at Seattle's James Harris Gallery. Sorensen's break out solo show at Elizabeth Leach last year had us expecting more and this looks like a serious effort. His work was even collected by the CW network last year. (Sorensen has switched his representation in Portland to PDX Contemporary Art too)... (more)

Brian Ulrich, "Untitled Thrift (Pricer 2)"

This Friday, Brian Ulrich's Thrift is opening at Quality Pictures. The photographs are from a chapter of Ulrich's Copia project, which explores consumerism in American culture. When the American government responded to the tragedies of 9-11 by encouraging citizens to shop, Ulrich began the Copia project as a direct response to what he perceived as the equation of patriotism and consumerism. The project currently features three chapters, Retail, Backrooms, and Thrift.

As part of the opening event, Quality Pictures is hosting a clothing drive to benefit Portland's thrift stores. They request that people bring a quality item of clothing to donate to the reception, which will feature a beer and wine tasting with food by Planet B's Modern Tastes.

Opening reception • 6-9m • January 11
Quality Pictures Contemporary Art • 916 NW Hoyt • 503.227.5060

Dan Senn, from "Air Lift, Lilt"

A new exhibition is opening at PSU's Autzen Gallery next week. Dan Senn's Air Lift, Lilt is "an installation of kinetic, inflatable, sound sculpture." The project utilizes Senn's broad background in both music composition and ceramic sculpture.

Artist reception • 5-7pm • January 7
Autzen Gallery • PSU, Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, 724 SW Harrison St.

If you like to mix your sights and sounds, you might also want to check out the third annual Children of the Revolution Festival. The Festival was conceived as a way to unite musicians and artists with members of the unique Portland community. This year features a huge list of great Portland artists, including Corey Smith, Yoni Kifle, Roxanne Jackson, Brad Adkins, and many, many more.

The festival is happening this weekend, January 5 & 6th, at Audiocinema, from 2:30pm-12:30am. Presale tickets are available at Jackpot Records for $10 for one day or $15 for two days.

Jesse Hayward

For the month of January, Tilt exhibits Jesse Hayward's One None Done. Hayward's work combines the sculptural with the painterly and drawn, blurring boundaries and lending a "heightened leeway" to form and color. The site-specific installation creates "sweeps of gesture" throughout the space.

Opens January 4th
Closing reception • 7-10pm • January 25
Tilt Gallery and Project Space • 625 NW Everett St. #106 • 908.616.5477

Hiroshi Watanabe

This month, Newspace presents Ideology in Paradise, a series of photographs by Hiroshi Watanabe. In this beautiful exhibition, Watanabe gives the viewer a glimpse into the normally off-limits world of North Korea. Although accompanied by government-appointed handlers, Watanabe was able to capture many charmingly human moments in the people he portrays.

There will be a free artist lecture and slideshow at 1pm on Saturday, January 5.

Opening Reception • 7-10pm • January 4
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th AVE • 503.963.1935

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Hap Tivey, "Sand Grain"

This month, Hap Tivey's Sands of the Ganges opens at the Elizabeth Leach Gallery. Created with canvas, acrylic, and LEDs, these light sculptures are a gorgeous antidote to the dark Northwest winter. The show derives its title from a Sanskrit metaphor for infinity, and each work explores theoretical concepts just this side of abstraction, such as a proton or the wavelength of speech.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • January 3
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th AVE • 503.224.0521

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Chuck Close documentary with PAM and the NW Film Center

Chuck Close, "Self Portrait/Pulp"

In conjunction with PAM's ongoing exhibition, Chuck Close Prints, the NW Film Center presents a documentary by Marion Cajori. Chuck Close explores the artist's process over 82 days as he "re-invents" portraiture.

The film is screening on December 22, 23, and 30 at the Whitsell auditorium. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit the NW Film Center. Also: The PAM exhibition is only on view through January 6, so hurry in if you haven't made it yet.

Oregon Regional Arts and Culture Council

From January through June 2008, the Regional Arts & Culture Council is offering artist workshops. Topics range from legal concerns to marketing to applying for grants to unusual mural painting. Most classes are $25, with some additional fees. Registration is open now, and space is limited, so hop on over to the workshop site to learn more and sign up.

Michael Brophy Book Signing at Laura Russo

Michael Brophy, "Night Truck"

In conjunction with his December exhibition, Michael Brophy will be signing his book Here, There, Nowhere at the Laura Russo Gallery this weekend. Brophy will also speak about the show at 1:30pm.

Book signing: 1-3pm | Saturday, December 15
Laura Russo Gallery | 805 NW 21st AVE | 503.226.2754

This Saturday, come participate in MK Guth's national traveling project, Ties of Protection and Safe Keeping, an "interactive braid sculpture." Participants are asked to write their response to the question "What is worth protecting?" on a piece of flannel fabric that will be woven into an ever-growing braid. The project will start in Portland, MK Guth's home territory, and stop in Boise, Atlanta, Houston, and Cleveland on its way to the 2008 Whiteny Biennial. If you can't make it downtown this weekend, online participation will be available at mkguth.com beginning Saturday.

11am - 7pm | Saturday, December 15
Portland Center Stage in the Gerding Theater at the Armory | 128 NW 11th AVE

Fernando D'Agostino, "Blue and Gold"

This week, the Elizabeth Leach Gallery is having a holiday reception to celebrate Fernando D'Agostino's Flight Studies, which is currently on view in their Video Window. D'Agostino collaborated with biomechanist Dr. Bret Tobalske, using "state of the art" flight imaging technology to capture the beautiful elegance of birds in flight.

Holiday reception: 5:30 - 7:30pm | Thursday, December 13
Elizabeth Leach Gallery | 417 NW 9th AVE | 503.224.0521

This weekend, PICA & the NW Film Center present a screening of the entire filmography of Danny Williams, accompanied by the live music of composer T. Griffin and Catherine McRae. Williams was a lover and collaborator of Andy Warhol.

Screening: 7:30pm | Saturday, December 8
NW Film Center | PAM's Whitsell Auditorium | 1219 SW Park AVE

czech modernism at NW Film Center

Also starting this weekend: The NW Film Center's Czech Modernism series. The 12-part retrospective explores Czech film from the silent era to the Communist takeover in 1948, exploring the work that built the base for the more well known Czech New Wave Cinema. The first film is On the Sunny Side (1933), directed by Vladislav Vanura. The films run from December 7 - 30. Click here for the full schedule.

First screening: 7pm | Friday, December 7
NW Film Center | PAM's Whitsell Auditorium | 1219 SW Park AVE

Cory Clayton Jones

Pushdot Studios is relocating, and having an open house this First Friday for people to come check out their new space. The gallery will have its grand reopening celebration in early 2008, and Pushdot is looking for submissions of digital, multi-media, and film work. So come down this Friday to explore the new space and learn more about submitting your work.

Opening Reception • 5pm • December 7
Pushdot Studio • 1021 SE Caruthers • info@pushdotstudio.com

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Kurt Weiser at the Museum of Contemporary Craft

Kurt Weiser

Kurt Weiser is speaking this weekend in conjunction with Eden Revisited, his exhibition that is currently on view at the Museum of Contemporary Craft. Weiser's work explores the interaction of traditional ceramics and intricate, hand painted narratives.

Artist lecture: 6pm | Friday, December 6
Museum of Contemporary Craft | 724 NW Davis | 503.223.2654

Jenene Nagy at the Troy Laundry Building

Jenene Nagy at the Troy Laundry Building

Jenene Nagy, "Slope"

If you want to get even closer to the artist, come down to the historic Troy Laundry building this weekend. 20+ artists are having open studios, including PORT's own Jenene Nagy.

Open studio: 5-9pm | Friday, December 7
12-6pm | Saturday, December 8
Troy Laundry Building | 221 SE 11th

Michael Brophy, "Ruin"

Coming back strong after September's studio fire, Michael Brophy is exhibiting this month at the Laura Russo Gallery. Here There Nowhere "explore[s] the evolution of the Northwest landscape." His subtle, elegant paintings build upon historical reference to create a "mythic impact."

Opening reception • 5-8pm • December 6
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st AVE • 503.226.2754

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Stewart Harvey

Tomorrow night, photographer Stewart Harvey will discuss his collection of New Orleans images. The three year project spanned pre- and post-Katrina, and is both visually and narratively rich in its portrayal of the city and its inhabitants.

Artist lecture: 7pm | Tuesday, December 4
23 Sandy Gallery | 623 NE 23rd AVE | 503.927.4409

Laura Fritz speaks at Reed College for Caseworks 13

Laura Fritz, "Case Works 13" (detail)

Video and installation artist Laura Fritz is speaking at Reed College this weekend on Case Works 13. For the exhibition, Fritz inverted the Case Works vitrines in the Hauser Library, mirroring the interior to create a mysterious world of endless vanishing points and beautiful, yet uneasy organic forms. Fritz has exhibited throughout the country, and is one of the recipients of the NAAU Couture awards.

Artist lecture: 4:30pm | Sunday, December 2
Reed College | 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. | Eliot 314

Ann Gale speaks at PAM

Ann Gale, "Gary with Dark Wall"

Ann Gale will also be lecturing this weekend, in conjunction with her APEX exhibition at PAM. This Seattle-based figurative painter explores the psychology of her sitters through the fragmentation of her portraiture.

Artist lecture: 2pm | Sunday, December 2
PAM | 1219 SW Park Ave

Jason Traeger at PCC's Cascade Gallery

Traeger is a young artist whose name keeps coming up in town and the work reminds me of a cross between Marsden Hartley and Tal R... which is a promising semiotic stew that looks quasi military. Also of note The Cascade Gallery is now being programmed by one of Portland's premier artists Jacqueline Ehlis (currently showing in Las Vegas Diasora), suddenly exhibitions in North Portland are becoming more serious.

Portland Community College: Cascade | Nov 28-Jan 8 | Opening: Wednesday, November 28, 4-7pm
705 N Killingsworth | Terrell Hall 102

Every winter, the Talisman Gallery members team up with a variety of regional artists for their annual juried exhibition, which launches with a benefit silent auction. This year, 40% of the proceeds go to AFTA, an organization supporting arts education in Portland schools.

Opening Reception: 5:30-9pm | November 29
Talisman Gallery | 1476 NE Alberta St. | 503.284.8800

Matthew Hurst, from "Visualizing the Blogosphere"

Don't miss this art blogging event!

In the November issue of Art in America, PORT's own Jeff Jahn participated in a round table discussion lead by Peter Plagens exploring the world of art blogging. This week, PORT is organizing Avant Blog, a panel discussion to follow up on the article, and expand upon the issues raised in Plagens' conversation. Panelists include: Erin Langner, Communications Assistant at the Henry Art Gallery in Seattle and a regular contributor to Hankblog, Carolyn Zick, of "Dangerous Chunky". Amy Bernstein of PORT and Jeff Jahn, co-founder of PORT. Bruce Guenther, Chief Curator Portland Art Museum, will serve as moderator and provide further historical perspective on art publishing.

It's an important revolution in cultural writing and we'd like to encourage all bloggers to come and participate in the extensive Q&A that will follow the panel. Help us break ground in cultural communications!

Hosted by PNCA | Thursday, November 29,7-9pm
1241 NW Johnson St., Swigert Commons | jeff At portlandart.net

Benedikt Ender

This weekend, German performance/installation artist Benedikt Ender's exhibition WW III: The General of Freedom opens at Rocksbox. Ender recently participated in Documenta 12, and was last in Portland for TBA 2006 with his installation The Temple of Something Higher.

Opening reception: Rocks Box Fine Art | Saturday, November 24, 7-12pm
6540 N Interstate AVE | 971.506.8938

Shohei Imamura

This Friday, the NW Film Center is showing the first in a series of films by Shohei Imamura (1926 - 2006). This Japanese filmmaker "excelled at exposing the realities of the human condition and the basic instincts, rational and otherwise that drive human behavior."
The first film, Vengeance is Mine, airs on Friday, November 23, at 7pm. Click here for more info on the full series.

Also showing this weekend at the NW Film Center: Helvetica, directed by Gary Hustwit, which explores the effect of typology and design on communication and our daily lives.

And continuing this week, the films of Lech Majewski, with The Garden of Earthly Delights. Majewski gained his reputation writing the screenplay for Basquiat.

Michael Kenna at Charles Hartman Fine Art

Michael Kenna, "Eglise Abbatiale, Mont St. Michel, France"

This month, Charles Hartman Fine Art is exhibiting the Mont St. Michel series by Michael Kenna. The haunting black and white photographs explore the quieter moments on the beautiful French island. Kenna will be signing copies of his accompanying book during the reception.

Opening reception: Charles Hartman Fine Art | Saturday, November 17, 3-6pm
134 NW 8th AVE | 503.287.3886

More Saturday events below the cut.

Mary Kelly, from "Post-Partum Document"

This Friday, NYU art historian Eve Meltzer is lecturing on The Love of Language and the Politics of Dis-Affection: Mary Kelly's Post-Partum Document. Kelly's extended project, developed from 1973-1977, explored her relationship to her son over the first four years of his life.

Reed College | Friday, November 16, 4pm
3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. | Eliot 314

This just in: Reed is full of great lectures this weekend! On Saturday, Peter Kreider will be discussing The China Syndrome. Kreider is currently exhibiting in the Cooley Gallery with Marko Lulic as part of a joint Cooley & PICA project.

Reed College | Saturday, November 17, 4:30pm
3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. | Eliot 314

For those of you who arent as sick of my own voice as I am... I'll be on KBOO radio's Art Focus program tomorrow at 10:30 Am (Pacific Time). On the dial you can find them at 90.7 FM and for the rest you can stream it online here. Julie and I will probably discuss this month's Art in America article on art blogs, Portland's art scene and my other upcoming projects.

Also note on November 29th as a followup to Peter Plagens Art in America article this month PNCA will be hosting Avant Blog a panel discussion about the online publishing revolution as it relates to serious art blogging. It's a heavy duty lineup and I encourage all bloggers who can make it to attend and chime in on the Q and A. 7-9PM in the Swigert Commons of PNCA: free

The panel:

Erin Langner: The Communication's Assistant for The Henry and frequent contributor to hankblog... her master's thesis explored podcasting for museums

Carolyn Zick: Longtime blogger of the personal POV art blog Dangerous Chunky fom Seattle

Amy Bernstein: PORT's very own

myself, again (I apologize)

Moderator: Bruce Guenther, chief Curator of PAM, because he can handle both the snark and the issues of "seriousness" in an emerging art media, besides the historical precedents for blogging have historical roots that pre-date the internet.

Stewart Harvey & Colleen Hoyt

This week, 23 Sandy Gallery is opening a group exhibition to celebrate the winter solstice. Night Moves features 14 local photographers exploring the nocturnal world, from city streets to their own bedrooms.

23 Sandy Gallery | November 15 - December 22
623 NE 23rd AVE | 503.927.4409

Do-Ho Suh

If anything is worth the drive out to Corvallis, this is it. Internationally renowned artist Do-Ho Suh is speaking this week at OSU. Born in Seoul, Korea, Do-Ho Suh relocated to the U.S. after receiving his MFA in painting, and has since received wide recognition for his sculptures that "defy conventional notions of scale and site-specificity." Do-Ho Suh represented Korea in the 2001 Venice Biennale, and has exhibited his work all over the world.

Oregon State University | Wednesday, November 14, 7pm
LaSells Auditorium | 541.737.4745

Beth Campbell speaks at PNCA

Beth Campbell

Also this week: PNCA Artist-in-Residence Beth Campbell will discuss her work on display in the Feldman Gallery and the Project Space.

PNCA | Thursday, November 15, 6:30pm
1241 NW Johnson St. | 503.226.4391

Gary Hill

Gary Hill, recipient of the Leone d'Oro Prize for Sculpture at the Venice Biennale in 1995 and the MacArthur "genius" Award in 1998, will be lecturing next week at Reed College. Hill's work in electronic media, video, and performance since the 1970s has earned him the international reputation of being one of the most important artists of his generation. The ongoing shows by Marco Lulic and Peter Kreider at the Cooley Gallery and Caseworks 13 by Laura Fritz in the Library will open before the lecture as well.

Reed College | Tuesday, November 13, 7pm
3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. | Vollum Lecture Hall

Boxlift building artists

On both Saturday and Sunday, the artists in the Boxlift Building (formerly 333 Studios) will open their studios in conjunction with a group exhibition curated by Mark Woolley. Participating artists include Ballyhoo Photography, Natasia Chan, Pat Clemens, Compass Rose Studios, Erin Galvez, Sarah Kamsler, Kelly Kerwick, Una Kim, Josie Koehne, Nicole Linde, Mulysa Melco, manuel Mondejar, Eugenia Pardue, Julianna Paradisi, Ellen Shade, smashbox photography, John Sulahian, and Scott Sutton. Opening night features music by Deja Nu.

Opening reception: Boxlift Buildng | Saturday, November 10, 4-10pm
333 NE Hancock St. | boxliftbldg@gmail.com

Also, Working Artists presents Unifying Themes, a group exhibition showcasing their members in the Carton Service Building. Featured artists include Sabina Haque, Kindra Crick, Gus Reed, Hillary Atiyeh, Adrienne Fritze, Talus Fritze-Moor, Brooke Mackenzie and Richard L. Young.

Opening Reception: Working Artists Gallery | Saturday, November 10, 6-10pm
2211 NW Front AVE #102 | 503.445.1268

Marie Sivak Mortality's Veil (2006) carved English limestone

Sculptor Marie Sivack and painter Sherrie Wolf are speaking this weekend at the Laura Russo Gallery. They'll be discussing their respective exhibitions on view at the gallery through November 24.

Laura Russo Gallery | Saturday, November 10, 11am | 805 NW 21st AVE | 503.226.2754

This week the Portland Advertising Federation (PAF) is hosting the 50th annual Rosey Awards, which celebrate the "world class" work in communication arts coming out of the Northwest. In conjunction with the awards ceremony, the gallery at the Portland Art Institute will be showing selected entries through November 6, and then featuring the award winning work exclusively from November 8-28.

The ceremony will be held Wednesday, November 7 at 5:30pm at the Gerding Theater in the Portland Armory.

Conceptual artist Tom Marioni is speaking this weekend at Reed College. Marioni's work is guided by his interest in Zen Buddhism, and its emphasis on locating the extraordinary within the ordinary and focusing on the process over the product. He's received acclaim for his 1970 project The Act of Drinking Beer with Friends is the Highest Form of Art, which involved gathering with friends for drinks and conversation, and was documented only by photograph.

Reed College | 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd., Eliot Hall, room 314 | Saturday, November 3, 4:30pm | free

And while you're at Reed College, don't forget to swing by the library and check out Laura Fritz's Caseworks 13, on view from November 2 on. Described as "perceptual architecture," the show promises to really shake things up in the Hauser Fundome. Official opening TBA and talk on December 2nd but it's up now.

Avantika Bawa at PSU

Anavtika Bawa

Also happening in the world of education this weekend: Avantika Bawa's Sit, Stack is opening at PSU's Autzen Gallery. Combining objects built in her studio with site-specific installation, Bawa "puts the act of drawing into the service of sculptural design" by integrating hand drawing with architectural supports. Her use of functional materials and delicate hand work make her work subtle and candid.

Opening reception: Autzen Gallery | PSU, Neuberger Hall, 2nd Floor, 724 SW Harrison St. | Saturday, November 3, 5-7pm

Sincerely, John Head

Sincerely, John Head is having their first solo exhibition this month at Small A. The central focus of BOX SET: Car Show is SJH's 1977 Ford Ranchero, but it is only one element of their ongoing BOX SET project. Inspired by the 1977 album Foghat Live, "the year 1977, parking lot culture and fandom," BOX SET explores the physical traces of the "ephemera of fanaticism" and the way the legacy is constructed and packaged. Previous BOX SET projects include the Studio Sessions project for PICA's 2007 TBA festival.

Opening Reception • 5-8pm • November 2
Small A Projects • 1430 SE 3rd Ave. • 503.234.7993

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from left: Robert (Bob) Alexander, John Reed, Wallace Berman, Unknown Female and Walter Hopps at Ferus Gallery LA 1959

The NW Film Center will be screening Morgan Neville's Cool School. The documentary explores the rising influence of the west coast - more specifically, Los Angeles - on the American art scene after the 1950s. Featured figures include Walter Hopps and Irving Blum, John Altoon and Billy Al Bengston, Frank Gehry, and Dennis Hopper and Dean Stockwell.

NW Film Center | Whitsell Auditorium
Screening Friday, November 2 & Saturday November 3 at 7 & 9pm, and Sunday, November 4 at 5 & 7pm.

The cultural heavy hitter of Portland's fall visual arts season isn't at PAM, Reed or PNCA.... it's William Kentridge at Lewis and Clark College. I've been aware of Kentridge forever but have never been able to take in a large exhibition of his work, which though rooted in 90's identity politics seems to remain very valid today... showing the way for current hotshots like Raymond Pettibon, Marlene Dumas, Peter Doig, Cecily Brown and even Germans like Daniel Richter and Neo Rauch's psychedelic/contemplative figuration. The fact that Kentridge does it all mostly with charcoal is impressive and pretty much outclasses all but Pettibon and Richter as a preeminent existential figurative artist.

Here's what L&C has to say:

Wiliam Kentridge: WEIGHING...and WANTING is a solo exhibition of the internationally recognized South African artist William Kentridge in charcoal drawings and video projection. In the film, Soho Eckstein Johannesburg, one of the recurring characters who inhabit Kentridge’s work, looks inward, with MRI scans of his brain representing a conceptual terrain of loss, regret, and reconstruction. The landscape drawings are those of the derelict mining areas outside of Johannesburg.

A truly interdisciplinary artist with a background in political science, philosophy, theater, and fine art, Kentridge funnels the conceptual and aesthetic concerns of these disciplines into his installations, which combine the projected and drawn image.

November 1 – December 16, 2007
Opening reception: 5 to 7 p.m. November 1, Curator's Talk, 5 p.m.
Hugh M. Davies Director of the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego

This exhibition is made possible by Davies, whom I got to meet in San Diego a few weeks ago. Thank you!

Oliver Boberg, "Seite 5 / Page 5"

Quality Pictures has scored the first Northwest exhibition of German artist Oliver Boberg. He will be showing large-format photographs from his Seiten/Pages series in their west gallery, as well as films from his Nacht-Orte / Night Sites series in their rear project space. Boberg draws inspiration from comic book traditions in his use of multiple-image layouts that explore how the very meaning of an image is altered by its relationship to other imagery. Boberg forces the viewer to draw connections between the images in each piece, creating an alternate reality through his careful construction of object, scene, and perspective.

Don't miss his lunchtime lecture at noon on Friday, November 2 at the Weiden + Kennedy building. This lecture is a free PICA event.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • November 1
Quality Pictures Contemporary Art • 916 NW Hoyt • 503.227.5060

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There's no holiday like Halloween for the creatively (and creepily) inclined. Rererato invites you to come celebrate in style amongst the Spaghetti, with four bands, loads of candy, and no cover.

Rererato | Wednesday, October 31, 7pm-late | 5135 NE 42nd AVE | info@rererato.com

Fritz Haeg's Edible Estates project for Tate Modern

Ok there are tons of lectures in Portland but the one tonight at PSU looks like a keeper. Fritz Haeg recently completed a vegetable garden for Tate Modern and generally I'm impressed with his desire to push art students to think outside of traditional studio practices and the gallery system. Besides he has a genuine manifesto attacking my least favorite western tradition, the front lawn. I love the idea of radical gardening, and practiced a bit of it as an undergrad at Illinois Wesleyan Univeristy (planting swiss chard in the flowerbeds). Also, it looks like Haeg has as show tentatively scheduled for October 2008 at Reed's Cooly gallery too (sorry Stephanie I just can't stop paying attention, this is another winner.. and this just HAS to happen).

5th Ave Cinema | Monday, October 29th, 7:30pm | 510 SW Hall St.

Kurt Weiser's Eden Revisited at Museum of Contemporary Craft

Kurt Weiser, from "Eden Revisited"

The Museum of Contemporary Craft is showing a retrospective of Kurt Weiser's ceramics since the 1970s. Weiser builds and paints traditional vessels to build elaborate and beautiful narratives. This is the first stop for Eden Revisited on its national tour.

Museum of Contemporary Craft | October 31 - January 6 | 724 NW Davis St. | 503.223.2564

Spaghetti: A Rhinestone Studded Suburban Dream and the Plastic Afterlife Rodeo Show opens this weekend at Rererato. The Western themed group show and performance features a wide range of local and national artists and their multitudinous media, as well as special performances by the Plastic Afterlife Rodeo Show.

Opening reception: Rererato | Saturday, October 27, 7-10pm | 5135 NE 42nd AVE | info@rererato.com

slideluck potshow in nyc

Slideluck Potshow NYC

It's happening tonight: Satisfy your belly and your eyes, and come down to the Portland Slideluck Potshow. The concept is that everyone brings something delicious to eat & drink, and once libations have been consumed, you're treated to a slideshow of local and international artists. Check out their website for details.

The Cleaners @ the Ace Hotel | Thursday, October 25, Potluck 7pm, Slideshow 9pm | 403 SW 10th | 503.546.8520

Noah Nakell's Lightship at the Portland Building

Noah Nakell, "Lightship"

Noah Nakell's installation Lightship is on view through November 9th at the Portland Building. As you approach the space, the viewer faces with a window mostly covered by a blind. Peering through the gap, one sees a night time scene featuring ocean swells and a small home, and a simple domestic scene is visible through the windows of the home. Presented by the RACC, the project explores the way that screens and mediated experience are increasingly substituted for meaningful interaction in modern society.

Portland Building | 1120 SW 5th AVE | Open M-F, 7am-6pm

Mike Maxwell at Fifty24PDX

Mike Maxwell

Also ongoing through November: Upper Playground presents Mike Maxwell's Memories for Memoirs in associated with Fifty24PDX. Maxwell's paintings explore "human ancestry and learning about your past as a way to better understand ones self." He strives to present us with the notion that the past is an integral part of our selves, and our present.

Fifty24PDX | 23 NW 5th AVE | 503.548.4835 | Open W-Sat, 12-7pm

Tom Cramer speaks at Laura Russo Gallery

Tom Cramer, "Pipe Dreams"

Portland institution Tom Cramer is speaking this Saturday at the Laura Russo Gallery in conjunction with his exhibition, New Work. This is a rare opportunity to see the artist lecture about his work - you can get a preview with PORT's podcast of his introduction to these new paintings.

Laura Russo Gallery | Saturday, October 20, 11:30am | 805 NW 21st AVE | 503.226.2754

Check out more interesting artist conversations this weekend under the cut.

An art show and silent art auction are being held this weekend at the Ace Hotel to benefit Bitch Magazine, which recently relocated to Portland. Hosted by Marie Fleischmann, the event features the art of Hannah Stouffer, Eva Lake, Shannon Wheeler, Amy Ruppel, Nikki McClue, the Guerrilla Girls and more, as well as great local music and drinks. Tickets are sliding scale $15 - $45, and can be purchased at brown paper tickets.

The Cleaners @ the Ace Hotel | Saturday, October 20th, 7pm | 403 SW 10th | 503.546.8520 | 21+

Also happening this weekend: The Crumpacker Family Library Art Book Sale at PAM! Need to bolster your art books, or just looking for that perfect coffee table adornment? Thousands of used and new art books and exhibition catalogs will be on sale this Sunday from noon to 5pm at the James F. & Marion L. Miller Gallery. Proceeds benefit PAM. Click here for more info.

From "A Walk Into the Sea"

As part of their special screenings series, the NW Film Center is showing a double feature this weekend: director James Crump's Black White + Gray: A Portrait of Sam Wagstaff and Robert Mapplethorpe will be accompanied by director Esther Robinson's A Walk Into the Sea: Danny Williams and the Andy Warhol Factory. Both films place their often infamous subjects within a fascinating cultural context, exploring the social world that made these artists difficult - and great. The films will be screened October 19-21 at various times - visit their website to learn more.

Crypto-Zoetropical Pursuit

Last month Carl Diehl put out a call for the crypto-zoetropical, and this weekend he'll be screening the results. Come down to Rererato this Friday, on the eve of the 40th anniversary of the "infamous Bigfoot filmstrip," to see the showcasing of Diehl's collected film project, accompanied by live experimental music and performance. The show is $4, and begins at 7pm, Friday, October 19th, 5135 NE 42nd AVE.

Kojo Griffin at Quality Pictures Contemporary Art

Kojo Griffin, "Death of an archetype: the trajic mullato in Barrack Obama"

Kojo Griffin's An Acausal Connecting Principle is opening this week at Quality Pictures. These paintings break away from his former, more cartoony style to create a more traditionally painterly body of work flush with darkly humorous references to contemporary pop-culture and politics. Griffin, a participant in the 2000 Whiteny Biennial and the 2006 Seville Biennial, is a major coup for Quality Pictures, and not to be missed.

Opening Reception • 6-9pm • October 18
Quality Pictures Contemporary Art • 916 NW Hoyt • 503.227.5060

Allan McCollum, "Natural Copies From the Coal Mines of Central Utah"

Allan McCollum is speaking tonight for PSU's Monday night lecture series. McCollum's work is deeply engaged with shape and form, and how that affects the identity of objects and individuals. In 2005, he began the Shapes Project, which seeks to create a unique shape for every individual in the world, aiming for the peak population in the mid-21st century.

5th Ave Cinema | Monday, October 15th, 7:30pm | 510 SW Hall St.

Wendy Huhn at the Museum of Contemporary Craft

Wendy Huhn, "Work"

Mixed-media textile artist Wendy Huhn will be lecturing this weekend on her work. Huhn was one of the participating artists in the Museum of Contemporary Craft's CRAFT IN AMERICA: Expanding Traditions exhibition, which closed a few weeks ago.

Museum of Contemporary Craft | Sunday, October 14, 2pm | 724 NW Davis St. | 503.223.2654

Michael Wilson

Rake Art is holding a benefit for artist Michael Wilson, who lost both his studio and his home in the tragic Brophy studio fire two and a half weeks ago.

Rake will be serving a Cajun luncheon for $25/plate this Sunday to accompany a sale of Wilson's works. 100% of the proceeds go to Wilson's rebuilding fund. The RACC has also set up a rebuilding fund for Wilson - visit their news page for information on how to contribute (donations are tax deductible).

Rake Art Gallery | Sunday, October 14, 2pm | 325 NW 6th AVE | $25/plate

Conkle's The La La Zone Expedition, Haze Gallery (2004)

It isn't news that a Portland artist is having a New York solo show, Dan May and Harrell Fletcher (among others) have done so recently. The difference is the way the gallery, Jack The Pelican Presents, is promoting Bruce Conkle's show... as part of a visual arts renaissance in PDX. Old news to us of course, but it's nice they noticed. We probably have have as many artists as Williamsburg but it's different because Portland's scene is lifestyle and value driven (eco sustainable & measuring man by something other than man)... not money or fame driven. Portland is the US city where America's "conscience" seems to be most active and well developed.

The gallery is also right that Conkle (who spent years in the late 80's working for Leo Castelli etc.) is awfully good. Conkle's 2004 exhibit at Haze gallery, The La La Zone Expedition, is one of the best solo shows I've seen anywhere in the last 10 years and it managed to address genocide, exploration, conquest and ecology. It did so in a way a that a lot of Brooklyn artists can't do without a stunting sense of a city slicker gone camping irony. Conkle, being half Swiss, half Portlander and probably half goblin... has no problems presenting the ridiculousness of Western Civilization's ecological, militaristic and humanistic dilemmas. One of Conkle's existential snowmen in a freezer got a bit of attention in Miami last year even.

Here is part of what the gallery press release is saying: "Bruce Conkle... De facto king of the Pacific NW eco art geeks and self-styled 'misfit at the crossroads,' he creates 'Lament for Middle Kingdom Earth,' a quirky eco-absurd installation that restages contemporary ideas about nature and community in a pre-modern world of fairytale landscape."

Conkle, like a lot of Portland's best artists is not represented in Portland and we tend to see his work in numerous group shows where he has been woodshedding his ideas. Here's an interview we did years ago. All I can say is, Bruce you better make us look good!

Opening reception • 7-10pm • October 12
Jack The Pelican Presents • 487 Driggs Ave. (at 9th), Brooklyn New York • 718.782.0183

Paul Yurkovich

For the month of October, Newspace will feature the top three photographers from their 2006 National Juried Exhibition, which was juried by Christopher Rauschenberg and Jennifer Stoots. Although the artists are exhibiting separate shows, their images are united by an obsessive deconstruction of their environment. In his series The Garden, Todd Stewart attempts to share the wonder that he observes in his young children's experience of the natural world. With his rich, green imagery, Stewart invites the viewer to feel this same simple pleasure, as he attempts to explore the relationship between individual creativity and the "natural" process of creation. Paul Yurkovich's Along the Road takes us into the world of the American road trip. Rather than picture the "sights", Yurkovich seeks to capture the dreamlike roadside visions that rush past, lingering only as "sustained afterthoughts." Finally, Rishi Singal's Condition of Urbanity takes us back into the city, documenting his investigations into the forms and (dis)order with which we build our cities. From Western Europe to New Delhi to New York City, Singal has documented his patient exploration of the development of the modern urban world.

Opening Reception • 7-10pm • October 5
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th Ave. • 503.963.1935

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Jacqueline Will in DRAWN at Archer Gallery at Clark College

Jacqueline Will, "Evacuation 63b"

The first exhibition of the academic year at Clark College's Archer Gallery opens tonight. DRAWN: Explorations in Line is an investigation into the tradition of drawing and its potential for expansion through technology. The show features work by Northwest artists Cat Clifford, Heidi Preuss Grew, Robert Hanson, Linda Hutchins, Naomi Shigeta, Keith Tilford, Samantha Wall, and Jacqueline Will.

Archer Gallery | Wednesday, October 3, 4-6pm | Penguin Union Building, Clark College, 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA | 360.992.2246

Tom Cramer, "Aviary"

This month, Portland's unofficial Artist Laureate is exhibiting his latest work at the Laura Russo Gallery. By holding on to what he understands as traditional creative values, "art driven by emotional content," Tom Cramer has become a bridge between Oregon's historical artists and Portland's young, hyper-new contemporary art scene. Cramer's current work blends painting and wood carving, building beautiful, labor-intensive reliefs that reflect the influence of his travels to India, Egypt, and Europe.

Opening reception • 5-8pm • October 4
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st Ave. • 503.226.2754

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Corin Hewitt, from "Toad in a Hole (Portland, OR)"

Tonight marks the beginning of the 2007-2008 PSU Monday Night Lecture Series. The first lecture is by Corin Hewitt, who's also currently exhibiting at Small A Projects. Hewitt's credentials include participation in a group show at the Whitney, and a place in their permanent collection, as well as exhibitions throughout the U.S. and Europe. His work addresses memory and the interplay between loss and replacement (an admittedly ubiquitous subject these days), through photography, performance, and the use of cheap, ephemeral materials.

5th Ave Cinema | Monday, October 1st, 7:30pm | 510 SW Hall St.

Construct/Re-Construct

This weekend, the group exhibition Construct/Re-Construct will be opening at the Cathedral Park Building in St. Johns. The show de-constructs (if you will) the physicality of the creative building process, and explores the dialog between an artist and his or her materials. The list of participating artists promises a complex and interesting series of installations: Josh Arseneau, Francesca Berrini, John Brodie, Tiffany Lee Brown, Clare Carpenter, Cathy Cleaver, Nancy Cushwa, Kristina DiTullo, Tore Djupedal, David Hacker, Helen Heibert, Harrison Higgs, Scott Wayne Indiana, James Jack, Horatio Law, Todd Leninger, Seth Nehil, Liz Obert, Kelly Rauer, Anya Shapiro, Benjamin Stagl, Andy Stout, Robert Wilhelm, Karen Willey, and Linda Wysong. It will run through October 27.

Opening Reception: Cathedral Park Building | Saturday, September 29, 5-8pm | 6635 N. Baltimore AVE

The fourth annual Stumptown Comics Fest is happening this weekend. The festival, which has moved to the Llyod Center Doubletree, features a wide range of celebrated comics artists, including Mike & Laurel Allred, Peter Bagge, Carol Lay, Shaenon Garrity, Sarah Oleksyk, Ted Rall, and Matt Wagner. Many small press publishers will be represented, including local legends Dark Horse Comics, as well as a variety of comics-friendly organizations. The weekend full of panels, workshops, and exciting artist tables is officially kicked off with the Stumptown Pre-party Friday night at Guapo at 8pm. And don't miss the Sunday workshops exploring digital creation techniques, distribution, and interactive work, put on by PNCA instructor Neal Skorpen.

Learn more at the official Stumptown Comics website.

Plazm #29

It's happening tonight: Plazm is having a release party for Issue #29. The theme is collective memory, and it features the art of Sue Coe, Yoko Ono, Art Chantry, Storm Tharp, and Todd Haynes, conversations with JD Samson, Yoko Ono, and Jessica Jackson Hutchins, new writings from Robert Mackey and Domenick Ammirati, a Pdx musical memory map, taxonomy of meth labs, the End of War, explosions, and, of course, much, much more. The party will include performances by Evolutionary Jass Band, Hooliganship, and Glass Candy, as well as the screening of a film by Vanessa Renwick.

Ace Hotel | Wednesday, September 26, doors at 8pm (music at 9pm), $3 | 1022 SW Stark | 503.228.2277

Steve Gibson, Dene Grigar, Justin Love, and Jeannette Altman at the Archer Gallery

Live performance art at the Archer Gallery

This weekend, the Archer Gallery at Clark College is hosting a night of live multi-media performance featuring Steve Gibson, Dene Grigar, Justin Love, and Jeannette Altman. An Evening of Digital Music, Interactive Dance & Electronic Literature in Live Performance will begin with Gibson's Virtual DJ, which combines motion-activated electronic music, dance, virtual reality & robotics, followed by the premier of Grigar and Altman's The Rhapsody Room, a piece that utilizes movement, language and live digital poetry. The night will wrap up with a live DJ/VJ set by Love and Gibson, so come with your dancing shoes on.

Archer Gallery | Friday, September 28, 1pm & 7pm | Penguin Union Building, Clark College, 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA | 360.992.2246

Kim Manchester, from "Object Place"

Seen previously in the Knitting Olympics and at Reed College Arts Week, Portland craft artist Kim Manchester will be featured this autumn at PCC's North View Gallery. Manchester's exhibition, Object Place, pairs photography with swatches of decorative wallpaper to explore the traces of self left behind in empty domestic space.

Opening reception & artist talk: PCC North View Gallery | Thursday, September 27, 3pm | Sylavania Campus, 12000 Southwest 49th AVE, CT Building Room 212 | 503.977.4264

DC Comics Artist Matt Clark, from "Superman Batman"

This Wednesday, Organism is having a special screening of Hank Willis Thomas & Kambui Olujimi's The Making of Winter in America. Winter in America is one of the seminal works in Organism's Model Behavior exhibition, which will be closing in just one week. Curator (and PORT co-founder) Jeff Jahn cites the very powerful film as "one of the 10 best video art pieces done in the past 10 years."

After the screening of The Making of Winter in America, join Jeff and DC Comics artist Matt Clark for a discussion on Model Behavior.

Organism | Wednesday, September 26, 6:30pm | 1231 NW Hoyt #101

Early class at the Oregon College of Arts and Crafts

OCAC founder Julia Hoffman teaches class in her home

2007 marks the centennial anniversary of the Oregon College of Arts & Crafts, one of the premier art schools in the Northwest. They've been celebrating all year with a wide variety of exhibitions and events, and this weekend they're holding a free event to invite the community to join them in their celebration. Festivities include face painting, hands-on arts and crafts, an alumni art sale, lively entertainment, and food, beverages, and OCAC memorabilia.

Read about the remaining centennial events under the cut.

For more information on the OCAC centennial celebrations, visit their events page.

OCAC | 8245 SW Barnes Rd. | 503.297.5544

The season is in full swing here in Portland, and everybody's abuzz about art. Here's your chance to hear what the artists have to say for themselves.

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Ursula von Rydingsvard, "Pod Pachą"

In conjunction with her exhibition, Ursula von Rydingsvard will be lecturing this Sunday at PAM on her last decade of sculpting.

Born in 1942 into a German refugee camp, von Rydingsvard emigrated to the U.S. with her family in 1950, and later studied art at Columbia. Her often monumental sculptures, characterized by wooden, organic forms, have since elevated her to a major force in the art world. She received the 2007 Rome Prize, and her exhibition at PAM includes a series of drawings she completed during her residency in Italy.

von Rydingsvard will lecture at 2pm on Sunday, September 16, in the Whitsell Auditiorium. Tickets are $10 for non-members, and can be purchased online or at the museum box office.

Not making it to the Jupiter this weekend? Check out these openings.

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The annual Affair at the Jupiter Hotel is happening this weekend. In the four years since it began, Portland's own Art Fair has become an essential venue for the cross-pollination of local artists, dealers, galleries, and curators, and one of the major forces encouraging the development of a Portland art market, or "art ecology."

"Read more" for details.

Curator Namita Gupta Wiggers is speaking this Tuesday on Craft in America, the current exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Craft.

Tuesday, September 11, noon | 724 NW Davis St | 503.223.2624

Bruce Davidson, "Hero"

This Saturday, photographer Bruce Davidson is lecturing at PAM. This highly influential artist received the first ever NEA grant for photography, and has been a member of Magnum Photos since 1958. Davidson will be lecturing at 6pm on September 8, in the Whitsell auditorium. Tickets are $25 for non-members. Click here for more information.

Also happening this weekend: San Francisco-based artist Lucas Murgida will be performing at Rocks Box Fine Art. The Good runs from 6-11pm on Saturday, September 8, at 6540 N. Interstate AVE.

Jason Kelly, "Untitled"

For the month of September, the Newspace Center for Photography presents a joint show featuring Jake Shivery's Contact Portraits and Jason Kelly's Mylarsian Dreams. Shivery's work, named for the technique of contact printing directly from 8x10 negatives, is a collection of meditative, highly process-oriented photography.

Kelly's Mylarsian Dreams breaks away from the notion of "reality-based" photography. He coated his studio in mylar, creating bending and reflecting patterns of light that become like ghostly entities in the photographs, bearing little resemblance to what is visible to the naked eye.

Opening Reception • 7-10pm • September 7
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th Ave. • 503.963.1935

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Melia Donovan, from "The Clandestine Periphery"

It's time for PICA's annual Time Based Art Festival. In its fifth year, TBA is a 10 day festival (September 6 - 16) that uses visual art, sound, theater, installation, lectures, and everything else under the sun to explore themes in contemporary art.

"Read more" for our visual arts picks, and a volunteering opportunity that will earn you a free pass.

Darren Waterston from The Flowering (The Fourfold Sense) 2007 Pigment print with letterpress and hand-coloring 18 x 13 inches

For those of you who have been hungering for a museum-level show of paintings... a painter's painter so to speak, well look no farther than the sensuous and haunting work of Darren Waterston at Lewis and Clark's Hoffman Gallery. Sure, the lecture and reception conflict with First Thursday but it's impossible to see the art properly through those crowds anyways. If you are all about painting this is your ticket and an opportunity to rub elbows with this very adept painter.

Details on this two part exhibition...(more)

Claire Cowie, "Homunculus (hyena)"

For the month of September, the Elizabeth Leach Gallery presents Homunculi, the painting and sculpture of Claire Cowie. Homunculi explores the life that can be imbued into the creations - or creatures - of the artist, and toys with the threat that these beings may turn on their creator. The often mythological results are simultaneously dark and playful, and very visually lush.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • September 6
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th Ave. • 503.224.0521

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Marko Lulic

On Tuesday, September 4, the Reed College Cooley Gallery will reopen after summertime renovations. (Can the the horrible carpeting and wainscoting truly be gone?) The following night they'll be celebrating their first show in the new space. This commissioned exhibition is a duo show between Marko Lulic and Peter Kreider, in collaboration with PICA's TBA festival, exploring "the invisible bonds between objects and the structures that support them." Opening night festivities feature a public reception with live music and a BBQ.

Wednesday, September 5, 6pm | Cooley Gallery | 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. | 503.777.7251

Ursula von Rydingsvard, "Pod Pachą"

From September 1 through December 2, 2007, PAM presents the work of German-born artist Ursula von Rydingsvard. The exhibition features the monumental hand-carved Pod Pachą, accompanied by a series of drawings completed by von Rydingsvard during her residency in Italy as a recipient of the 2007 Rome Prize. This will be the first showing of von Rydingsvard's work in the Northwest, and the first time she has shown her drawings.

Jenene Nagy

Jenene Nagy's solo show False Flat opens this Wednesday at the Linfield Gallery, the center of the Visual Arts department at Linfield College.

Wednesday, August 29, 6-8pm | Linfield Fine Art Gallery | 900 SE Baker St. McMinnville, OR | 503-883-2804

Rembrandt, "Self-Portrait as St. Paul (detail)"

The ongoing Rembrandt show at PAM is closing on Sunday, September 16. In conjunction with the closing of the exhibition, PAM will present Rembrandt: The Artist and His Collection, a lecture by Professor Arthur K. Wheelock Jr. exploring how Rembrandt's personal collection of artistic and natural treasuries influenced his work. The lecture is on Friday, September 7 at 7pm in the Whitsell Auditorium. Tickets are $10 for non-members, and are available online or at the museum box office.

There will also be a symposium, Rembrandt and Beyond, the following day featuring Dr. Ronni Baer, H. Rodney Nevitt Jr., Ruud Priem, and Arthur K. Wheelock Jr. The symposium is on Saturday, September 8, from 10am to 2pm. Admission is $25, and includes a box lunch. Tickets are available online, or at the museum box office.

Yoram Wolberger, "White Bunny #1"

Organism presents Model Behavior, an exhibition exploring the role of modeling in contemporary visual culture. The show pushes the boundaries of the "fine art" milieu into the worlds of physics and comic books, including Matt Clark of DC Comics. Other featured artists include Hank Willis Thomas, Yoram Wolberger, Weppler & Mahovsky, and many more.

Opening Saturday, August 25, 7-9:30pm | Organism | 1231 NW Hoyt St. #101 | info@artorganism.org
Show runs through September 30, Hours 12-5 Sat & Sun

Kevin Darras

The Rake Art Gallery is holding a benefit for local designer Kevin Darras, who was injured in a car accident. Clothing screen-printed with Darras' designs will be raffled off, and large prints will be for sale. The benefit also features fire & contortion performances, and cameo appearances by local saucy celebs.
Friday, August 24, 8pm | Rake Art Gallery | 325 NW 6th AVE | 503.914.6391

Heidi Schwegler, "Utopia Sighs"

This weekend, Tilt Gallery and Project Space will exhibit Utopia Sighs, a project featuring sculpture, video, live performance, and sound by Heidi Schwegler. In collaboration with balloon artist Kelvin Chun, Schwegler will present a one night only performance exploring the "delight, chaos and inescapable trauma of the toddler's party." Don't miss this special event, as Tilt will only be open this one night for the month of August.
Saturday, August 18, 6pm. | Tilt Gallery and Project Space | 625 NW Everett #106 | 908.616.5477

Kehinde Wiley, "Entry Into Paris of the Dauphin, the Future Charles V"

After being rescheduled due to illness, Kehinde Wiley is finally in Portland! He will lecture on "The World Stage" in conjunction with his exhibit at PAM's Jubitz Center for Modern and Contemporary Art.

Check out this interview with Wiley from the Today Show.

Saturday, August 18, 2pm at the Whitsell Auditorium. Tickets are $5 for members, $10 for non-members, and must be purchased in advance at the museum box office. Tickets already purchased are valid for the rescheduled date.

The city is hosting two roundtables to discuss issues that were raised during June's creative capacity townhall. The four broad threads to be covered are:
-Artists
-For-profit creative businesses
-Non-profit creative organizations
-Arts education and the new Arts Partners program
The roundtables are on September 17 and September 25, 6:30-8pm at City Hall, 1221 SW 4th AVE. Space is limited to 50 people per thread each night. Please RSVP.
If you missed the townhall, you can watch it here.

Lots of lectures this weekend, starting with:

Hayden Herrera lectures on Friday Kahlo

Frida Kahlo, "Roots"

Hayden Herrera presents Frida Kahlo: Her Life and Art at PAM. Herrera has published widely on Kahlo, and wrote narration for the award-winning documentary Portrait of an Artist: Frida Kahlo.
Sunday, August 12, 2pm, the Whitsell Auditorium. $10 for non-members.

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From ACVC 2007

Audio Cinema presents the second annual Audio Cinema Visual Collective Exhibition, featuring a diverse group of West Coast artists working in many different media. Audio Cinema's 10,000 square foot warehouse space allows for installation, performance, and wall-mounted art to function harmoniously in a single exhibition.

Opening Friday, August 10, 6pm-2am. $5 donation (a portion of the proceeds will be donated to P:ear).
On view August 11 & 12, 12-6pm, sliding scale donation.
Audio Cinema | 226 SE Madison St. | 503.467.4554

Local performance and installation duo Sincerely, John Head are hosting a fundraiser on their own behalf at Tiga. Scott Porter will get his hair done on the tailgate of a '77 Ranchero in the parking lot while live DJs spin some of the music inspiring the ongoing SJH box set. There will be cheap raffle tickets for a variety of prizes, and $2 will be added to every bill to benefit the group.

Tiga | Tuesday, August 7, 6-10pm
1465 NE Prescott | 21+

The RACC presents Below Marquam, an installation in the Portland Building Installation Space by Benjamin Stagl. The project will transform the space into a view from below the east end of the Marquam bridge. With Below Marquam, Stagl is opening a dialog into our creative relationship with urban space. He hopes to eventually build a light-based installation under the bridge itself.
Below Marquam will be on view from August 6 - September 4 at 1120 SW 5th Ave.

The annual Mostlandia championships are upon us! Sponsored this year by Gallery Homeland in conjunction with Scratching the Surface, the championships feature navigation, cigarette rolling, singing, skating, and a variety of other bizarre and exciting activities on August 4th & 5th. Only Citizens and children under 12 may participate, but everyone is invited to come enjoy the festivities and root for their favorites. Check out the schedule for more information.

Justin Gorman and Caleb Freese at Jace Gace

Justin Gorman & Caleb Freese

Hot new Belmont gallery + waffle house Jáce Gáce presents Get Yourself an Education, featuring the photography and design work of Justin Gorman and Caleb Freese.

Opening Reception • 6pm-12am • August 3
Jáce Gáce • 2045 SE Belmont • 503.239.1887

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Joe Thurston, "Correspondence"

For the month of August, the Elizabeth Leach Gallery presents Then, Quite Suddenly, We Were Simply No Longer Anywhere, an exhibition by Joe Thurston. Thurston's painstakingly hand-carved relief paintings expose the labor of the relief process, while exploring the tactile possibilities of the painted surface.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • August 2
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th Ave. • 503.224.0521

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Rererato presents Zzzzz... (Between the Sheets), a group show exploring sleep and dream related art. The opening reception this Saturday features several local Portland bands, and promises not to be a sleepy affair.
Opening Reception • 4-9pm • July 28
Rererato • 5135 NE 42nd Ave. • info@rererato.com

Tonight! Don't miss the screening of Odds and Ends 2 at the Rake Gallery. Curated by Karl Lind, this is a follow up to last winter's popular video collection Odds and Ends at Gallery Homeland.
Friday, July 27, 8pm. $7 suggested donation. 325 NW 6th Ave.

Naoto Nakagawa, "Forest of Eden"

Naoto Nakagawa is lecturing tomorrow at PAM. Nature Up Close: The Landscape Reinvented will explore the history of Nakagawa's work since the 1960s, and his unique expression of the natural world.
Friday, July 27, 5:30pm. The lecture is free, but reservations are required as seating is limited. Find out more here.

There's been a lot of buzz surrounding the opening of the new DeSoto arts building in the north park blocks (and don't worry, PORT is working on its own). The Museum of Contemporary Craft will inhabit the core of the building, with four major Portland galleries filling the beautiful spaces along the block: Froelick Gallery, Augen Gallery, Charles Hartman Fine Art, and Blue Sky Gallery.

Well, the moment is finally here, and to celebrate, they're having a block party. Come by on Sunday to inaugurate the new spaces, take in some panel discussions and artist demonstrations, and rock out to some great local music. The party runs from noon until 7:30pm, and is centered at 724 NW Davis. Check out the complete schedule of events, and this short video on the Museum's transition to the new space.

To drum up further support for their grand reopening, the Museum of Contemporary Craft is also having a (sold out) benefit gala Saturday night. Attendees will be wined and dined while they preview the Museum's first exhibition in their new space and bid on a variety of cultural goodies.

Philip Iosca, Untitled

Through September 1, Chambers will be exhibiting the work of Jenny Strayer and Philip Iosca, united in the exploration of gender. Iosca's Holy Glory, My Private Parts Public, My Public Parts Private re-contextualizes words, images, and objects, challenging themes of masculinity and sexuality. Strayer will present 20th Century Women, a series of photomontages from 1930s and 1940s ephemera that highlight the highly stereotyped femininity of that era.

Opening Reception • 5:30-8:30pm • July 19
Chambers Fine Art • 207 SW Pine St. #102 • 503.227.9398

Here is a chance to hear noted Art Historian Sue Taylor's very popular lecture on Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds.

Sue is a corresponding editor for Art in America and the cornerstone of Portland State University's art department. She often focuses on psychoanalytic elements of artist works, having published books on Jackson Pollock as well as Hans Bellmer in, "The Anatomy of Anxiety" published by MIT press. She is currently working a monograph on Grant Wood. If you can make this free mid-day lecture I highly suggest it.

Tuesday July 17th 12:00 PM, free
PSU's art building room # 200
Corner of SW Jackson and 5th

Sunday, July 15: Roxanne Jackson is giving an artist talk at the Portland Art Center in conjunction with her show Lost Wisdom. It starts at 2pm, and there is a $2 fee for non-members.

Monday, July 16: The Back Room Anthology release party! 6:30pm at Podkrepa Hall, featuring live music, an open mic, and the brand new Anthology of the Back Room publications. Admission is $8, or free with the purchase of the book, and tickets can be purchased here.

Kehinde Wiley, "Entry Into Paris of the Dauphin, the Future Charles V"

This Saturday, Kehinde Wiley will lecture on "The World Stage" in conjunction with his exhibit at PAM's Jubitz Center for Modern and Contemporary Art.

Saturday, July 14, 2pm at the Whitsell Auditorium. Tickets are $5 for members, $10 for non-members, and can be purchased here, or at the museum box office. This event is air conditioned.

*Update: The lecture has been canceled due to an illness Wiley picked up in India this week (he is being treated in New York though). The lecture will be rescheduled before August 19th and any tickets purchased will be honored or refunded.

**Update: The lecture has been rescheduled for Saturday, August 18, at 2pm, still in the Whitsell auditorium.

Manuel Neri, "Mujer Pegada Series No. 8"

Work downtown? Spend your lunch break at PAM this Wednesday and get a guided tour of the Manuel Neri exhibition by curator Bruce Guenther.
Wednesday, July 11, 12:15pm. Tour meets at the front entrance. Free to members, or included with museum admission.

Rembrandt, "Self-Portrait as St. Paul (detail)"

In conjunction with the ongoing Rembrandt exhibition, the Portland Art Museum presents "Rembrandt True and False," a lecture by Walter Liedtke, curator of European paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The lecture will explore the attribution confusion that arises between Rembrandt and his followers.

The lecture is on Sunday, July 8 at 2pm. It's free and open to the public, but tickets are required. Visit the PAM calendar for more information.

John Mann, 1st Place

The Newspace Center for Photography presents Among Us and Curious, their 3rd annual national juried exhibition, curated by Darius Himes. In the chaotic world of 21st century photography, where the multiplication of technology has led to a proliferation of images from anyone, anywhere, Among Us and Curious has sought to restore the critical filter and deliver a strong, cohesive body of work. Neither focusing on the most diverse nor the most technically proficient photographs, the jurors selected images that possessed an "enigmatic script" that would contribute to the overall unity of the show. Himes suggests that "playfulness, mystery, fauna, fancy, and the presence of others among us" should resonate throughout the exhibition.

Opening Reception • 7-10pm • July 6
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th Ave. • 503.963.1935

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Gabriel Manca, "To Rise or Raise in the Air in Apparent Defiance of Gravity"

For their final show in their 2nd AVE space, Froelick presents Gabriel Manca's New Work. In his return to Froelick, Manca is exhibiting a series of new work featuring collage, found objects, and repurposed commercial art. He uses subtractive techniques to create surreal landscapes out of reused mass-market lithographs and encaustic wax.

Opening reception • 5-8:30pm • July 5
Froelick Gallery • 817 SW 2nd • 503.222.1142

Bryan E. Schellinger makes his Portland debut

Quality Pictures presents Bryan E. Schellinger's New Works, his premier solo exhibition in Portland. Schellinger's highly formal, layered paintings take their influence from the minimalist and op art movements of the 60s and 70s, returning to the notion that the process of painting, rather than the product, is an end unto itself. The opening reception will feature ice sculptures, introducing an element of immediacy.

Opening reception • 6-9pm • July 5
Quality Pictures Contemporary Art • 916 NW Hoyt • 503.227.5060

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Patrick Rock is one of those really rare Portland artists, he's from Portland. With an MFA from SFIA in new genres this is the infamous guy who showed the 30 foot inflatable wiener at Fresh Trouble and co-curated the rambling Haunted show last year, so we will see how well the chaos serves his latest effort. It should be a good move to have a tight exhibition space like this, fewer options usually = better, more concise decisions. More people should be doing this sort of alt-space thing.

The first show at his new alt-space, Rock's Box... comes with the perfect title, "Portland? Fuck Portland!" (July 4th- August 13th). Hopefully it adds a little something to the ubiquitous summer group show. In this case it maps the influence of Oregon on Oregonians. Yup each of the 13 artists in the show grew up in Oregon and about a quarter of the artists in the show no longer live in the state. With names like Storm Tharp, Malia Jensen, Joey Macca, Natasha Snellman, Jeanine Jablonski, Molly Vidor, Donald Morgan and PORT's own Katherine Bovee, etc... it should be worth the trek to the new North Interstate Arts District (ok it's just Rock's Box and a really great Arco gas station).

Opening: July 4th 5-11PM

Location: 6540 N.Interstate ave. @ Portland Blvd/Rosa Parks Way.

Mass Transit Directions: Take: Max Yellow Line towards Expo Center (aka North) get off at the Portland Blvd. stop... it's the black concrete building on the east side of the street, right next to the Yellow Line stop

Gallery Hours: Sat-Sun 12-6 / or by appointment at: #971.506.8938

To kick off Animation Inside Out, their contribution to Platform, PNCA is hosting a street party from 8pm-midnight on June 28. The party, which features street entertainers, food vendors, and the rockin' sounds of March Fourth, is on NW 13th between Johnson & Kearney, and includes a walking tour of the juried animation exhibition that extends throughout the Pearl.

Get more info here.

Artists from THE HOOK UP will be discussing their work at the NAAU this Saturday.
June 23, 1-3pm, 922 SE Ankeny St.

Trina Robbins is lecturing at PNCA as part of a week-long intensive on comics and graphic novels.
June 25, 7pm, 1241 NW Johnson St.
Free with RVSP: 503-821-8891.

Me, you, you. a ventriloquy

Small A presents "Me, you, you. a ventriloquy," a group exhibition organized by Carter Mull, featuring Amanda Ross-Ho, Carter Mull, Jennifer West, Jesse Willenbring, and Michael Zahn. June 20-July 28, 2007.
Opening reception Wednesday, June 20th, 7-9pm, 1430 SE 3rd.

Dryden Goodwin, FLIGHT

As part of PNCA's Platform International Animation Festival, London-based artist Dryden Goodwin will be showing FLIGHT, "a fugitive escape path across five interlinked spaces," for the first time in the U.S. FLIGHT is a blend of film, drawing, and sound installation. An artist lecture accompanies the film at PNCA on June 14, 6:30pm.

Joel Jonientz, "Self Portrait as a Girl"

In preparation for their big move, Froelick Gallery presents Road Show: A Juried Exhibit on Motoring Culture. This summer Froelick is moving into a space at NW Davis & Broadway built in 1914 as a DeSoto Auto dealership. For their last hurrah in their old building, Froelick is exhibiting a spirited group show that explores the themes of car travel and the open road.

Opening reception • 5-8:30pm • June 7
Froelick Gallery • 817 SW 2nd • 503.222.1142

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Dani Johnson

This First Thursday, Timbuk2 is hosting a charity event at the Ace Hotel. Local artists Michelle Ramin, Marshall Stokes, Justin Gorman, and Dani Johnson will be selling one-of-a-kind artist canvas bags to benefit their charities of choice. June 7, 7:30pm at The Cleaners - Ace Hotel, 10 SW Stark.

Dan Graham, from Catalogue Raisonné

New York-based artist Dan Graham is lecturing tonight for PSU's Monday night lecture series. Graham's versatile work has been identified as everything from minimalism to architecture to installation art, and he has exercised influence on American art as both artist and critic since the 1960s. The free event starts at 8:15pm at the Fifth Avenue Cinema, 510 SW Hall.

Also at PSU this week: The opening of Walter Lee's MFA thesis exhibition, "Have you met Walter Lee," which runs June 4 - 15 on the second floor of the PSU arts building, 2000 SW 5th Ave #210. The artist will be discussing his work at noon on June 6, followed by an opening reception at 6pm.

Rembrandt's Self-Portrait as St. Paul (detail)

Generally, we cover contemporary art here but it goes without saying that Rembrandt, as the premier post-Italian renniasance western humanist artist (rivaled only by Shakespeare and Beethoven) transcends his period. In fact, he's a great deal more famous/influentual now than when he died in 1669.

I'll spare you all the fluff you will be bombarded with about the Portland Art Museum's show titled Rembrandt and the Golden Age of Dutch Art. It's comprised of works from the Rijksmuseum while that rock of western culture is rennovated, so lucky us. If you dont live here, it's a good time to visit as this is also the only West Coast stop and the weather is great...(more)

Robert Smithson, from Spiral Jetty

Saturday, June 2: The Cinema Project is having an outdoor triple-screening of Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty (1970), Nancy Holt's Sun Tunnels (1978), and Richard Serra's Railroad Turnbridge (1975-6). Enjoy these short films under the stars at 8pm in the Artemisia Garden & Gallery, 110 SE 28th.

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Unfinished installation view of The Hook Up

This month the New American Art Union presents The Hook Up, curated by Bay Area transplant Jesse Hayward. The Hook Up deals with the relationship of art to the wall, how flat space influences media and installation, and the effect of the wall as a unifying element in exhibition. This highly anticipated show introduces new work that might subvert your expectations from participating artists.

The Hook Up features three artists from the 1999 Oregon Biennial who woke up Portland's gallery scene forever, Sean Healy, Brenden Clenaghen, and Jacqueline Ehlis, as well as Ellen George, TJ Norris, Jeff Jahn (PORT's ubiquitous co-owner), and newcomers Stephanie Robison and PORT's own Jenene Nagy.

Opening reception • 7-10pm • June 1
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny Street • Tel.503.231.8294

... (more)

The Oregon Cultural Heritage Commission is sponsoring a lecture by Michael Munk: "The Portland Red Guide: Sites and Stories from our Radical Past." The free lecture is at 7pm on Wednesday, June 6, at the Eliot Chapel, First Unitarian Church, and will be followed by a reception.

In further arts education news, Kristan Kennedy of PICA is curating a show at PSU's Littman Gallery in the Smith Center, 1825 SW Broadway. Exit 07 features the work of 12 PSU seniors, and closes on May 30. Visiting hours are Monday through Friday, noon to 4pm.

Also at PSU: A "Senior Showcase" in the PSU Art Building, 2000 SW 5th Ave., running from May 24 through June 7. Visiting hours are Monday through Thursday, 9am to 5pm, and the closing reception is on Thursday, June 7 from 5-8pm. MFA students at PSU will be holding open studios during the reception.

The 13 day Mississippi:May show kicks off with an opening party this Saturday, May 19. It's a group show filling an immense North Mississippi warehouse, bylined as "15 artists. 50,000 square feet." Organized by graffiti artist Joshua Wallace, M:M hopes to showcase talented local artists who don't make it into the standard Portland gallery rounds. The group works in a wide variety of media and styles, and the format of the show promises to be both fascinating and frenetic. For more info on the genesis of M:M, check out the Willie Week editorial.

Update: From the 26th through the 31st, there will be a silent auction in an alcove of the M:M warehouse to benefit performance artist and former Sprockettes member Trish Ruppert, who suffers from Acquired Subacute Demyelinating Neuropathy, as well as OHSU research on the autoimmune disorder.

Also this weekend: the opening reception for Third Thing Projects, a collaboration between Chris Knight and 2006 Oregon Biennial artist Ben Buswell. The show is at the Alexander Gallery in the Niemeyer Center on the Clackamas Community College Campus, and the opening reception is Saturday, May 19th, from 1-3:30pm.

Lee Walton speaks for the PSU Monday Night Lecture Series.
Monday, May 14, 8:15pm.
5th Avenue Cinema Room 92
510 SW Hall St. 5th Avenue Cinema (at the corner of SW 5th & Hall on the PSU Campus)
Free
http://www.pdx.edu/art/

Click to see full video.

Walton received his MFA from the California College of the Arts, and is currently on the interdisciplinary faculty at the Parson's New School of Design. His experientalist work ranges from "traditional" drawing to video installation to large scale public performance. Walton's work has appeared in Portland before at The Best Coast in 2003, and again in 2005 as part of the Fresh Trouble exhibition (disclosure: curated by PORT co-owner Jeff Jahn). His lecture tonight will cover current work, such as the Getting a Feel video and performance project (pictured above), and after the lecture Walton will be working with students to create a series of semi-public performances.

The annual Cascade AIDS Project (CAP) art auction and benefit is happening this Saturday, May 12, at the Oregon Convention Center's Portland Ballroom. Unfortunately, the success of this event tends to undermine the local art market by fostering bottom-line art pricing. CAP would do Portland's art community a great service by broadening the range of objects beyond art in its auction, leaving only those artists who are able to sell above gallery prices. This would hopefully also set a good example for the imitators who have followed CAP's success- although CAP does sometimes set new price points, smaller auctions tend to be even more guilty of subverting the Portland art market.

Tonight: Urban Honking presents the first event in a new series of symposium-style arts & culture "talks," featuring a lecture by Matthew Stadler and presentations by Greg Borenstein, Claire Evans, Aaron Flint Jamison, and the films of Charles & Ray Eames. 7pm, Thursday May 10, Mississippi Ballroom, free.

Also tonight: A double-feature screening of films by PICA artist in residence, Arnold J. Kemp. Suspiria & Prince of Darkness will be showing at the Clinton Street Theater at 7pm, followed by a meet and greet with Kemp.

Found on the Willie Week's wire: Northwest architect David Miller from the Miller/Hull firm is speaking at the Portland Art Museum. His lecture, "Objects/Fields: Recent Architecture of Miller/Hull," will cover the firm's latest work, which ranges from stylish urban condos to elegant educational facilities (pictured: the Tillamook Forest Interpretive Center). Find him Tuesday, May 8 at 7pm in the Fields Ballroom in the Marks Building at 1119 SW Park Ave. The lecture is free, and followed by a dessert reception.

There are a lot of events and openings tonight but here are the two best bets:

Small A shows Bob Linder & Will Rogan Hear The Wind Sing.
The New York based Linder and San Francisco based Rogan have been friends for over a decade and implicit in their work, is a both a celebration and an insistence of the physicality and presence of things that is also central to Haruki Murakami's text and title that is borrowed for the title of this exhibition. They will both be speaking at The PSU lecture series on Monday May 7th as well (8:00 PM @ 5th ave cinemas)

Opening Reception • 5-8pm • May 4 - June 2
Small A Projects • 1430 SE 3rd • 503.234.7993

The other bet is a curator's talk @ Tilt, 625 NW Everett #106 (7:00 PM):

Atlanta based curator Advantika Bawa discusses Blank, which opened at the Everrett Lofts yesterday. It's a solid show featuring Traci Talasco, Brett Osborn, Fred Jesser, Victoria Fu, Johnathan Field, Craig Drennan, Lauren Clay and Bawa.

Yes, me again I apologize; PORT will be introducing our newest news/openings writer shortly. About First Thursday? As usual it looks like most of the edgier shows will be in the alt spaces like the Everett Station Lofts (I wont go over the shows there, just go). Here are some of better looking non-alt shows:

Din Q. Le @ Elizabeth leach Gallery

Ever a favorite when he's in town Le has had a longstanding presence in Portland but after being in the 2005 Venice Biennale his woven photographs have been in great demand. I'm excited to see the video work as well.

Opening Reception • May 3 • 6 to 9p
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th Ave • Tel. 503.224.0521

Nathaniel Shapiro's Point of Purchase @ Manuel Izquierdo Sculpture Gallery (PNCA)

If the image above "Hot Seat" is any indication, this might be the edgiest of the establishment shows this month... excluding Kehinde Wiley at PAM of course.

Opening Reception • May 3 • 6 to 9p
PNCA • 825 NW 13th Ave • Tel. 503.226.4391

...(much more)

Two new shows at the Museum that look quite interesting and another lecture at PSU.

Melinda Stone • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series
Mon • Mar 19 • 8:15p
510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue • Cinema Room 92
Free

A filmmaker, curator, and teacher, Melinda Stone has produced over twenty films and videos, as well as numerous outdoor cinematic productions. Stone has a deep affinity for the American West and road travel; the subjectivity of her work often extends from historic research and the mining of cultural conditions found immediately in the land. Stone’s whimsical sensibility and romanticism surface in her ongoing interest in amateur productions and experimental screening practices, which often incorporate live music and participatory sing-alongs.

Kehinde Wiley • Portland Art Museum
Jubitz Center for Modern and Contemporary Art
1219 SW Park Avenue • 503·226·2811
sun 12p – 5p, tues-sat 10a – 5p, til 8p th-fri
adults: $10, members: free

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Kehinde Wiley
Entry of Paris of the Dauphin, 2005
Oil on canvas
Courtesy of Kehinde Wiley Studio

This exhibition features six of Wiley's recent provocative paintings that illuminate complex art historical references and superb hyperreal technique. Drawn from private collections across the country, the paintings explore current issues of style, class, dignity, and prejudice in metaphorical terms and allegorically inspired portraits.
Curator: Bruce Guenther, Chief Curator and Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art

The Drawn Line • Portland Art Museum
Helen Copeland Gallery and Adams Foundation Foyer
1219 SW Park Avenue • 503·226·2811
sun 12p – 5p, tues-sat 10a – 5p, til 8p th-fri
adults: $10, members: free

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Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri)
Elijah in the Desert Fed by Ravens
c. 1619-20. Portland Art Museum

This exhibition features some 65 European and American drawings from the Museum's permanent collection. The objects are organized according to three themes that are artists' favorites - the figure, the portrait, and the landscape. Ranging from the 18th century to the present, these works present a great variety of approaches to these subjects. From spontaneous sketches to highly finished sheets, these drawings give the viewer an opportunity to study the ways in which drawing mediums such as watercolor, wash, gouache, crayon, chalk, charcoal, and graphite can be handled.
Curatorial Team: Annette Dixon, Bruce Guenther, Marnie Stark, and Jennifer Gately

Passing Out Heart Game, Emily Bulfin & Tahni Holt

In case you missed it in Melia's post earlier, here's all the info on what looks to be one of the best group shows of the year...(more)

There’s a PSU lecture, a show opening without a public opening and an opening night party for the PDX Film Fest with a curated show of video, installation and sculpture.

Mid-month openings always stick out, especially if you want to become social again.

Today is the first day of Wid Chambers latest show and Thursday April 19th will be the official opening night for what Wid is calling "Picking Up The Pieces" at his eponymous gallery. He's a kind of digital David Reed. I confess, I like to talk with Wid because he's the only art person I know here who can talk about electric guitars and Soldano amplifiers, etc. and his understanding of sound definitely resonates with his art. (What, you thought I only think about art?).

Opening April 19th: 5:30-8:30

Chambers Gallery
207 SW Pine St. # 102
(503) 227-9398

For those of you who are interested in making these chilly nights a little more lively, here's what is happening at Valentine's this week: (read more)

PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture Series • Tonight: Walter Lee Projects Presents: A Night of YouTube

Walter Lee Projects Presents: A Night of YouTube • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series
Mon • Mar 19 • 8:15p
510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92
Free

PSU MFA candidate and You Tube practitioner Walter Lee will host a night of You Tube selections and a discussion about web based platforms in relationship to contemporary art.

Ok I'll be out of the country but if you are in Portland definitely catch Dan Cameron, Senior Curator of the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York at the Portland Art Museum, for a lecture entitled “Gone Global.” He is schedualed to discuss the differences and similarities in Asian and American Contemporary Art, based on his own global art experiences. Ask him about the Huang Yong Ping retrospective up at the Vancouver Art Gallery. We haven't seen much of the new contemporary Chinese art in Portland beyond the Cao Fei video I curated into this show in 2005. Still in many ways Portland is much closer to Asian cities than New York.

The museum text says, "The Intersection of Words and Experience will explore the fundamental changes in art-making concepts, theories and practices after 1960. With the speakers representing influential theorists, critics, curators, authors and professors, audiences will be introduced to diverse perspectives on the shape and direction of contemporary art today. Topics will center on how conceptual art and art making practices have changed the physical reality of the object and in turn our viewing experience."

To these eyes it seems like there is a more of an active engagement with history, now that the whole idea about the death of history has become even more silly than the death of painting. One trick with historicised Asian art is that most Americans have so little historical knowledge about their own country, let alone Chinese or Indonesian history. Then there is the whole bit about how Asian cities make even New York seem like a slow paced pokey place.

April 15th

2:00 @ Portland Art Museum Whitsell Auditorium, $5 members - $10 nonmembers (These were better attended when the PAM lectures were free)

The Mercury also had a very short interview with Cameron

Bruce Conkle • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series
Mon • Mar 19 • 8:15p
510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92
Free

Bruce Conkle loves snowmen, coconuts, fairy tales, Sasquatch and gingerbread. He is interested in creating work which uses art and humor to address contemporary attitudes toward nature and environmental concerns, including deforestation and global warming. His work often deals with escapism, artificial worlds and man's place in nature and frequently examines what he calls the "misfit quotient" at the crossroads.(pr)

THIS JUST IN FROM THE DESK OF HARRELL FLETCHER:

"Because of a visiting artist's schedule change we will be doing something different for the PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture Series on April 16th (that's in a week). MFA Candidate Walter Lee, known for his Walter Lee Projects on YouTube such as this one, will host an open mic night of sorts in which audience members will be offered the opportunity to present work found on YouTube that they deem worthy of public attention on the big screen. To make the evening come together as fluidly as possible, Walter will take recommendations and create a playlist all week leading up to the presentation. To be included as a presenter please e-mail Walter as soon as possible at wfrancislee@gmail.com. There will be a Q and A after the screenings in which we hope to discuss the relevance of YouTube and other web based platforms in relation to contemporary art practice. As always the public is invited. Tell a friend."

Ted Apel's Potential Difference (detail)

At New American Art Union, curator TJ Norris offers invisible.other a subtle group show about subtleties that will probably be squished somewhat at the official opening tonight. Most of the work has a controlled whiteness or transparency about it that requires a calm quiet environment. Tighter and more curatorially controlled than most recent group shows in Portland city limits, it showcases the idea of liminality more than the various participants who are: Ted Apel, Daniel Barron, Richard Chartier (2002 Whitney Biennial), (PORT's own) Melia Donovan, Leif Elggren, Ty Ennis, Thomas Koner, Michael Paulus, Susan Robb, Steve Roden, Abi Spring and my favorite in this show, Laura Vandenburgh. Her work takes on a lot more intimacy without frames.
Opening reception • 7-10pm • April 6-29 4
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny Street • Tel.503.231.8294

Naomi Nowak's Bower

Pretty in Ink: featuring new work by Meg Hunt, Miniature Mouse and Naomi Nowak... it looks pretty and errrr kitschy (but in a well executed, maximum effect way).
Opening Reception • 6-9pm • April 6-29
Grass Hut • 811 East Burnside • 503.445.9924

Wolfgang Tillmans' "Stripped" at Pulliam Deffenbaugh

Pulliam Deffenbaugh is putting a new spin on one of the tiredest group show concepts of all time, the Still Life. Now don't get me wrong, I'm a massive Willem Kalf fan and I'm completely excited about this more adventurous take featuring a very nice Wolfgang Tillmans along with an eclectic mix of Andy Warhol, Uta Barth, Thomas K. Conway, Morris Graves, Richard Hoyen , Isaac Layman, Laura Letinsky, McDermott & McGough, James Martin, Jeffry Mitchell, Vik Muniz, Raymond Pettibon, David Rosenak and Jay Steensma. OK now that is one wild still life lineup.
Opening Reception - 6-8pm - April. 5-28
Pulliam Deffenbaugh Gallery 929 NW Flanders Tel. 503.228.6665

Gregory Grenon's "Then You Turn Around" at Laura Russo Gallery

Gregory Grenon gets a lot of silly guff for being successful, attitudinal and edgy (not exactly a crime for an artist eh?). I think his best work speaks volumes about the awkward even "rough around the edges" moments between individuals. If anyone wonders where Chris Johanson fits into Portland's long standing figurative tradition just look at Grenon and Robert Colescott. Also showing is, Jack Portland. Frankly, he is lucky to be alive after a serious health crisis in Italy (he had great influence on younger artists like Tom Cramer and Jacqueline Ehlis and it's good to see him this month).
Opening Reception 6-9pm April 5-28
Laura Russo Gallery 805 NW 21st 503.225.2754

...more

Susan Robb • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series
Mon • Mar 19 • 8:15p
510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92
Free

Susan Robb received her MFA from the University of Washington and did her undergraduate work at Syracuse University. She was awarded in 2005 the Pollock-Krasner Fellowship, and has exhibited her work internationally. Susan Robb describes her recent work as an investigation of dysphoria brought on by a combined sense of dissatisfaction with culture and isolation from nature. Robb often looks to her environment for answers creating a strategic disordering of common elements that produce an ideological hybrid between flesh, nature and technology.(pr)

Robb currently has a piece in TJ Norris' show invisible.other at the New American Art Union. NAAU is open Thursday-Sunday 12-6. It officially opens on Friday.

small A will hold an off-the-normal-schedule-of-events opening for their end of March through April show tomorrow night from 5-8pm. A solo show of work by Josh Shaddock dubbed It goes without saying will include video, photographs, text pieces and…one painting. Shaddock, who showed with the gallery in their December group show Green Light Green Light, is a New York based artist who has also shown at White Columns, in Lisbon and in San Francisco.

Josh Shaddock • It goes without saying
small A projects
Sat • Mar 31 • 5-8p

Marko Lulic, Hard and Soft No.2, 2002/05, fiberplate, wood, varnish, 450 x 650cm.

Marko Lulic Lecture at Reed College, Eliot Hall, room 314
Wednesday, March 28, 7 p.m. (free)

Ok there have been a heap of lectures in Portland recently but this is one of my top 3 this Spring (the other two are Dan Cameron April 15th and Rosalind Krauss May 20th at PAM). Here is a link to Lulic's most recent exhibition. (note the invaluable Cooley Gallery will be closed for rennovations [no more carpet!] till September, Lulic will have the re-opening show).

I'm extremely excited about Marko's work, he's an artist who explores old new ideas with a great deal of panache. The work infuses the dead ends of politics, architecture and other forms of power with the sense that their circle no longer holds us with their once tighter a grip, while pointing out the lingering pervasiveness of that grip. Thanks to Marjorie Meyers for making this happen...(more)

Please forgive the cross promotion, Ultra and the WWeek have already posted and I've been tardy on this:

Organism's first big fundraiser of 2007 is the Toast Gala, a special evening with a four course dinner celebrating a diverse sample of Portland's visual artists at the Screendoor. Wines by Panther Creek (space is limited so RSVP with payment by March 29th).

The guestlist is already shaping up to be an impressive catalogue of movers, makers and shakers (with some interesting new to town faces who haven't gotten involved before). We plan to do more of these to put the spotlight on many other deserving artists.

Celebrated artists (both emerging and established, all actively showing outside the region):

James Lavadour
Matt McCormick
Sean Healy
Ellen George
R. Scott Porter & Nat Andreini (Sincerely John Head)
Katherine Bovee & Philippe Blanc
Brenden Clenaghen
Carson Ellis

Why wouldn't you want to buy these artists dinner? Also, we intend to do more of these as a way to give back to the hardworking artists. We chose Screendoor because of its excellent food, elegant yet warm Donald Judd meets the South decor and the fact that it's a favorite with artists, rockstars, ad people, professional snowboarders etc., its got a great mix of elegance with no boring. Panther Creek is simply one of the best winemakers available anywhere.

Details: Organism's Toast Gala, will celebrate a diverse sample of Portland's nationally/internationally active during an exciting 4 course dinner at one of Portland's new favorite restaurants: Screendoor, along with award winning wines by Panther Creek. You've never been to the Screendoor like this special private event, dress festive.

Music by Ponderosa (spacefolk cello and banjo)

Cost: $75, RSVP with Check or Credit card by March 29th.

Checks can be made out to: Organism Toast Gala, PO Box 17247, Portland, Oregon 97217

Credit Card payments can be taken at this site.

Time/Place: April 2nd 7:00 PM at Screendoor, 2337 East Burnside

This fundraising event benefitting Organism will also provide a sneak peek at our exciting Spring exhibition "Model Behavior" a group show featuring Hank Willis Thomas, Yoram Wolberger and many others. We plan to program at least 4 shows per year with a focus on quality over quantity.

Shaun O'Dell • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series
Mon • Mar 19 • 8:15p
510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92
Free

Shaun O'Dell is a painter, illustrator, videographer and musician who explores the intertwining realities of the human and natural orders. The symbolic lexicon in his work becomes a historiographic mapping of mythic narratives about humans, nature, time, and the development of cultural and nationalistic ideologies. He examines how America's long-time addiction to the technological and ideological suppression of nature has helped create a culture of denial.

O'Dell has exhibited his work at many venues, including the Jack Hanley Gallery in San Francisco, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, UCLA Hammer Museum, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Whitebox in New York, and the Marianne Boesky Gallery in New York. His work is held in the permanent collections of the SFMOMA, M.H. deYoung Memorial Museum and the Berkeley Art Museum. O'Dell received his MFA from Stanford. He is the recipient of the 2006 Diebenkorn Teaching Fellowship from the San Francisco Art Institute, 2005 Arttadia Award, 2004 SECA Award from the San Francisco Museum Of Modern Art and a 2002 Fleishhacker Foundation Award. He is currently teaching at the San Francisco Art Institute and is the co-organizer of The New New Masses, a lecture series on Art and Politics. (pr)

What happens when artists turn a social construct into an exhibition? It mostly depends on the caliber of the artists... In this case it's very high.

Curator Cris Moss took a series of "Dude's Night Out" emails and curated a show around it.
March 12-April 13th at Linfield College.
Opening March 16th: 6:00 PM

The artists: Bruce Conkle, Sean Healy, Jesse Durost, Todd Johnson, David Corbett, Jesse Hayward, Marne Lucas and Paul Middendorf. Conkle has a lot of buzz amongst the other artists for some kind of hypnotic coconut soundsystem, a direct result of his residency in Rio I suspect...and Paul Middendorf is bringing his recent PS1 "Emergency" project. The ever mysterious Todd Johnson, Portland's best/most intelligent deadpan conceptual photographer has reappeared as well. Lucas apparently got in by having, "the biggest pair of balls," no word on how that study was conducted. Yes, it's in McMinnville (a.k.a. wine country) but it sounds like this one is worth the trip.

The Linfield exhibit is free and open to the public. The Linfield Fine Art Gallery is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The gallery will be open during spring break, March 26-30.

To reach the gallery from 99W, turn east on Keck Drive at the McMinnville Market Center in south McMinnville. Turn right at the first street onto Library Court. The art gallery is located in the second building on the left, Building B. Parking is available on the street and in the lot west of Nicholson Library. For a campus map click here, go to Miller Fine Arts Center is number 56. For more information, call 503-883-2804.

Marc Joseph • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series
Mon • Mar 12 • 8:15p
510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92
Free

New York photographer Marc Joseph's recent work has focused on book and record shops, framing glimpses of old and new objects as they float through and arrange themselves within the logic of the market, not the abstract logic of art as commodity, but the specific logic of the corner store, the small, peculiar places that expose us to the books and records that matter to us, and which shape our ways of seeing. Joseph has had exhibitions at the Bernard Toale Gallery in Boston, Western Projects in Culver City CA, and PICA in Portland, and is currently exhibiting at the Cooley Gallery at Reed College from JANUARY 23 – MARCH 11, 2007. (pr)

A lecture at PSU, a conversation at PICA and a back room at the end of the week...(more)

Saturday March 3rd 3-5PM

3203 SE Woodstock Blvd at Reed's Eliot Chapel

As part of Reed's Art Week, the beadtastic Liza Lou will be speaking. At the forefront of the massive resurgence in craft as an awe inducing contemporary art experience one would have to consider Lou in any serious discussion of the genre. So the basic question should be, "is her work just a series of entertaining grotesques that use craft as shield or something more?" $5 or Reed ID

Maybe someone dressed as Lewis or Clark should try to pay in beads?

Thunder Eyez at Grass Hut

Portland's music and art scenes are completely entwined. This show of art by musicians will make that even clearer with work by
E*Rock, Mt. Eerie. White Rainbow, YACHT, Hooliganship, Lucky Dragons/Sumi Ink Club, Adam Zeek, Curtis Knapp (Marriage Records & Watery Graves)
Opening Reception • 6-9pm • March. 2-31
Grass Hut • 811 East Burnside • 503.445.9924... (more)

Matt McCormick's Shaniko House (2007)

Elizabeth Leach Gallery: Matt McCormick's Future So Bright and Adam Sorenson's The Glows
415 NW 9th (503) 224 0521

McCormick's is the undisputed high anticipation show this month. He is currently showing in high profile international exhibitions like The Moscow Biennial and Uncertain States of America. I also think he's added something to the lexicon of work that documents the state of civilization and American westward expansion by focusing on ghost towns and monolithic signage...(more)

Lisa Sigal • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series
Mon • Feb 26 • 8:15p
510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92

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

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.

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.”

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

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.”

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.

Byron Kim • PSU Monday Night Lecture Series
Mon • Feb 12 • 8:15p
510 SW Hall St • 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92....(more)

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

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)

2 Lectures and a Grant.....(more)

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)

Peter Beste at Sugar

Sugar Gallery shows Peter Beste's stark images of Norwegian black metal musicians, a documentary project Beste completed over the past four years. "In the early 1990s, these self-proclaimed 'Norwegian Heavy Metal Satanists' burned fourteenth-century wooden churches, desecrated graveyards, and incited blood feuds as part of their campaign to rid Norway of Christianity and revert to ancient Viking customs," explains the press release.
Opening Reception • 6-10pm • Feb. 1-28
Sugar Gallery • 625 NW Everett #108 • Tel. 503.425.9628..................(more)

Three public lectures (all at different times!) take place this week before First Thursday...(more)

Here’s the best of what’s on offer in Portland this week for sharpening your skills. These openings, lectures and events are highly recommended as being consistently stimulating and generous in scope.

Rigo 23 mural in SF

Mon • Jan 22 • 8:15p
Rigo 23 • PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture Series
5th Avenue Cinema • Room 92
510 SW Hall St

Tues • Jan 23 • 6:45p
Marc Joseph: New and Used • Jessica Jackson Hutchins: Stylite Optimism
Artist Talk : Reed Psychology Auditorium, room 105
Reception to follow: Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Art Gallery
Reed College • Hauser Memorial Library
3203 SE Woodstock Blvd

Fri • Jan 26 • 6:30p
John O'Brian • the back room
House Spirits Distillery (Medoyeff) • 2025 SE 7th Avenue

(more)

The weather has relented (for now), time to get out of the house...

Indoor Wildernesses is a serendipitous thematic art walk of 4 shows, 3 galleries on 1 corner... all explore a common theme: nature inside the gallery environment, all achieve very different ends

When: January 24th 6:30-8:30PM
Where: Corner of NW 5th and Couch @ Motel, Organism & the Portland Art Center

Rational: The presence of the outdoors and wilderness motifs in particular are everywhere in contemporary art so when four shows all appeared on the same corner in Portland's Chinatown it seemed like serendipity was knocking. Why not explore four very different shows to greater highlight their intersecting but very divergent content, goals, motifs and effects?

Also, please forgive the self promotion but it is also an excellent chance to get out and visit one of the Portland art scene's most rewarding corners. The fours shows present divergent motifs such as the charged psychological cave environment, life changing encounters with wild deer, man made materials in the woods and ecology in North Portland...(more)

As many of you (hopefully) know, Tilt Gallery and Project Space has spent the past year working hard to bring you consistently challenging and innovative work from local and national artists. Highlights from our first year include an "auspicious" start from Portlander Stephanie Robison, a site specific project by the talented and multifaceted Avantika Bawa, and a bold solo exhibition by Paula Rebsom.

Believe it or not, its been a year for us at Tilt and we are celebrating with an Anniversary Party this Saturday, January 20 from 8-11pm. Come enjoy some food and drink and see work by gallery artists Avantika Bawa, Paula Rebsom, Stephanie Robison, and Stephen Slappe. Along with rubbing elbows with our new stable of artists, you will have the opportunity to view exciting work from the flat file as well. We hope you will join us!

Tilt Gallery and Project Space • Anniversary Party
Saturday Jan. 20 • 8-11p
625 NW Everett • Suite 106

Preparations for "Float"

Tonight get a double dose of Dave Eckard on Oregon Art Beat and at Chambers Fine Art. Oregon Art Beat will have a discussion of his performance piece for PICA titled "Float" (above). Chambers Fine Art will host a reception for the artist’s latest show “Locus” – latex and charcoal paintings on panel...(more)

Watch a Movie with Joe Macca

*UPDATE: The movies have been postponed and location and titles have been changed due to weather and what actually arrived from Netflix. Tonight, Thursday and Friday will have Pink Floyd: The Wall, Lie with Me and the Last Picture Show. Reservations are limited to 3-4 people-it's in his bedroom now-not the gallery. Call 503 771 5003 for more information.

...(more)

Opening tonight at Mount Hood Community College is the show “18 Painters”.

What’s the only thing that connects the work? Paint.

Artists include: Brendan Clenaghen, Brian Borrello, Michelle Ross, Margaret Evangeline, Judy Cooke, James Boulton, James Lavadour, Willy Heeks, Ken Kelly, Stephanie Doyle, Kristan Kennedy, Marc Katano, Joe Macca, Pat Barrett, G. Lewis Clevenger, Kathryn Van Dyke, Lucinda Parker and Melinda Stickney-Gibson.

18 Painters • Mt. Hood Community College Visual Arts Gallery
opens: Fri Jan 12 • 6 -8:30p
runs: Jan 8 - Feb 2 • M-F • 9-5
503-491-7309 or barrettp@mhcc.edu for more information

Damien Hirst Autopsy with Sliced Human Brain 2004

Tomorrow the Damien Hirst show at The Portland Art Museum opens in the Miller-Meigs endowed room in the Jubitz Center. This is only his second solo US museum show and the first on the West Coast. Culled from the holdings of supercollector Eli Broad it is a major coupe even if it is a small show. Hirst is one of the two most influential living artists today (the other is Murakami) and without him people like Matthew Barney, Banks Violette, David Altmejd, Gregory Crewdson (think presentationism) and even Jarrett Mitchell wouldn't have been quite the same. Hirst brought death back into contemporary art in a way that only Warhol and Picasso can also claim. Unlke most current stars (but like Murakami) he was very generous and artists like Tracy Emin, Sarah Lucas and Marc Quinn were direct recipients of his promotional efforts. I also like the fact he worked as a gallery installer before becoming famous, it shows as he is the master of presentation.

Unlike other artists he also controls his own market, who else has transcended the system like that? Some maintain his persona and success have overshadowed the work but I think it's his way of pushing away the death inherent in having major museum's mount major retrospectives, he's circumventing the blockbuster system creating his own weather. He's even still doing some excellent work (but of course he's a risk taker and has his share of flubs). His vitrines like 1000 Years and The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living are master works of Fin de siecle 20th Century art and this show sports a nice vitrine along with a bank of 3 medicine cabinets and a painting or two. Yes there are opening for these shows and space is limited so you've got to join the Contemporary Art Council (disclosure Im Co-VP)... yes there are less costly artist memberships, just ask. After Hirst it is Kehinde Wiley... PAM is doing a nice job!

Sunday is also the last day for Roy McMakin's show and inaugural offering for Jennifer Gately's new Apex Program so get over to the museum this weekend. Chris Johanson is next.

Anne Hirondelle

Two not to be missed shows open this week.
Namita Wiggers and the folks over at Contemporary Craft Museum and Gallery bring in the New Year with an installation by Portlander Hilary Pfeifer. Someone who had a quick sneak peek earlier today mentioned things are looking pretty exciting in the space, and I believe him so check it out...(more)

Tonight restarts the PSU Monday night MFA Lecture series. Dave McKenzie will lecture tonight at 8:15. According to the announcement Mr. McKenzie explores attempts at communication, and the humorous, heroic, touching and sometimes sad moments that define these attempts. His sculptures, videos, installations and performances are motivated by the desire to imbue mundane objects and gestures with deeper emotional or cultural significance.His concurrent show at small A projects should round out your experience of the artist.

Dave McKenzie
Open to the public • FREE
Mon • Jan 8 • 8:15p
5th Avenue Cinema Room 92 • 510 SW Hall St. (on the corner of SW 5TH & Hall on the PSU Campus)

Future lectures include:
Rigo 23, Loren Schwerd, Byron Kim, Zach Moser, Lisa Sigal, Melinda Stone, Marc Joseph and Shaun O'Dell

A couple of off-general-art-schedule events to note that might be of interest to you, loyal reader. Both are local, sustainable and organic. Consume with worry-free abandon....(more)

James Ewing at Newspace

Newspace puts on a good-looking show of work by James Ewing and Whitney Hubbs. Ewing exhibits a body of work shot while on a yearlong Fulbright fellowship to Tunisia in 2004. He documents the tension and syntheses between three distinct cultural forces at play within the country; Arabic, European colonial, and contemporary globalization. Whitney Hubbs uses a highly personal visual vocabulary to interpret everyday experience.
Opening Reception • 7-10pm • Jan. 5-28
Newspace • 1632 SE 10th Ave. • Tel. 503.963.1935

Storm Tharp, The Duke of Albuquerque, 2006

At PDX, the always-impressive Storm Tharp shows new ink and gouache works inflected with touches of psychadelia and japonisme. Carrie Iverson shows Survey, an installation dealing with memory and surveillance, in the PDX Window Project.
Opening Reception • 6-8pm • January 2-27
PDX Contemporary Art • 925 NW Flanders • Tel. 503.222.0063
.....................(more)

Cinema Project offers two opportunities to catch Andy Warhol’s Outer and Inner Space and ten of Warhol’s screen tests featuring Lou Reed, Susan Sontag, and John Cale this evening and tomorrow night at the New American Art Union....(more)

Be sure you don't miss "I want to show you somewhere" at Reed College's Cooley Gallery, which ~~closes today~~ has just been extended for another week. The two installations that comprise the exhibition are not as much about the personal and political histories that artists Hadley + Maxwell and Lucien Samaha depict, as they are about the act of describing and investigating these histories. Vancouver-based collaborative Hadley + Maxwell revisit the events that took place on May 4, 1970 during the Kent State riots through drawing, sound and a video installation. Re-enacting a scene from an iconic photograph from the riots, the two artists trade roles as fallen student and anonymous bystander. Though the notion of photographic truth is rendered unstable through their re-creation of the events depicted in this famous photograph, the installation retains an elegiac rather than overtly critical tone.

Lucien Samaha's installation of 98 unmarked photographs culled from his extensive archives relay a much different kind of history. For the duration of the exhibition, Samaha has occupied a temporary office within the gallery, allowing visitors to select one photograph from the exhibition. Only after the visitor has taken the photograph and reciprocated the gesture – the artist requests that visitors send a digital image of the photograph at a location of their own choosing – does Samaha allow access to an online archive of images that include accompanying texts explaining the significance of each autobiographical photograph. In the event you don't make it to the gallery, an interview with Reed student Matt Burke is available on Samaha's web site.

Noon to 5 pm • Through December 17 • Cooley Art Gallery
Hauser Memorial Library at Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Boulevard

Jenny Saville at Quality Pictures

NKOTB Quality Pictures inaugurates their Hoyt St. space with work by Cindy Sherman, Jenny Saville, Nikki S. Lee, Sue de Beer, Larry Sultan, Kara Walker, Glen Brown and Katy Grannan, among others, promising to keep the opening going until 11pm and evidently ordering enough food to warrant mentioning the opening's caterers (Planet B's Modern Tastes) in the press release. Sounds almost too good to be true...will they ask for our immortal souls at the door?

Ascendant local Holly Andres will join the formidable ladies and gentlemen listed above in POW! Pictures of Women, an exhibition of works that investigate female aesthetic power beyond the bland confines of traditional standards of beauty. Running simultaneously, Chris Verene's Self Esteem "will feature photographs by Mr. Verene that examine the role of photographed image and its effect on an individual's self esteem. Works in this exhibit will be primarily drawn from Verene's 'Self Esteem Salons' and from early work. Verene's 'Salons' are a performance artwork wherein he builds a temporary sanctuary to be used in helping strangers-'clients'-to make a sincere and lasting change in their lives."
Opening Reception • Dec. 7, 6-11pm • POW! Pictures of Women: Dec. 7-30 • Self Esteem: Dec. 7 - Jan. 27
Quality Pictures • 916 NW Hoyt • Tel. 503.227.5060
..........(more)

Portland's favorite "greatest painter", James Lavadour, will be this season's final PSU MFA Monday night lecture guest...

The season will resume in early January, with a lecture on January 8 by Dave McKenzie, a Brooklyn-based artist who will be presenting his second solo exhibition in Portland with Tomorrow Will be Better at small A projects.

Lecture · Monday, December 4th · 8:15 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema · 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Funded in part by PICA, PNCA, Reed College, Lewis & Clark College and The Affair at the Jupiter Hotel

Today, a two-part series of screenings by Lebanese artist Akram Zaatari continues with his feature length documentary film This Day. This is Zaatari's second project in Portland - in Fall 2005, Mapping Sitting, his collaboration with Walid Raad, came to Reed's Cooley Gallery. This time, Zaatari was able to travel to Portland and is in attendance at all screenings. Many of the same themes are present in Zaatari's video work. Last Thursday, the three short films included a story of the last meeting between two friends, set in a once grand shopping district in Bereuit that was later destroyed during the Civil War; a documentary on several young males who relayed disarmingly frank stories of sexual conquest, in the process revealing their own vulnerabilities to social mythologies of virility and machoism; and a documentary about Zaatari's quest to recover a buried letter from a figure in the Lebanese resistance. Tonight, Zaatari will present a feature length documentary that uses archival images from Lebanon to explore the notion (or delusions) of photographic truth.

This Day [2003, video, color, sound, 86 min] Saturday, December 2nd · 7:30 p
New American Art Union 922 SE Ankeny Street · 503.231.8294
Suggested donation: $6.00 · Members: $3.00
Presented by Cinema Project in collaboration with Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Art Gallery, Reed

Work by Hilary Pfeifer

Avoid the hassle of the mall this holiday season and instead support some very talented artists. The third annual Kenton Firehouse Sale is this Saturday Dec. 2. Juried this year by Namita Wiggers, curator for Contemporary Craft Museum and Gallery and Portland artist Marie Watt, the one day sale features a range of work including fuzzy ornaments, felted wearables, and simple but sexy jewelry. Artists participating in the sale this year: Cristina Aucone, Tierney Brachear,Clare Carpenter, Tripper Dungan, Al Flory, Julie Fulkerson, Margaret Gardner, Shelly Hedges, Junko Iijima, Madoka Ito, Hilary Pfeifer, Suzy Root, Rebecca Scheer, and LeBrie Rich. Shop and be merry.
Kenton Firehouse Sale
Saturday, Dec. 2 • 11a-6p
8105 N. Brandon St. • Portland, OR

First Friday is upon us!

Bruce Conkle photographed by Marne Lucas

Sitting City: Portland Artist Portraits by Marne Lucas promises to be a December highlight. These seventeen images of prominent locals artists hint at the both the moments of joy and bouts of melancholy that are part and parcel of the imaginatively lived life. Her casually sophisticated portraits suggest empathetic identification with her subjects, as in this strange, sweet shot of Bruce Conkle simultaneously revealing his inner child and inner monster. Also showing this month at Mark Woolley's newly consolidated home at the Wonder Ballroom location: Only For Seeing, new drawings and watercolors by Arnold Pander and Denizens: Screenprints and Drawings by Casey Burns.
Opening Reception • 6-9:30pm • Dec.1-30
Mark Woolley Gallery • 128 N.E. Russell (near MLK) at the Wonder Ballroom • T. 503.284.3636
..........(more)

The PSU Monday Night MFA lecture series continues with a talk by experimental film producer, artist and CCA professor Jeanne Finley. Working with diverse subject matter - including an account of an American-Russian matchmaking trip, a young girl's experiences at a Baptist youth retreat, the story of a former Ku Klux Klan Grand Dragon and narratives from two Muslim women living in Instanbul - Finley returns again and again to the documentary form to explore the relationship between individual identity, cultural forces and the forms of media through which these experiences are mediated...

Lecture · Monday, November 27th · 8:15 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema · 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Funded in part by PICA, PNCA, Reed College, Lewis & Clark College and The Affair at the Jupiter Hotel

You have two chances to see this week's PSU Monday Night Lecture series guest. Los Angeles-based artist Marc Horowitz will lead a free public workshop at PSU on Monday at 1pm and will present a lecture later that evening. Horowitz is an SFAI grad, a funny guy and an artist whose "social research" often teeters on the border between conceptual art and publicity stunt. In 2004, he gained notariety by scrawling "Dinner w/ Marc", along with his personal cell phone number, on a white board in the set of a Crate and Barrel photo shoot. The catalogs were distributed and Horowitz not only received several thousand of phone calls, but also caught the attention of the mass media. Other projects have included an Errand Feasibility Study, in which Horowitz rode a pack mule through San Francisco while running his daily errands. In 2004, the artist ran a 1500-foot extention cord from his kitchen to a nearby park each Saturday, providing power for his coffee pot so that he could serve passers-by free coffee...

Free public workshop · Monday, November 20th · 1p
PSU Art Building · 2000 SW 5th Ave

Lecture · Monday, November 20th · 8:15 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema · 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Funded in part by PICA, PNCA, Reed College, Lewis & Clark College and The Affair at the Jupiter Hotel

PORT strongly advocates automotive safety. All too often, we find ourselves surrounded by drivers laboring under the false impression that commonsense precautions, like buckling up and respecting posted speed limits, are uncool. Luckily, some of the brightest lights of the local art community have teamed up to dispel this myth with a one-day event bound to show safety-haters that road respect isn't just prudent; it's also hip and happening.

On Saturday, November 18th, Joe Macca, Ryan Wilson Paulson and AmyEllen Flatchested Mama Trefsger will host Safety Dance, an event/exhibition of artwork created around the theme of Fluorescent (Safety) Orange. The following artists will contribute work to the "Porch Gallery": Brad Adkins, Brenden Clenaghen, Arcy Douglas, Jessica Eastburn, Ellen George, Jesse Hayward, Scott Hensala, Walter Lee, Joe Macca, Tim Nickodemus, Ryan Wilson Paulsen, Stephanie Robison, Adam Sorensen and Sean Sterling.

Says Macca, "Safety Dance is a one-day event intended to raise awareness in the neighborhood about the speeding on SE 41st avenue between Holgate and Steele. It's a 25 mph residential zone, but people drive 40 mph. The goal of our event is to generate interest in the neighborhood to permanently slow the traffic down. If you live on 41st and are as irritated as me, please come by to talk about it."
Safety Dance: Sat., Nov. 18th, 10am-4pm • Joe Macca's House 4614 SE 41st Avenue (just off Holgate)

4 Shows: 2 Here and 2 Beyond

GREEN LIGHT GREEN LIGHT
THE GAME SHOW
OUT THE WINDOW
LOADED, NAILED, SHORT ON CASH

Lance Mountain

Culled from his extensive personal archive, Portland artist Stephen Slappe screens some of his favorite skateboard films tomorrow night. Rolling Deep: Skateboarding Films, 1965-1980 features six shorts including "Skaterdater", winner of the Golden Palm for Best Short Film at the 1966 Cannes Film Festival. Come watch the history of the sport unfold on the Big Screen.

Rolling Deep: Skateboarding Films, 1965-1980
Thursday Nov. 16 • 7p and 9p (two screenings)
Clinton Street Theater
2522 SE Clinton St. • Portland, Or
$6 (CASH ONLY!)

Tomorrow night Reed College brings in Jim Coddington, Chief Conservator at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, to give a talk about art conversation issues. Both a craft and science, conservation has recently moved into the spotlight. Opened earlier this year, the Lunder Conservation Center exposes visitors of the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery to what happens behind the scenes. And because they need to look fantastic doing it, the conservators wear smocks specially designed for them by Isaac Mizrahi.
With the increasing number of media works and less than traditional materials being used in art making, Coddington should have plenty of interesting topics for the night.

Jim Coddington lecture
Wednesday, Nov. 15 • 7p
Reed College • Vollum Lounge
3203 SE Woodstock • Portland, Or
Free

Mark Newport's knitted costumes and embroidered comic book covers combine masculine superhero fantasies with the kinds of subversive appropriation of feminine domestic handcraft that has resurged in the past decade. Newport's work finds resonance in everything from Jim Drain's knitted bodysuits for Forcefield to Dave Cole's oversized knitting machine and work of DIY craft artists like Jenny Hart, who is part of Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery's New Embroidery show, which ends today [disclosure: I am Visual Media Coordinator at Contemporary Crafts]. On Monday, Newport will be the featured PSU MFA Lecture Series guest, coinciding with the opening of his solo show at PSU's Autzen Gallery.

The exhibition, entitled Heroic Endeavors, "will feature wearable costumes hand knit by the artist that are based on 'heroic' masculine role models such as the cowboy hero from the 60s and 70s as well as the classic comic book superheroes such as Batman and Superman. A series of prints plus a bedcover will accompany the costumes and expand on the visual language of comic books and the narratives suggested by the costumes."

Lecture · Monday, November 13th · 8:15 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema · 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Funded in part by PICA, PNCA, Reed College, Lewis & Clark College and The Affair at the Jupiter Hotel

Special Exhibition Hours · Monday, November 13th · 6:30 to 8 p Through December 7th · Autzen Gallery · Portland State University · 2nd Floor, Neuberger Hall, 724 SW Harrison Street

Ahhh the bargain hunting holiday art sale season is in full swing and to that end Gallery Homeland presents Residence, a benefit art sale geared towards art lovers and new collectors. Over 50 artists have contributed their best affordable works to benefit Homeland's Residency and National/International art exchange program. Here's the list:

Nicole Amore, Holly Andres, Josh Arseneau, Joe Beil, Troy Briggs, Chris Buckingham, Ali Cook, Sam Coomes, Brent Comstock, Bruce Conkle, Tim Dalbow, Marguerite Day, Nick diSessa, Fred Fliesher, Liz Haley, Kim Hamblin, Meg Hanson, Jimmy Hatch, Scott Wayne Indiana, Ryan Jeffery, Chris Johanson, JoAnn Kemmis... (more)

sound artist Oliva Block

Celebrating the release of their 5th issue "Autonomy", FO(A)RM magazine is presenting a Festival of Sound and Video at the Portland Art Center. The magazine, published once-yearly, presents investigative projects with a special focus on sound-art, experimental poetics and social sculpture. Each issue clusters around a given topic, gathering together a variety of perspectives, methods and articulations - from the extravagant to the pedestrian (and the juncture between). Included in the festival will be work from man-about-town Mack McFarland, who will be featured in the Northwest Biennial, and an experimental video from the multi-faceted Melody Owen. The lineup also includes critically acclaimed electro-acoustic composer Olivia Block, minimalist drone artist Seth Cluett, local avant-folk accordionist Luc, and ethereal noise trio Borborygmus (Jonathan Sielaff/David Hirvonen/Jean-Paul Jenkins), along with a screening of abstract video curated by Morgan Currie and an ongoing barrage of installed video, ranging from the conceptual to the non-linear and fragmentary. Tickets can be purchased here, and will not only get you in the door, but will also get you $2 off the latest issue of the magazine.
FO(A)RM Magazine • Festival of Sound and Video
Portland Art Center
32 NW 5th Avenue • Portland, Or
Saturday, Nov. 18 • 8p
$8/avdance • $10/door

Jenny Hart, This Work Never Ends, 2003
hand stitched embroidery on vintage linen, 11 x 11 inches
collection of the artist

Monday night promises amazing feats of travel as art-o-philes zip above the city of Portland on their hovercrafts to enjoy a bonanza of lectures all spaced conveniently 30-45 minutes apart…or about as long as it will take to get from one place to another. PSU, Reed College and PNCA/Contemporary Craft are all inviting you to fill their seats and listen at approximately the same time.

Unfortunately, the technology's not quite there and you’re going to have to choose. Don’t the people in charge of the schedule know each other? Might I suggest a nice coffee date before the next scheduling session with calendar in hand? It would be one thing if something was happening every night, but this ain’t NYC people. There are other days of the week that are open, free and available-like Tuesday, for instance...(more)

"The show is called Driftwood Castle 'cause that's sort of what we're building. Yesterday we drove my pickup to the coast and loaded it up with driftwood, logs and big rocks. When Bwana and I,'Scrappers,' talked about designing the gallery space we both imagined a beach fort. Call it dumb or whatever, it just seems like the right thing to do."

I wouldn't call it dumb at all, Scrappers. In fact, I, "PORT," have been contemplating building my own little fort, or better yet, bunker, ever since I read your press release. I think you've hit the nail on the head, zeitgeist-wise.

Driftwood Castle, an exhibition/night of thematic revelry, will benefit Habitat for Humanity, serve as homebase for a 6pm scavenger hunt, and feature artwork by Bwana Spoons, Scrappers, Dawn Riddle, Ryan J. Smith, Martin Ontiveros, APAK, Le Merde, Souther Salazar, Jacob Macgraw, and Luke Ramsey, as well as David Wien, whose fantastical drawings are always well worth checking out. Opening Reception • 6-9pm
Grass Hut • 811 East Burnside • 503.445.9924.....(more)

Lou Cabeen, Legacy

If you’re looking for an alternative to the first Thursday rounds or like to squish a lot of art into a short amount of time, make your way to Reed College for Lou Cabeen’s lecture “Home Embroidery: The Art and Craft of Domestic Pleasure”.

Jesse Durost at Elizabeth Leach

Every so often, Jesse Durost surfaces somewhere in Portland to reveal the striking visual results of his experimentation in the realms of atmospherics and semiotics. With Hole in the Sky, Durost takes on the big subjects of Flag and Country. Catch him while you can during his 5-day turn in Elizabeth Leach's main gallery. MK Guth's Growing Stories has been extended and will occupy Leach's smaller space through November 4.

Later in the month, Elizabeth Leach Gallery will commemorate 25 years in the art business with A Century of Collage, a survey show in which works by renowned artists Joseph Cornell, Robert Rauschenberg, Robert Motherwell and Kiki Smith will share wall space with collages by locals Judy Cooke, Lee Kelly and Michelle Ross. A Century of Collage runs Nov. 11-Dec. 30.

Reception for Hole In the Sky • Nov. 2, 6-9pm • Oct. 31-Nov.4
Elizabeth Leach • 417 NW 9th Ave. • Tel. 503.224.0501
...(more)

Daniel Barron

Once again, Marjorie Hirsch makes it so worth your while to make the trip north. Following the huge success of the Margie Livingston exhibition, this month the Archer Gallery is showing Current Photography: New Directions, featuring the work of eight very up and coming artists. Not to be missed are the sexy, milky images of Daniel Barron and some really fresh work from Portlander Liz Haley. Also included in the exhibition are Holly Andres, Blake Andrews, Amy Archer, Mark Hooper, Tamara Lischka, and Grace Weston. The boundaries of the photographic medium are reevaluated and reapplied, with each artist demonstrating a conceptual prowess that delivers maximum results. Opening reception with many of the artists in attendance, Wednesday November 1, 4-7p. Exhibition runs until December 1. Regular gallery hours are:
Tues. – Thurs., 9 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Fri., 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Sat & Sun 1 – 5 p.m.

Current Photography: New Directions
Archer Gallery • Penguin Student Union Building, Clark College
Ft. Vancouver Way • Vancouver, WA
Free

Vanessa Renwick, Portrait #2: Trojan

Filmmaker Vanessa Renwick will be the next guest in PSU's MFA Monday Night Lecture Series. Renwick's Portrait #2: Trojan, her elegy to the formidable architectural presence of the recently demolished Trojan nuclear power plant, recently gained accolades as part of the 2006 Oregon Biennial and was screened at the Austrian Viennale earlier this month. Renwick's current projects include Critter, a feature length documentary about the reintroduction of grey wolves into the West, slated for release sometime next year.

Next in the series: Jessica Jackson Hutchins on Nov 6th

Lecture · Monday, October 30th · 8:15 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema · 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Funded in part by PICA, PNCA, Reed College, Lewis & Clark College and The Affair at the Jupiter Hotel

Karrie Jacobs, co-author of The Perfect $100,000 House: A Trip Across America and Back in Pursuit of a Place to Call Home (published by Viking), contributing editor at Metropolis Magazine, regular contributor to Travel + Leisure, and founding editor-in-chief of Dwell will be in Portland for two engagements....(more)

Seattle-based artist Jeffry Mitchell will be the next PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture series guest. Mitchell's decorative ceramics and delicate drawings revel in the cute and the kitsch and his solo show at Pulliam Deffenbaugh last March showed off his ongoing fascination with the high/low dialectic...

Lecture · Monday, October 23rd · 8:15 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema · 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Funded in part by PICA, PNCA, Reed College, Lewis & Clark College and The Affair at the Jupiter Hotel

Roy McMakin, A Slatback Chair, 1998.
Eastern Maple with enamel, Courtesy Matthew Marks Gallery and James Harris Gallery, Photo: Mark Woods

Jennifer Gately's first post-Biennial endeavor as the Portland Art Museum's Curator of Northwest Art, the APEX series, was initiated earlier this month with the opening of an exhibition of work by Roy McMakin. Focusing on small shows highlighting the work of Northwest artists, the series will allow the Museum to have the kind of responsiveness to contemporary art of this region that the community has been demanding for quite some time now. This Sunday marks the first in a series of lectures associated with APEX, bringing in this Seattle-based artist for a discussion of his work, which plays between object and concept through work in both traditional media, furniture design and architecture.

APEX lecture with Roy McMakin · Sunday, October 22nd · 2 pm
Portland Art Museum · 1219 SW Park Ave · Tel. 503.226.0973
Admission: $5 Members, $10 Non-Members (includes museum admission)

What could possibly be cooler than mini-golf? How about artist-designed mini-golf in one of the hippest bars in the city? That's right folks; Holocene will host its 3rd annual Mini Golf Art Invitational next Tuesday and Wednesday. The high ceiling converted warehouse is a perfect setting for this art and design spectacle...(more)

If you’re anything like me, you hoard, collect and squirrel away art books and catalogues. The perfect opportunity to expand your holdings is coming up this Friday and Saturday from 10 to 4. The Portland Art Museum’s Crumpacker Family Library will be selling hundreds of new and used art books at reasonable prices....(more)

Just a heads up, I'm taking part in a panel discussion for the Illegal Art Show at PNCA on Thursday October 19th. The topics will range from; copyright and art, symbolic economies, intellectual property vs. freedom of expression, fair use laws, and much more. It's a good show that I reviewed in part here.

The panel features; Carrie Mclaren (moderator, main curator for the Illegal Art Show and founder of Stay Free Magazine), John Calvelli (PNCA Faculty, Design Dept.), Kohel M Haver (Partner in Swider Medeiros Haver LLP, Portland Oregon, specializing in all types of arts, copyright, publishing, arts and entertainment law), Jeff Jahn (co-founder of PORT, artist and director/curator for Organism), Lydia Loren (Dean and Professor of Law Lewis and Clark College), Jim Riswold (artist and longtime creative director for Portland ad agency Wieden & Kennedy).

Should be fun... I plan to work counterfeiting and Las Vegas' appropriation of other cities skylines for the purpose of tourism into the mix as well.

Thursday Oct. 19th 7pm @ Swigert Commons
PNCA 1241 NW Johnson St.

Last week, Houston-based artist Robert Pruitt kicked off the PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture series. Working with materials and ideas that he mines from the African-American communities that he grew up in, Pruitt forces a confrontation between the white box and black identity. Pruitt toes the line between his use of stereotypes and true cultural artifacts, citing rap culture, gold chains and Air Jordans alongside tongue-in-cheek allusions to everything from 70s conceptual art practice to Duchamp's ready-mades and Koons' love of commodity...

This Monday, Julia Bryan-Wilson will give a lecture entitled On Nuclear Time. Though the press release did not reveal much detail about the talk, it appears to be part of an ongoing project looking at the social implications of nuclear technology...

Sadly, this weekend is the last annual open house party at the famous 333 Studios. The building has been a creative hotbed for ten years and their annual party is always excellent. Beyond the space being super arty and gorgeous, the building houses excellent artists including John Brodie, David Eckard, Carol Ferris, Gilles Foisy, Cecilia Hallinan, Stephen Hayes, Robin Hoffmeister, David Inkpen, Una Kim, Blair Saxon-Hill and Marty Schnapf. Stop by and show some support to a great group of artists who will soon start the awful process of finding a new, affordable home.
333 Open Studio Party
4-9PM Saturday • 12-4PM Sunday
333 NE Hancock, upstairs • Portland, Or
Free

Surface to Air, 2006

Opening reception tonight at small A projects that will include a *nightviewing* at 8:30p of Diana Puntar’s show “An Hour On The Sun”....(more)

"Tunnel", 2003, Kymaerica series

Artist and geographer-at-large, Eames Demetrios (grandson of the great Charles and Ray) has created what he considers a "three-dimensional stroytelling experience" consisting of installations, performances, songs, and lectures. Nicely wrapped up in a dense website, Demetrios has invented an alertnative universe as a way to see past a world we think is inevitable. Noteworthy Kymaerican sites accross America "discoved" by Demetrios have been recogonized with plaques, describing the site and its revelance to Kymaerica. This Tuesday night is a chance for you to see one of these sites in person and participate in the dedication ceremony. All this sound strange? Yes, to me too, but just strange enough to be intriguing. That and the event is being graciously hosted by Portland artist Brenda Mallory.
Kymaerica Dedication
Tuesday, October 10 • 6:30pm
Sidewalk in front of 2136 NE 10th Ave • Portland, Or
RSVP: brenda@brendamallory.com

The 2005 National Juried Exhibition Winners at Newspace are J.Sofford of Portland, Jeffery Milstien of New York and Siri Kaur of LA. See their photographs on display as Newspace celebrates its fourth birthday.
Opening reception: Friday October 6th, 7 to 10p. • Through October 27, 2006.
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 se 10th ave • 503.963.1935

The New American Art Union has recreated the studio space of artist Rose Willow McCormick inside the gallery. Each Saturday during the month of October she will complete a live painting in the duplicated studio. The Bushwick Paintings includes work on display from a year-long sabbatical in Brooklyn . Colorful, familiar, tranquil but loud, and varied.
Show runs September 30 to October 29, 2006 • First Friday Reception: (time not listed)
NAAU • 922 se ankeny st • 503.231.8294

more....

Mark Zirpel, Eye Chart, kilnformed glass, 2005. Bullseye Gallery.

The International Exposition of Sculpture Objects & Functional Art, or SOFA , is an annual exhibition that takes place next month in Chicago. The Bullseye Gallery is one of 90 galleries invited to participate. This month the gallery is hosting a SOFA/Chicago 2006 Preview of the work heading to the Midwest. The preview consists of fourteen artists who have shaped glass at North Lands Creative Glass in Scotland.
Preview Reception: October 3, 5:30 to 7:30p • Exhibition runs September 19 - October 21, 2006.
First Thursday Reception: October 5, 5 to 8p
Bullseye Gallery • 300 nw 13th ave • 503.227.0222

MK Guth is showing at Elizabeth Leach . Her work combines a narrative of fairytale (often the disturbing parts, not the happily ever afters) with video art. In Growing Stories, she "explores life through the context of a fable using footage from popular films and sitcoms as a backdrop."
Preview Reception: October 4, from 6 to 8p • First Thursday Reception: October 5, from 6 to 9p
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 nw 9th • 503.224.0521

more.....

Ulrika Andersson

Both of our friendly neighborhood NPOs have interesting events for you to enjoy this week...(more)

Hurry! Hurry! 3 Spots Left!

Monday evenings, starting October 2, from 6:30-9:30 Matthew Stadler will be teaching a workshop entitled Using Global Media.

Pierre Huyghe, This is not a time for dreaming, 2004, Live puppet play and super 16mm film, transferred to DigiBeta. 24 minutes, color, sound, Photo: Michael Vahrenwald

Today, Pierre Huyghe's video, This is not a time for dreaming, quietly opens at the Portland Art Museum. Huyghe is perhaps most famous for his 1999 collaboration with fellow Frenchman Philippe Parreno, No Ghost Just a Shell, in which they purchased rights to an anime character and allowed her to have a brief existence through a series of collaborations with other artists before symbolically putting her to rest.

In This is not a time for dreaming, Huyghe revisits themes of unstable histories, reality vs. fiction, Modernist dreams and utopianism. Huyghe's video was commissioned in 2004 by Harvard University in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Carpenter Center, the sole building completed by Le Corbusier in the United States (and, interestingly, named after Harvard donors from Southern Oregon). Staged as a marionette show, Huyghe's film relays the history of the building and the process that Le Corbusier undertook in building the Carpenter Center, while documenting his own experiences in making this video.

Through December 31st · Portland Art Museum · 1219 SW Park Ave · 503.226.0973
Admission: $10 General, Free for members

Terry Evans

The Contemporary Crafts Museum and Gallery has a great show opening this week. New Embroidery: Not Your Grandma's Doily boasts an impressive roster of artists including a personal fav, the crafty and conceptual Hildur Bjarnadóttir. ...(more)

Still from Biswas' Birdsong 2004

Join Sutapa Biswas tonight for a lecture and opening reception at Reed's Cooley Gallery. I was particularly taken with her bird paintings at Elizabeth Leach and a night filled with some rationalization for filming burning magnesium origami creatures sounds wonderful too.

Lecture at 6:30 p.m., September 12th @ 314 Elliot Hall on the Reed College campus

Margie Livingston

Two noteworthy artist talks coming up...
This week the Portland Art Museum hosts yet another installment of the Biennial Artists Speak lecture series. This week's line-up includes K.C. Madsen, Bill Will, and Lucinda Parker. Like the other Biennial talks, this will too be worth fitting in, even if you have been TBA-ing all week long.
Biennial Artists Speak • Portland Art Museum
Thursday Sept. 14 • 6-7p
1219 SW Park Ave. • Portland, OR
Free with museum admission

And after you have gotten your fill of TBA, head over the river to the gorgeous Archer Gallery to check out the first show of the season. Seattle artist Margie Livingston will have a exhibition of new paintings and will also be giving a talk about her work. Livingston's work was featured in the 2004 NW Biennial and in "Exploded View", a nice group show at Soil where she exhibited a 3D version of her heavily marked surfaces. An artist reception follows the talk.
Margie Livingston • Artist Lecture and Opening Reception
Wednesday Sept. 20 • 2:30p
Archer Gallery • Clark College
Penguin Student Union Building
Ft. Vancouver Way • Vancouver, WA
Free

Legend has it that the powerful personality, Brad Adkins, can convince people to drive backwards along busy thoroughfares while listening to the devil’s music. Everyday during TBA Mr. Adkins has been chartering a tour of sorts based on mundane events and the paranormal. There are 7 tours left and then it’s over. Catch the ride at 2pm daily at PICA headquarters through the 17th.

Brad Adkins • Oh Yeah OK
Daily, 2pm through Sept 17
TBA Central Box Office • 224 NW 13th Ave
503.224.7422 • Free

What the hell is going on with that BMW and an electronically wheezing and buzzing portable construction site office around the corner from Harell Fletcher's awesome The American War for TBA? It is Taeglichdigital, a German artist group consisting of Benne Ender and Jan Northoff. It's part of TBA but there is little info on it except here.

The installation is called,"The Bio Feedback Machine & The Temple of a Higher Something." This text from their website should clarify nothing for you:

THe bFM
is a universal responding SUPERviolent aPPERATURE.
It feedsback not only the human spirit and energy,
it is built to capture and transform a variety of...(more)

Jessica Jackson Hutchins' Iceland Collage

OK seeing everything this weekend is next to impossible but if you arent going to Laurie Anderson tonight try this opening on for size. Besides it is right across from PICA's "The Works" at AudioCinema.

Jessica Jackson Hutchins The War Never Left at Small A Projects. Landscape and human connections are the theme (is it just me or is that the general theme of 2005-2006?).
Opening September 8, 6 to 9p • Through October 7th
Small A Projects 1430 se 3rd • 503.234.7993

What follows is a complete listing of all workshops, Guest Lectures, and Chats concerning the Visual Arts during the TBA festival:

Time Based Art Festival 2006 - Institute: Workshops, Chats, Lectures September 7 - 17, 2006

Visit PICA's website for all the details.

Visual Arts Workshop

Isaac Peterson: Visual Art Criticism
Thursday, Sept 7, 2pm Ecotrust
Friday, Sept 8, 2pm Ecotrust
PNCA Art History Professor Isaac Peterson gives a 2-day crash course on looking at and writing about contemporary visual art. Workshop includes a visit to TBA's visual art exhibitions. Must attend both days. Bring laptop if you have one (wireless is great) be ready to look, discuss and write!

Lectures

Mark Russell on The Bridge
Monday, Sept 11, 6pm, Weiden + Kennedy Atrium
Russell will talk about his own experiences of the history of performance and its future.

James Yarker on Why Be a Professional Artist? (Workshop match: Stan's Cafe)
Friday, Sept 8, 3pm, PNCA
Why do you want to be an artist? Why do you want to do it professionally? Why do you want to do it now? With a wry sense of humor and almost fifteen years of experience as a professional artist, James Yarker offers up a compendium of strategies and practical advice for the incipient artist.

(read more for all visual art events......)

Fortunate days are ahead for the cheap and lazy. Tomorrow kicks off an amazing month of art in Portland-no need to buy airfare, it’s all coming to us. PICA’s TBA Festival provides an incredible opportunity to bask in the efforts of interesting, thoughtful and engaging work. Wallow and take your fill – some of it only lasts ten days....(more)

Sean Healy: Test Protector, cast pencils at Elizabeth Leach

Sean Healy identifies with the social studies of high school bullies and the bullied in his new work at the Elizabeth Leach Gallery. Supernormal involves castings of rubber bands, pencils, and an extensive use of chewing gum.
Opening September 7, 6 to 9p • Through Sept 30
Elizabeth Leach Gallery 417 NW 9th Ave • 503.224.0521

With City In A Box, Tad Savinar documents the small challenges that make up the complexities of our cities. Savinar uses bronze, digital prints, etched glass and other media to explore aspects of city life.
Opening September 5, from 6 to 8p •Through Sept 30
PDX Gallery 925 NW Flanders St • 503.222.0063...(more)

Tonight in PICA's Resource Room, Sean Elwood (Creative Capital) and Kelly Cooper (MAP Fund) offer a grant information session on their respective funding initiatives for visual and performing and new genre artists. The Creative Capital Foundation is a national nonprofit that "supports projects that have the potential for significant artistic and cultural impact, that transcend discipline boundaries and tell us something new about ourselves, our communities, and the moment in which we live." The Multi-Arts Production (MAP) Fund supports new works in all disciplines and traditions of the performing arts. Their aim, "...is to assist artists who are exploring and challenging the dynamics of contemporary live performance. In contrast to the preservation of existing repertoire, MAP supports those creating the art of our own time."
This talk is free and open to the public. So, if you like grant money (and who doesn't), you'd be silly to miss this.
Tuesday, September 5th • 7p
PICA • 224 NW 13th, 3rd Floor

Storm Tharp, Old Sport, 2006, Ink on paper, Courtesy of the Artist and PDX Contemporary Art

PORT's Northern readers won't have to experience Portland vicariously anymore (at least for a night)—Reed curator Stephanie Snyder, Oregon Biennial artists Kristan Kennedy and Storm Tharp, and several other Portland-based artists including Dana Dart-McLean and MK Guth will converge in Seattle this Thursday to discuss what's going on down here. The timing is appropriate, as Portland is already beginning to feel the rumbling of activity that could only mean one thing: it's Fall here in Portland, and we're about ready to begin a non-stop line-up that begins with time-based art, continues with a month of solid gallery shows and peaks in early October with our very own art fair.

From the press release:
"Check out the latest in art made just to the south. Stephanie Snyder joins special guests to discuss new activities in Portland and consider the work of Portland-based artists Kevin Abell, Dana Dart-McLean, Alex Felton, Jessica Jackson Hutchins, Kristan Kennedy, MK Guth, Storm Tharp, and others. Part of what Snyder describes as Portland's 'representational imaginary,' the evening will consider an intergenerational group of Portland artists that explore 'self' through experimental film, drawing, painting, sculpture and social practice. These imagined and constructed self-discoveries are often created in dialog with art history, popular culture, and an interdisciplinary media practice signature to Portland's scene."

The Return of Projections: Portland · Thursday, August 31st · 7 pm
Henry Art Gallery · Henry Auditorium · University of Washington
15th Avenue NE & NE 41st Street, Seattle · Tel. 206.543.2280

Time is running out for you to catch the very Portland feeling Old Joy at Cinema 21. Based on a short story by writer, curator, and critic Jonathan Raymond, Old Joy not only sports some local landmarks but manages to truly capture the essence of living in Portland. Originally conceived as a book in collaboration with photographer Justine Kurland, the film retains the sumptuous beauty of the photos on which the story is based. Featuring musician Will Oldham and directed by Kelly Reichardt.

Old Joy • Cinema 21
Last night Thursday Aug.31
616 NW 21st Ave • Portland, OR
GA $7 (cash or check only)

Portland artist Mac McFarlan and film archivist Dennis Nyback have teamed up for this year's TBA festival presented by PICA. Entitled The Portland That Was, their collaboration looks quite promising. Tonight, as a thank you for all those who participated in the making of this project, McFarlan and Nyback along with Anne Richardson are presenting a special screening of films from Nyback's collection. The theme of the evening is Request Night and several people were asked what films Nyback should dig up. Included in the evening will be a 1960's American Cancer Society film featuring the television cast of Mission Impossible in which Peter Graves goes to the proctologist, along with many other gems.

Thank You Screening for THE PORTLAND THAT WAS
Whitsell Auditorium
Tuesday, Aug. 29 • 7:30 PM
1219 SW Park • Portland, OR
FREE

Work by Storm Tharp

The Biennial fun just doesn't end and this weekend you will get another chance to see more of the artists from the exhibit talk about their work. The second installment of the Portland Art Museum's "Biennial Artists Speak" lecture series hosts a strong group featuring Kristan Kennedy, Storm Tharp, and David Eckard. These talks provide an interesting opportunity to gain a greater understanding of individuals and their practice while establishing links between the artists as well.

Biennial Artists Speak • Portland Art Museum
Sunday August 20 • 2-3p
1219 SW Park Ave • Portland, Or
Free to members or with museum admission.

Last year's winner of "Most Materials Used" Award

This Saturday check out one of the most original fundraisers in town, Iron Artist IV benefiting SCRAP (The School and Community Reuse Action Project). The event features performances by the Sprockettes (all female mini-bike dance troop), March Fourth, and a beer garden. The main attraction of this high-energy celebration of creative reuse is a timed three-hour sculpt-off where 10 teams of scrap artists create sculptures from reused materials provided by SCRAP and other local reuse organizations such as The ReBuilding Center, Free Geek and the ReStore. Each team will receive boxes of similar materials and race against the clock to create their masterpiece. A theme for the sculptures will be announced when the competition begins, and in the end, a panel of local celebrity judges, including PORT's own, Jeff Jahn, will critique the final pieces and award the coveted Cup du SCRAP, a gold trash can adorned with Mardi Gras beads. Beyond just being a cool event to attend, SCRAP works to promote creative reuse and environmentally sustainable behavior by providing educational programs and affordable materials to the community. So get out there and show a little love.

Iron Artist IV, SCRAP Benefit
August 19th, 2006 • 12:30pm - 8:00pm
In the Lot on the Corner of North Vancouver and Failing
$5-20 sliding scale

Donut Shop by Brittany Powell

Tommorow night kicks off the first of a series of weekly gallery talks led by Biennial artists. Artists will discuss their working process, influences, and philosophies as they relate to the works presented in the Biennial. This week's talk features Brittany Powell, Jesse Hayward, and Pat Boas. The Oregon Biennial will be on exhibit at the Portland Art Museum until October 8.

Jesse Hayward

Pat Boas

Biennial Artists Speak • Oregon Biennial
Thursday Aug. 10 • 6-7pm
Portland Art Museum
1219 SW Park • Portland, Oregon

Small Herd by Brenda Mallory

Tomorrow is the one day open-air art show inClover curated by Portland artist Scott Wayne Indiana. Indiana selected inClover’s roster of artists for the thoughtful spatial engagement of their work; featured media include installation, illustration, painting and photography. Artists involved were encouraged to investigate and engage the exhibit’s outdoor environs within the brevity of the show’s run – one day only – while responding to the theme of the show’s summery title, inClover, which means “Living a carefree life of ease, comfort or prosperity.” (...more)

Alex Gross at Renowned Gallery

Group Show • New Expressions in Fine Art Printmaking
A diverse mix of etching, wood-blocks, screen-printing, xerox tansfers, and photo-gravures combined with storytelling, landscapes, and abstracted photography. Curated by Erik Sandberg of Los Angeles.
Renowned Gallery • 811 e burnside 111 portland, or 97214 Opening Reception: 6:30 to 9:30 pm, Friday August 4.
Closes August 31, 2006.

Group Show • The Influence of Motorcycle on Contemporary Art
This exhibit revs up the motorcycle culture through visual images. Curated by Rachel Sanders Fine Art and Design Inc.
Guestroom 128 ne russell st portand, or 97212 • 503. 284.8378
Opening Reception: 5pm, Friday August 4. Closes September 16, 2006.

...(more)

James Lavadour's Boarder Camp, 2006

Sun Spots • James Lavadour • painting Lavadour exhibits a series of oil paintings based on landscapes and architectural under-paintings, which were layered and manipulated over the past six years.
PDX Contemporary Art 925 nw flanders st pdx 97209 • 503.222.3068
Opening Reception: Aug 3, from 6 to 8p.

Black and White • group show
Compare and contrast black and white galore (!) from Linda Hutchins line drawings to Richard Serra's Etchings. Also Featuring Richard Diebenkorn, Brian Borrello, Richmond Burton, Greg Chann, G. Lewis Clevenger, Jerry Iverson, Marc Katano, Peter Millett, James Siena, Jeffery Simmons, Heather Larkin Timken, and Terry Winters.
Pulliam Deffenbaugh Gallery 929 nw flanders st pdx 97209 • 503.228.6665
Preview Reception: August 2 from 5:30 to 7:30p.

All My Clothes • Alicia Cortney Eggert • drawings, sculpture & installation This show reflects a series of studies relating to the ideas of ownership and identity that focus on the artist's personal wardrobe. Using common household objects and accessible materials, her artwork explores the essence of human nature in modern society.
Valentines 232 se ankeny pdx
Opening Reception: Aug 3, from 6 to 10p. Show ends Aug 31, 2006.

Kitchen Sink: Welcome Home, Stranger

If you're not headed towards cooler weather and sticking around town this weekend there's an event taking place in St Johns that might make the heat bearable. 20 artists, 7 bands and 2 DJ’s will infiltrate a vacant house in St. Johns on July 22nd for a one-night-only multidisciplinary arts event titled Kitchen Sink: Welcome Home, Stranger. Invited visual artist's will fill the home’s empty rooms with site-specific installations. Band's in the backyard, performance, short films and a DJ-assisted dance party round out the festivities.
Email kitchen.sink.art@gmail for more information.

Saturday, July 22 • Doors at 3p, Music at 5p • 5037 N. Princeton
$2-5 Donation.

The details of Georgia O'Keeffe's life and complicated artistic and personal relationship with photographer Alfred Stieglitz have inspired scads of biographies and an inance devotion to dissecting the personal life of this iconic Modernist painter. For those who just can't get enough of O'Keeffee, writer and critic Hunter Drohojowska-Philp will give a talk this Sunday at the Portland Art Museum on Georgia O'Keeffe in the 1930s: A Woman Changed. Author of the recently published biography Works Full Bloom: The Art and Life of Georgia O'Keeffe , Drohojowska-Philp will discuss how O'Keeffe's struggle to balance her burgeoning career with her tumultuous relationship with Stieglitz drove her to leave Manhattan and establish herself in New Mexico in the 1930s.

Tickets required. Call: 503.226.0973

Lecture •Sunday, July 16th • 2 p Fields Sunken Ballroom • Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park Ave • 503.226.0973
Admission: $10 General (includes entry into exhibitions), Free for members

Corin Hewitt at Small A Projects

Atlas of the Unknown Romanticisms of the Great Outdoors. Features Graham Anderson, Sarah Braman & Phil Grauer, Corin Hewitt, Jessica Jackson Hutchins, Asha Schechter. Curated by Tina Kukielski. small A projects 1430 SE Third PDX 97214 503.234.7993 Opens July 7 from 6 to 9p.

Portrait Show Over 35 local and formerly local Portland artists. Includes Storm Tharp, Paige Saez, Sean Healy, James Boulton, Kristan Kennedy and Isaac Peterson. Curated by Levi Hanes. The Hall Gallery 630 SE 3rd ave PDX 971.570.2290 Opens July 7 from 6 to 10:30 p. Closing Reception July 27 from 6 to 10:30 p.

Utopian Architecture by James Boulton at Pulliam Deffenbaugh

James Boulton • painting
A 2003 Oregon Biennial artist, his style is inspired by both abstract expressionism and grafitti culture. Pulliam Deffenbaugh Gallery 929 NW Flanders Portland, OR 97209 • 503.228.6665 First Thursday Opening July 6, 2006. 5:30 to 8p. Ends July 29, 2006.

Oxygen Paintings • Joe Macca
Focusing on giving breath color, Macca uses thin translucent coats of paint to meditate on moments of pleasure, pain, tension, joy, rage, etc. PDX Contemporary Art 925 NW Flanders Street Portland, OR 97209 • 503.222.0063 First Thursday Opening July 6, 2006. 6 to 8 p. Ends July 29, 2006.
more........

PICA artist-in-residence Matthew Day Jackson wants you to eat some hot dogs and add your voice to his project on Tuesday June 27 from 5-8pm.

During the bbq he is inviting you to his studio to record your "sung" version of an air raid siren. These recordings will be incorporated into one of his pieces on view this Fall as part of TBA 06. Hang out or participate at this recording session and bbq.

FREE
Tuesday, June 27 • 5 - 8 pm
Drinks and Dogs while they last(veggie dogs too!)
Corberry Press • NW 17th + Northrup
PICA

Yes, a fashionable boutique that sits among the smart young businesses on lower Burnside, has been hanging art on the walls since they opened two years ago. This month is their most sophisticated and impressive showing to date. Lawrence Robbin spent a year living in Los Angeles in the mid-1970s as a photographer for the radical Los Angeles Vanguard. Documenting everything from notable personalities such as Charles Bukowski to absurd and bittersweet street scenes, these black and white photos capture not only the spirit and the style of the era, but also highlighted the tenderness, humor, and emotional complexity of the subjects. Although the photos stand on their own as historical documents, Robbin’s appreciation of composition and mastery of closing the shutter at the right moment give them life as works of art. Tonight, Robbin will be up from California to present fifteen works in the LA76 series.
Lawrence Robbin • LA76
Artist Reception • Tuesday, June 20th • 7 to 10p
Yes • 811 E Burnside

PORT's one year anniversary celebration tonight!

Eurotrash Bash
8pm at Apotheke (1314 NW Glisan, Upstairs)
with DJ van DIS

We'll be announcing the winner of the first annual "Pretentious Art Writing Contest"
Hope to see you there!

Just a reminder, PORT's 1 year anniversary party, the Eurotrash Bash along with the results of our pretentious art writing contest will take place on Thursday night 8:00 PM at Apotheke. Click here for details. You have till Wednesday night to email me the writings ... and because you asked, yes pseudonyms are kosher, this is a pretentious art writing contest afterall.

Untitled Document

Saturday, the Portland Art Museum will play host to sculptor Richard Rezac’s work for a second time. The museum’s 1985 Oregon Artists Biennial debuted Mr. Rezac’s work 11 years after graduating from PNCA’s BFA program. Twenty-one years later, he is back with a selection of sculptures and drawings from 1998-2005...(more)

Announcing the Eurotrash Bash & Pretentious Art Writing Contest for PORT's 1 Year Anniversary

To mark our 1st anniversary PORT announces:

The Eurotrash Bash, 8:00PM June 15th at Apotheke, Portland's uber angular bastion of Northern European spirits and nosh • 1314 NW Glisan, Suite 2A (Upstairs). Come over, get your Gjetost on, meet PORT staffers and try some Zwak Unicum as you listen to the Europhile sounds of DJ van DIS.

In conjunction PORT is announcing our first annual "Pretentious Art Writing Contest." Simply give us your most craven and pedantic prose somehow remotely related to art (either real or imagined) by emailing it to me on or by the 14th (a shadowy league of judges will decide). Yes you get points for name dropping but only to a point. Also, anyone caught simply copying from the Art Forum Diary or Okwui Enwezor will be publicly flogged in pioneer square for crimes against linguistic communication. To set the bar let this be a benchmark for your entries (on the scale of 1-10, 10 being most pretentious, this is a mere 7). The winning entry will be published on PORT and receive a dinner for two, complements of Le Happy, where you can feast on the veritable sea of undermined ironic pretenses distilled into their legendary Le Trash Blanc crepes. We will announce the winner of our pretentious art writing contest at the Eurotrash Bash.

Thank You PORT sponsors, readers and staffers

LET THE FLENSING BEGIN!

Have you been wondering what Matthew Barney has been doing for the last four years? Wonder no longer. Besides making babies with Bjork he's been making a new film with her... (more)

Natalie Cartwright • Enamored, a photo travel diary
Cartwright reflects on the wonders of her childhood with a photographic diary of a more recent journey through Japan. Moshi Moshi 811 east burnside portland or 97214 • 503.445.9924 Opening Reception Friday June 2, 6-9 p. Show ends July 1, 2006.

grey|area • group show So-called theme-less, non-narrative, conceptual and abstract minimalism are part of the blurred-line of focus for this show, which could be really strong. Curated by TJ Norris. The 13 selected West Coast artists include Troy Briggs, Ty Ennis, Scott Wayne Indiana, Laura Fritz and Ellen George. Guestroom Gallery 128 NE Russell • 503.284.8378 Opening Reception Friday, June 2, 6 - 9 p. Runs through June 30, 2006.

more.....

Ellen George's Pulse at PDX Contemporary Art

The Portland Art Center celebrates its official grand opening of it's newly renovated space in Old Town. Event includes installation by Barry Johnson, paintings on steel by Jeff Fontaine video and sound installation curated by Jason Frank and Andy Brown, and the Oregon College of Art and Craft Post-Baccalaureate Exhibition.......

Pablo Helguera's The School of Panamerican Unrest may sound like another artist-proposed, utopian vision for the future. And in many ways it is, although the Mexican-born, New York-based artist is trying to do much more than just revel in the impossible scope of his project. Housed in a mobile yellow structure resembling a one-room school house, the main component of the project is "a nomadic forum or think-tank that will cross the hemisphere by land, from Anchorage, Alaska, to Ushuaia, Argentina, in Tierra del Fuego." Recognizing a greater potential for cross-cultural for communication between the nations that comprise the Americas, Helguera's SPU will host forums, panels, discussions, performances, screenings and collaborations between May and September 2006.

Perhaps it has something to do with his recent 7-year stint heading up programs at the Guggenheim, but Helguera has pieced together what promises to be a truly engaging lineup of activities that will actually create dialog amongst English, Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries. The itinerary includes Portland, where Helguera and his yellow schoolhouse will be stationed May 30 through June 1 for a panel discussion, first Wednesday and First Thurday receptions and a performance by Helguera entitled Panamerican Fiction. After the schoolhouse departs for Alberta, Canada and a couple dozen other destinations throughout North, Central and South America, the artist will continue to send ephemera and other documentation to be displayed at PNCA's Feldman Gallery through July.

The topic of Helguera's panels and discussions changes with each location. On Tuesday evening, Helguera—along with a panel that includes Red 76's Sam Gould, Harrell Fletcher, and Ian Greenfield (Lightbox Studios and the Oregon Bus Project—will engage in a panel discussion on The Portland Liberty Bell: Questions on Civil Disobedience. "On Nov. 21, 1970, a powerful bomb exploded behind Portland's City Hall, and arguably destroyed the State's bronze replica of the Liberty Bell. A urban myth that the Portland Liberty Bell was destroyed has never been fully dispelled, along with the open mystery of who carried out this and other terrorist acts—although it was largely suspected of students and civilian activists. This discussion explores that historic moment in Portland and the US and will include a discussion civil life and unresolved social or political conflict."

Supported by PICA, PNCA, and RACC.

Panel Discussion • Tuesday, May 30th • 7p

Gallery Preview • Wednesday, May 31st • 6–8p

First Thursday Opening • Thursday, June 1st • 6–9p

Panamerican Fiction • Performance • Thursday, June 1st • 6:30p

All events take place at:
Feldman Gallery • PNCA •1241 NW Johnson • 503.226.4391

Dave McKenzie @ Small A Projects

OK, I'm not going to lie to you, Last Thursday, the artwalk claimed by NE Alberta and co., doesn't usually "tickle my fancy" as it were. But, tonight there are a couple events worth a look-see...

On Alberta, the productive and prolific Morgan Currie has spearheaded a Public Media Works project, The Vision Vessel. Tonight marks the kick-off for the first of over 18 installations of the Vessel throughout Portland over the course of the next 3 months. So, what is it? "The Vision Vessel is a multi-media recording booth where you can offer your ideas about the City of Portland as it grows and changes in the 21st century. Through text, voice recordings, and photographs, the Vessel creates a living archive of Portlander's insights, while offering a fresh, practical and innovative approach to urban civic engagement." That's right, wander into this mobile data machine, give your 2 cents and your input will be qualitatively analyzed and considered in public policy decision making. Beats the hell out of a town meeting, if you ask me.
Thursday, May 25 • 5pm until late
Vision Vessel • Alberta Co-op parking lot, at the intersection of 15th and NE Alberta.

In Southeast, Small A Projects celebrates the opening of its video library with a screening of selections curated by Alex Felton and Kevin Abell. The Small A video library currently holds approximately 50 titles by 17 artists with new arrivals added each week. Tonight's screening includes works by Dave McKenzie, Alyse Emdur, Alex Felton, Jessica Jackson Hutchins, and Rachell Sumpter among others.
Video Library Grand Opening
Thursday, May 25 • 7 to 9p
Small A Projects (loading dock) • 1430 SE Third

Black Market Culture, a 17 month-old online art emporium showcasing the work of emerging artists (with street culture and urban-style leanings), presents an in-the-flesh exhibition at the Goodfoot. Tonight's show features work by Jesse Reno (currently showing at Zeitgeist), Lyla Emery Reno, Doug Boehm, Charlie Alan Kraft, Aimee Whatley, Mike Albury, Jason Brown, Keith Rosson, Kendra Binney, Justin Rock, Ashley Montague, Klutch, WP762, Tyler Kline, Cathie Joy Young, Lori Olds, Chris Haberman, Charlotte Foust, Zach Egge, Daniel Damocles Wall, Michael Fields and more. Grab a beer and a game of pool while you're there, and then there's a usually a kickin' soul-music dance party downstairs as the night wears on...
Thursday May 25th, 2006
Black Market Culture Group Showcase @ the Goodfoot • 2845 SE Stark • Tel. 503.239.9292

Diesel Fuel Prints, the world's largest publisher of screen printed rock art posters, housed right here in Portland, marks their 15th year in business with the opening of a retail store and gallery. Tonight they will be having a Grand Opening party at their new facility featuring new paintings by Klutch. Andy Stern started Diesel Fuel in 1991 and since then it has grown into the largest and one of the most respected names in silk-screened art print shops. Portland-based artist Klutch (the curator of the Vinyl Killers series seen at Zeitgeist), a street/stencil/skateboard artist, has been continually creating visual mischief since his involvement in the early 1980's punk and skateboard scenes. See what he's up to tonight with a new series and collaborative mural.
Grand Opening Party • Friday, May 19th • 6 to 9p
Diesel Fuel Prints • 726 SE 10th Avenue

On Sunday, as part of the Portland Art Museum's Critical Voices lecture series, Modern art scholar and curator Anne Rorimer presents "Context as Content: Installation Art in the '60s and '70s". The talk will cover the work of internationally recognized artists of the Conceptual period, whose projects have laid the groundwork for installation art as practiced worldwide today.
Free for Museum members or included with Museum admission, call 503.226.0973
Sunday, May 21 • 2:00 p.m.
Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park Avenue

Apparently Horia Boboia's "The Spring Collection" has arrived... with so much fashion activity in Portland the sophisticated PSU prof channels a meme and to top it off this latest show just drips with Max Ernst cool. I can't be there since I'm traveling, but you've got no excuse. Judging from the window a few days ago it looks like Chambers Gallery's best show to date. Boboia always looked good at Tracy Savage's spaces but never this good.

Opens tonight Thursday, May 18 2006 5:50 - 8:30pm
Also Featuring New Works by Guy Martelet
at Chambers: 207 SW Pine Street No. 102 Portland, Or. 97204

Max Pechstein, Self-portrait with Pipe, 1921. Woodcut. Portland Art Museum, Museum Purchase: Helen Thurston Ayer Fund. (c) 2006 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn

PAM's low key From Anxiety to Ecstasy: Themes in German Expressionist Prints is probably the single most satisfying museum show in the Pacific Northwest right now (I've gone 4 times). It features all of the big names like Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Franz Marc, George Grosz etc. In fact, it's the best show I've ever seen at PAM in terms of depth and intellectual relevance. Early 20th century Germany was a heady melange of decadence, hedonism, industrialization, self expression, politics and an eventual fascist backlash. These expressionist artists defined existentialism before the term existed and unlike most prints, stand as some of the most important artistic accomplishments in any era. Look, Hitler hated this stuff and if your idea of cosmopolitanism is drinking something with Cointreau in it, get your lame intellectual credentials down to PAM to check this out. Yes expressionism was about internal angst but it was also about developing a culture of tolerance and general social engagement.

On Sunday May 14th at 2:00PM there will be a lecture on the art and society of the early decades of 20th-century Germany by distinguished author and University of Oregon professor Sherwin Simmons. For tickets, call 503-226-0973. Bring Mom.

Location: Portland Art Museum, Whitsell Auditorium
Fee: Members: Free. Non-members: Included with Museum admission.

Tonight, Portland Modern (gallery in print) celebrates the release of issue no. 4 with a party. Curated by Kristan Kennedy of PICA and Matthew Stadler of Clear Cut Press (+ more), the theme of the latest issue is "Saturation", expored through the work of Roberta Aylward, Amber Bell, Michael Boyle, David Corbett, Alexander Felton, Anna Fidler, Caleb Freese & Justin Gorman, Sarah Gottesdiener, Liz Haley, Levi Hanes, Mary Henry, Philip Iosca, Eva Lake, Jonathan Leach, Isaac Lin , Marne Lucas , Rae Mahaffey, Jeannie Manville, Chelsea Mosher, Daniel Peterson, Shawn Records, Spirit Quest (Khaela Maricich & Melissa Dyne), Amy Steel, and Casey Watson.

Drop by the white-on-white euro-sexy Apotheke tonight to grab one of the first copies (and a drink or two). Tunes by DJ Stay in School.
Friday, May 12 • 9p to 2a
Apotheke • 1314 NW Glisan, Suite 2A (Upstairs)

P.S., If you can't make it to the party, you can pick up a copy Saturday at the PM viewing room (1715 NW Lovejoy, 12 to 6p) or at Radius Studio (2515 SE 22nd Ave at Division, 11a to 5p).

Tonight at Reed is HAVOC IN SUBURBIA, an evening of gelastic puppetry and psychic geography. It's hard to say what absurdity will ensue but the image on the press release is so awesome/weird that I want to be there. The evening begins with the ubiquitous Matthew Stadler and Jon Raymond reciting their original collaboration, 23 Propositions on the West Hills. But then comes the real goods... MONKEY WREAKS HAVOC IN SUBURBIA, a theatrical exploration of the photographs of Gregory Crewdson inspired by the 16th Century Chinese novel The Journey to the West. After the puppet show the evening descends into "suburban twilight ecstasy" with the punk-posse band SHOW ME THE PINK. Beer and and snacks will be on hand. OK, so I wish this was just a weird puppet show and not necessarily a performance exploring Crewdson's work (I can't even imagine who dreamed up such an esoteric concept), but nonetheless, it looks pretty amazing. Rumor is Crewdson even posed for his own puppet-likeness. FYI, MONKEY WREAKS HAVOC IN SUBURBIA is suitable for children and they are invited to attend. I'm so there!
Thursday, May 11 • 6:30pm
Student Union at Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd

San Keller, Memosan

Next Monday's PSU lecture will not only make your day, but will make your whole week, kicking off a 4-day long workshop/action with visiting artist San Keller. The work of this Swiss artist is smart and funny, with a thoroughly European sensibility. He works with the codes of the public space as well as of the exhibition space, very much in the vein of work by Jeppe Hein, a German artist whose work I saw for the first time on my last visit to Paris...
(READ MORE)

While here in Portland, Keller will initiate Make My Day, a project in which participants propose, realize and document a project in collaboration with Keller. ~~More details are forthcoming about the workshop, but~~ Keller is looking for participants to propose concepts. ~~All interested parties should show up to Monday night's lecture.~~ [JUST IN: Keller will be at Valentines from 2 - 8pm on Tuesday, May 9. During this time, the public is invited to submit proposals. Keller will choose 16 proposals for a continuous action that will take place over a 48 hour period between Tuesday, May 9 at 8 pm and Thursday, May 11 at 8 pm. Individuals will get a three hour period of time and activities can include just about anything, including the mundane (eating, sleeping, travelling, you get the idea)] Keller will present documentation of the resulting project at Valentines on Friday at 2 pm.

Lecture • Monday, May 8th • 7 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA, PNCA, and Reed College

Proposal/Selection • Tuesday, May 9th • 2 - 8 p
Valentines • 232 SW Ankeny • 503.248.1600

Public talk/presentation • Friday, May 12th • 2 p
Valentines • 232 SW Ankeny • 503.248.1600

Tomorrow night is a match of the dueling fundraisers: p:ear blossoms and PICA's TADA. Lisa Radon gives a thorough run-down of the blunder on Ultra and points out the scheduling pickle that Portland's art patrons have been placed in with two major benefits double-booked. Whatever floats your boat, it seems you can't go wrong. Just pick one, at least, for goodness sake.

p:ear blossoms
Saturday May 6, 2006
Wieden + Kennedy Atrium • 224 NW 13th Ave • 6 to 9p
More info at pearmentor.org or call 503.228.6677

TADA
Saturday May 6, 2006
AudioCinema • 226 SE Madison
6p • Patron Dinner hosted by AC Dickson
10p • PICA Birthday Party with entertainment by Fleshtone and Copy
$10 members, $15 general at the door (Two Free Drink Tickets with admission)
More info at pica.org or call 503.242.1419

Zoe Crosher's LAX Best Western at Small A Projects

Out the Window (LAX) • Zoe Crosher • photography
This LA based artist is getting international attention for her studies of transitional situations. Her latest series explores images taken from hotel rooms by the LAX airport.
small A projects • 1430 se third avenue portland, or 97214 • 503.234.7993
Opening Reception May 5, 6-9p. Artist talk, 8p. Show ends May 27.

group show • mixed media
Paintings, illustrations and silk-screened images by Kelly Lynn Jones, Josh Cochran, Matt Haber, Allison Cole, Kelley McCarthy.
Renowned • 811 east burnside suite 111 portland, or 97214 • 503.445.9924
Opening Reception May 5, 6 -9:30p. Show ends May 31.

click below for more.....

Torrent (detail) by Linda Hutchins at Pulliam Deffenbaugh

Line Drawing • Linda Hutchins
Using India ink, Hutchins' images "record a meditative practice involving the arc of the arm, the gesture of the hand, and the path of the gaze." The results reflect land, water, hair and other natural formations.
Pulliam Deffenbaugh Gallery.....

Group Show
Zeitgeist is celebrating its nine-year anniversary this month, which is pretty good for any gallery and damn near eternal for the Everett Station Loft spaces--which tend to change hands pretty quickly. Owner and curator Paul Fujita opened this month's show to past exhibitioners ...(there is more)....

Painter Kathryn Van Dyke will lecture tonight as part of PSU's Monday night lecture series. First seen in Portland at the Bay Area Bazaar show, Van Dyke has recently joined Pulliam Deffenbaugh's stable of artists. Her work was seen alongside Yoshi Kitai and Sian Oblak in last month's Introductions show.

Monday, May 1 • 7 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA, PNCA, and Reed College

Just over a year after W+K's John Jay and design giant Teruo Kurosaki held a public discussion about the state of Portland's creative culture and the need for more exchange between Tokyo and Portland, the dialog continues. Both Kurosaki and Jay are back, this time as part of a day-long symposium that also includes other notable guests like young designer Oki Sato and MoMA's Curator of Architecture and Design, Paola Antonelli. The theme is given as Tokyo Flow and the symposium not only contributes to the flow of dialog between Tokyo and Portland, but also takes a look at the ways in which Japanese populated culture has permeated the design world. Sessions include a discussion about otaku culture, a presentation by Sato and a panel on design strategies for the Japanese market. The evening discussion, moderated by Antonelli, takes an in-depth look at the exhibition on view in the Feldman, a collection of small objects from Tokyo collected by a group of "suitcase curators" that include Kurosaki and Sato.

The revolution segues into a party on Saturday with PNCA's annual gala and afterparty, "Za Kurabu," featuring Tokyo breakbeat duo Hifana of the Wieden + Kennedy TokyoLab music label.

Read on for a full symposium schedule.

Tokyo Design Revolution II: Tokyo Flow • Friday, April 28 • 10:30am • 9:30pm
Free and open to the public
Pacific Northwest College of Art • 1241 NW Johnson

Detail of still from Old Joy, which opens tonight

The Portland Documentary and eXperimental Film Festival (PDX Film Fest for short) begins today and runs through April 30, 2006 at the Guild Theatre.

Presented by Peripheral Produce and the NW Film Center, the festival will showcase provocative, artistic, and firmly uncompromising films from around the globe. The festival is an offshoot of Peripheral Produce, a video distribution label and screening series started by Portland filmmaker Matt McCormick. 2006 is the 10-year birthday of Peripheral Produce, and since it’s inception in 1996, Peripheral Produce has grown from a small, DIY project into an internationally respected venue and outlet for contemporary experimental cinema.

festival highlights include:

Old Joy: Portland Premiere with filmmakers in attendance tonight at 7:30. Shot in the Portland area and fresh from its debut at the Sundance Film Festival, the PDX Film Fest is proud to host the Portland Premiere of the new feature film Old Joy. Directed by Kelly Reichardt, the film stars musician Will Oldham (aka Bonnie "Prince" Billy), was co-produced by PortlanderTodd Haynes (dir. Far From Heaven) and based on a novel by Portland author Jon Raymond. Those in the art scene have seen this project progress from a collaborative book project between Justine Kurland's photography and Jon Raymond's prose. I felt that the visuals overwhelmed the narrative in that initial collaboration but I suspect the re-writes and the filmaker's savvy brings this one around.

(read more)for complete info and schedule...

Gregory Crewdson, Untitled (Summer Rain), Summer, 2004, Digital C-print, 64.25 x 94.25 in. Edition 5 of 6.
Image courtesy of the artist and the Ovitz Family Collection, Los Angeles

Don't miss the highly influential photographer Gregory Crewdson, who will be giving a lecture tonight @ Reed College's Vollum lecture hall, 7:00pm. Yes it is free so get there 25 minutes early for a good seat. Although I prefer his former student Justine Kurland, he is important-ish if you consider him as a part of a late 90's staging trend along with Matthew Barney's constructed cinematic stillness and Thomas Demand's equally staged/constructed photos.

Crewdson's talk occurs in conjunction with the exhibition New Trajectories II: expansions, recent photography from the Ovitz Family Collection, at the Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Art Gallery, Reed College, April 11–June 11, 2006

I reviewed Part I here and I promise to cover Part II in the coming weeks. Till then here is John Motley's review in the Merc and D.K. Row's interview in the O. Also, the Cooley Gallery will be open 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. the day of the lecture, so see it already!

Tonight Guestroom Gallery opens Compound Concoction curated by Katsu of Just Be. Featuring a grip of young Japanese artists and a couple Americans, this show seems to be the Dig Me Out show at Compound last fall redux, perhaps with some new surprises. I'm interested to see what ZanPon's got up his sleeve this time around. While you're over there, be sure to check out Dan Ness' solo show at Woolley at Wonder.
Opening Reception • Friday, April 21 • 6 to 9
Guestroom Gallery • 128 NE Russell (Under the Wonder Ballroom) • Tel. 503.284.8378

*ADDITION Artist talk tonight at Tilt. Portland artist Brenda Mallory discusses the work in her current exhibition "Offcuts". "Working with the base form of an elongated oval, Mallory invents and reinvents structures through the use of various methods including stitching, burning, and cutting."
Friday April 21 7:30pm • Free
Tilt Gallery and Project Space • 625 NW Everett • Tel. 908.616.5477

Mark your calendars: May 6 is p:ear's 4th anniversary celebration and benefit, p:earblossoms. This annual benefit features food, wine, dance and an auction. p:ear is an awesome non-profit that builds positive relationships with homeless and transitional youth through education, art and recreation to affirm personal worth and create more meaningful and healthy lives.
Saturday May 6, 2006 • Wieden + Kennedy Atrium • 6 to 9pm
$75 per person or $130 for 2
More info at pearmentor.org or call 503.228.6677

On location during the filming of Who is Bozo Texino?

This Monday's guest lecturer at PSU is resident Portlander and filmmaker Bill Daniel. Daniel cut his teeth documenting the Austin punk scene in the 80s and has been working for over two decades documenting outsiders and subcultures. His work includes "Tresspassing Sign," made in collaboration with the late Margaret Kilgallen, and "The Girl on the Train in the Moon," a "hobo campfire installation" that was part of 2001's Widely Unknown show at Deitch Projects. Last year, Daniel debuted his feature length documentary on the history of hobo graffiti, Who is Bozo Texino?

Monday, April 17 • 7 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA, PNCA, and Reed College

Bwana Spoons stands as one of Portland's most prolific, energetic, multi-talented, community-minded and warm hearted young artists. He has had his fingers in zines, comics, illustration, painting, sculpture, toy-design, curation, storyboarding and I'm sure much more. Now he can add entreprenuer to the list as he's taken the reins and opened his very own shop to showcase his artwork, products and other items by people he loves. Nestled inside Renowned among the conglomerate of creative businesses at 8th and Burnside, the Grass Hut Shop opens tonight with some sweets and treats including rootbeer, a t-shirt release and a contest with prizes!
Grass Hut Shop @ Renowned
Grand Opening • Thursday, April 13, 5 to 8p
811 East Burnside, Portland Oregon 97214
Normal Hours • Wednesday thru Saturday 12-7pm

Today the Cooley Gallery opens the second installment from the Ovitz Family Collection. The first was an impressive overview of some exciting contemporaries. New Trajectories II: Expansions features recent photography by Gregory Crewdson and Candida Hofer. Exploring the construction, narrative properties, and imaginary qualities of built environments, the exhibition contains seven large-scale works. From the press release:

"Crewdson, who cites Stephen Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind as one of his most seminal influences, asserts, 'All photographs are unresolved. Unlike other narrative forms, a photo is mute and frozen in time. There is no before and no after. The events remain a mystery.' Of Close Encounters, he notes: 'I hope I achieve a similar tension between wonder and dread in my work.' While Crewdson produces elaborate, Hollywood-scale staged environments that are captured in individual images, Hofer isolates aspects of existing environments, exposing their enigmatic qualities. In both photographers’ work, an inexplicable stillness prevails."

Hofer was seen with the rest of the Becher school at Pulliam Deffenbaugh when then opened their new space last fall. Her large scale still lifes are mesmerizing for their balance, sometimes symmetry and unencumbered documentation of architecture and interiors.

There is no opening reception tonight, but later in the month Crewdson will give a public lecture at Reed and join in a Ripe family supper.

New Trajectories II: Expansions • Through June 11
Gallery Hours • Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 5pm
The Cooley Gallery at Reed College (inside the Library)
3203 SE Woodstock Blvd • Tel. 503.777.7790

Image: Gregory Crewdson, Untitled (North by Northwest), Summer, 2004, Digital C-print. Image courtesy of the artist and the Ovitz Family Collection, Los Angeles

Jim Drain at The Moore Space

Two concurrent events are taking place Monday evening, competing for your attention. You can't go wrong!

First of all, school's back in session and Harrell Fletcher resumes his Monday night lecture series at PSU. This week Jim Drain—a Providence resident, RISD grad and ex-member of the now defunct collective Forcefield (working under the alias Gorgon Radeo)—will take the podium. Drain's work combines the hedonistic aesthetics of 60s psychedelic culture with a decidedly un-masculine craftiness in a way that Portlanders should appreciate. Recent projects include a major installation at Art Basel (where he also received the Baloise Art Prize), a solo show at Greene Naftali Gallery and Wiggin Village at The Moore Space, where he teamed up with fellow ex-Forcefield member, Ara Peterson to create a trippy utopian environment.

Monday, April 10th • 7p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)

Meanwhile, one the other side of downtown Portland at Valentines, there will be an event to raise money for the films of Oakie Treadwell. Clips of Treadwell's films will be screened, including scenes from work-in-progress Maggots and Men, a historical drama with a mostly female cast that focuses on the Kronstadt rebellion in 1920s Russia, in which sailors staged a rebelled to protest against Bolshevik rule. The evening's lineup also includes music by Sarah Dougher and K Records musician Calvin Johnson as well as a lecture by Diana George on the films of Treadwell. But the highlight of the evening will undoubtedly be the planned craft activity: building Tatlin's Monument to the Third International with marshamallows and drink straws. The event is presented by Jon Raymond, Stephanie Snyder, and Matthew Stadler.

Monday, April 10th • 7p • $5 suggested donation
Valentine's 232 • SW Ankeny St • 503.248.1600

As part of their residency at Yerba Buena in San Francisco, Portland's Red 76 collective is doing another one of their "How To Create a Cultural District and Have it Vanish Into the Morning Mists of Dawn" projects in Oakland tonight. PORT reported on the Portland version here last summer. Once again, far from being naïve to the effects artistic activities have on the civic fabric, they understand the catalytic effects such activities historically have on neighborhoods and its their understanding of history that makes them relevant. It's like developers have radio tracking collars on artists and Red 76 acknowledges their role in the process in their statements. Their partial solution is to be more ephemeral and will take place tonight (11:59PM - 3AM) around 2nd and Franklin in Oakland, CA. They are also doing 2 laundry lectures tomorrow as well. Call their hotline for more info: 1(888) 212-5652.

Of course this raises larger questions, for instance is the intentional ephemeral, non commercial nature of these activities more or less easily co-opted by real-estate moguls? Also, I'm not convinced all developers are bad, although San Francisco certainly has been a massive cautionary tale that thankfully Portland has heeded to some degree. Is it enough? Objects as artifacts can be empowering as stubborn reminders to be navigated as well but Red 76 is just as bold about its ephemeral/communal approach. Also, does that ephemeral approach place them slightly more the mercy of writers?... and possibly attractive for that same reason? It's all good and I like Red 76's catalytic role, check em out.

Drift,Wander,Migrate • Michelle Blade • paintings and illustrations Blade is inspired by myth and folktales of Russian, Hungarian, Indian, Mexican and Native American aesthetics. Renowned Gallery • 811 East Burnside Suite 111 PDX 97214 • 503.807.8128 Opening Reception 6-9:30pm. more...

Todd Johnson at Augen Gallery

FRESH • Group Show • multi-media
New works by upcoming and mid-career artists range from paintings in wax, cellophane collages, hand-stitched photography, to sculptural topography. Chandra Bocci, Elise Engler, Pierre Gour, Sean Healy, Kristan Kennedy, David McDonald, Mark Mulroney, Yuki Nakamura, Melody Owen, Daniel Peterson, Michelle Ross, Adam Sorensen, Daniel Sturgis, Brad Tucker and Amanda Wojick
Elizabeth Leach Gallery • 417 NW 9th Avenue Portland, Oregon 97209 • 503.224.0521
First Thursday Opening 6:00 - 9:00 pm. Exhibit ends May 27.

Boredom: I learned It by Watching You • Group Show
Ah, possibly another show attempting to lower the bar for the Portland art scene! Yawn? Curated by Josh Arseneau and Gabriel Flores. Artists include.....

Geldzahler

This looks like a good flick about New York back when it was THE place the art world lived. Featuring; Warhol, Poons, de Kooning, Johns and yes a curator from the Metropolitan, Henry Geldzahler. Ever notice how artists still don't look to curators from past eras for inspiration?... this film should demonstrate why! See the trailer here.

WHO GETS TO CALL IT ART?

DIRECTOR: Peter Rosen (US 2006)

Rosen's film documents the downtown New York pop art scene in the 1960s, as seen through the eyes of legendary Metropolitan Museum of Art curator Henry Geldzahler. A legend in his own mind, but also in the hearts of the artists whose works he championed, Geldzahler was instrumental in raising consciousness about the vibrancy of contemporary American art. His landmark exhibition "New York Painting and Sculpture 1940-1970" shaped not only the Met's future, but the art world's as well. Featuring Andy Warhol, Frank Stella, James Rosenquist, Larry Poons, David Hockney, Mark Di Suvero and many others, Rosen's film offers a provocative journey through a brash era.

NORTHWEST FILM CENTER - Whitsell Auditorium, Portland Art Museum

MAR 31 FRI 7PM, APR 1 SAT 7PM, APR 2 SUN 4:30 & 7PM

Admission: $7 General $6 PAM Members, Students, Seniors $4 Friends of the Film Center

Last week at PSU, Clementine Deliss was on hand to discuss two of her pet projects. Metronome, an ongoing printed publication, allowed Deliss to stop curating exhibitions while continuing the same kinds of critical explorations or, in her own words, to stay involved in research instead of service. For the tenth publication of Metronome, Deliss is teaming up with members of another project she initiated, Future Academy. This project, which has been three years in the running, has allowed Deliss to enter the university system in an informal way, creating a structure based on her own interests and the voluntary involvement of students rather than codified academic structures.

The next issue of Metronome, published in conjunction with Documenta 12, borrows its theme and format from the nearly thirty year old Philomath-based photocopied 'zine, "Dwelling Portably." Working closely with Oscar Tuazon and Marjorie Harlick, Deliss has been creating this issue while on location in Oregon, working from an RV and engaging in a half-assed attempt to meet the couple who runs "Dwelling Portably."

The ideas they explore are worthy of investigation—the notion of studio, risk, institutional structures, micro-savings, ecologies, translations and architecture as lifestyle. The bothersome part is their project wallows in self-imposed limitations and the futility of this project ever reaching the same level of practicality that "Dwelling Portably" achieves, which to me seems to undermine the lab-like nature of their inquiry. A few members of the crowd weren't quite convinced that "outing" the couple who runs "Dwelling Portably" to an international audience during Documenta 12 presented any interest, especially when even the small town postman, who works at the post office where the couple mails out their 'zine, claimed that he didn't know what they looked like. I was more concerned by the lack of acknowledgment about the parasitical nature of their activities, which depend on the very institutions (universities and international art venues alike) that they try to subvert. Despite my reservations, I am still curious to see what the collaboration between Metronome and Future Academy will bring. Tonight, we can see the debut of Metronome 10 for ourselves during the release party at PICA.

Metronome 10 release party • Tuesday, March 28 • 7 to 9p
PICA Resource Room • 224 NW 13th Ave. 3rd Floor • 503.242.1419

Three experimental sound art pieces! Don't miss this rare experience tonight at 9 pm at Apotheke! The field of sound art though related to visual art remains autonomous, and traces an independent history as densely complex as the history of visual art.

ResonanCity is a live multimedia performance by Sara Kolster and Derek Holzer. It has been performed live internationally, notably at the Transmediale 05 festival in Berlin. Their Portland date is part of a limited North American engagement.

Both Sara and Derek find inspiration in the history of experimental cinema and electroacoustic music, as well as in contemporary video and microsound practices, and a variety of live sources such as Photographic film and found objects are used to generate the visions and sounds.

Seth Nehil presents a new piece for 6 Speakers.

Apotheke • Tuesday • March 28 • 9 pm • $5 Cover
4605 NE 13th Ave • Portland, OR • 97211
503 • 320 • 7512

Tomorrow night, Small A Projects opens their latest exhibition, the solo show of Brooklyn-based artist Allyson Vieira. To borrow from the press release, "Vieira's work explores the formal and ideological connections between disparate historical periods including Periclean Greece, the Enlightenment, the American and French Revolutions and Minimalism. Using a palette of blue, red, and white, these works don't necessarily share a common Hellenic endpoint, but rather constellate around a common center that includes Euclid, Pericles, and Athena Polias." I couldn't have said it better myself. Also opening is a project by Portland-based Shawna Ferreira. Drop by to check out the digs and say hello to the artists.
Allyson Vieira, Works on Paper and Sculpture
Project by Shawna Ferreira, Oblivion's Everywhere Else
Opening Reception • Wednesday, March 22 • 6 to 9 pm
Small A Projects • 1430 SE Third Avenue • Tel. 503.234.7993

PSU's Monday night lecture series is on hold until early April, after the next term commences. Fortunately, for those who are disturbed by this news, there will be a special lecture/presentation this Monday, same time, same place, featuring Clementine Deliss, Marjorie Harlick and Oscar Tuazon with Harrell Fletcher and Matthew Stadler.

"Future Academy will discuss mobile working environments, local institutions, and the long-running hippie survivalist zine 'Dwelling Portably,' published in Philomath, Oregon. Living and working out of a temporary, mobile publishing and video studio in a 1999 Tioga Arrow RV, Future Academy is preparing Metronome no. 10, the first magazine to be published in conjunction with Documenta 12. The premier of Metronome no. 10 will be held at PICA next weekend.

Spanning five continents, Future Academy is a student-led investigation into the art college of the future, whereby key questions are raised with regard to the architecture of future buildings; mobility and portable working environments; the content and form of the future library and archive; and new forms of interdisciplinary collaboration between informatics and art."

What to build is more important than where to build
An artists' talk presented by Future Academy
Monday, March 20th • 7 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)

Tonight Red76 and Homeland join forces to offer a Laundry Lecture for Chicago-based artist Bonnie Fortune. Bonnie will be talking about her recent projects Free Walking, In the Weather, and introducing her latest interactive social art collaboration, Dormant. A Q & A will follow the talk. Bonnie will also be washing a load of socks and underwear, you are encouraged to bring your own laundry, too. Bonnie is in town thanks to Homeland's new artist-in-residency program.
Saturday, March 18th • 6pm
F & I U Wash • 28th SE (btw. Burnside and Ankeny)

Tonight at Holocene, local experimental filmmaker Ryan Jeffery will be screening his most recent work, Fallen. Word is the film was just completed yesterday so it's hot off the splicer. The film is part of Ethan Rose's record release party, featuring music by Rose as the score. The seven minute piece stands as a sort of modern myth or creation story, exploring the advent of technology in society. A key element of the film is a machine designed in collaboration with Kari Merkl, who actually constructed the sculpture. Between Jeffery's mastery of the moving image, Rose's aural delights and Merkl's innovative and visionary construction, the film is definitely worth a look-see.
Ethan Rose/Small Sails Vinyl Release Party featuring Ryan Jeffery and Unrecognizable Now
Holocene • 1001 SE Morrison • 8 pm • $4

Tonight's PSU Monday night lecture series will feature Frédéric Paul, writer and curator at Domaine de Kerguéhennec, a contemporary art center in Brittany, France. Paul has worked on exhibitions and publications for artists including Claude Closky, Richard Artschwager, David Shrigley and Beatriz Milhazes. This fall, the center will present a solo exhibition by Harrell Fletcher, who completed a residency there in 2005.

Monday, March 13th • 7 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA, PNCA, and Reed College

Reed College and PICA bring acclaimed performance and installation artist Marina Abramovic to Portland.

exhibition.lasso.jpg

Marina Abramovic, Balkan Erotic Epic (detail) 2005 video projection, dimensions variable

Laurie Anderson describes Abramovic's work in Bomb Magazine:

"...Marina can actually transform and direct thoughts. She understands and uses the ecstatic. And she creates transformation out of the simplest materials, featuring her own body. An intensely physical person, she combines it with the spiritual in a completely unique way."

Abramovic will give a free public lecture tonight (March 7) at 7pm at the Vollum Lecture Hall at Reed College. Seating is limited so be sure to show up early!

Steven Badgett, who comprises one half of collaborative effort Simparch, will lecture at PSU later today. Badgett has been collaborating with Matt Lynch as Simparch for about ten years, but the pair broke into international notoriety with Freebasin. A fully functional skate bowl re-created within the gallery space, Freebasin was the key piece in Deitch Project's defining skate-culture-as-art exhibition, Session the Bowl, in 2002, and has also been exhibited at the Tate and Documenta XI. Simparch has also exhibted at the 2004 Whitney Biennial, The Renaissance Society, The Wexner and InSITE.

Monday, March 6th • 7 p PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA, PNCA, and Reed College

Tonight, Vicki Lynn Wilson will activate her fantastical installation at Blackfish with a performance. The highlight of her installation, Love in the Wild, is hybrid appliance / animal sculptures. Further interactions between the natural world and the domestic sphere will take place as she enacts her performance within the white-clad space.

Performance • Saturday, March 4th, 7p
Blackfish Gallery • 420 NW Ninth Ave • 503.224.2634

Heaven & Earth • Jim Lommasson • photography Lommasson has traveled from Churches to Museums, artists' studios, outdoor revivals, and beyond in search of the various shapes Faith takes in our contemporary environment. New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny Street PDX 97214 • 503-231-8294. Opening Reception: March 3. Show ends March 26, 2006. Read on...

This Sunday, Kaja Silverman's lecture will continue the Critical Voices series at the Portland Art Museum. Programmed in conjunction with the opening of the Jubitz last fall, this series is bringing a list of notable thinkers to town, including critic Arthur Danto last fall and MoMA curator John Elderfield next week. A film and rhetoric studies professor at Berkeley, Silverman has written extensively on feminist theory, psychoanalysis, film theory, sexuality and time-based visual art. She is working on two books, including one on photography that provides the starting point for her lecture, entitled Photography as a Tool for Art in the 20th Century and Beyond.

Advanced reservations are recommended: 503.226.0973

Lecture •Sunday, March 5th • 2 p Whitsell Auditorium • Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park Ave • 503.226.0973
Admission: $15 General (includes entry into exhibitions), Free for members

Windmill AK47 w-clogs, Charles Kraft at Gallery 114

NCECA 2006
Explorations and Navigations: The Resonance of Place
If it seems as though there is an overwhelming amount of ceramic art in the galleries across town this month, it's because NCECA is here. Portland is hosting the 4oth Annual Conference for the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA). The Oregon Convention Center will be the central location for demonstrations, educational panels, lectures, performances, panels, and lots and lots of clay. Aside from the city being flooded with an anticipated 4,000+ ceramic enthusiasts, over 100 galleries, museums, and exhibition spaces will be featuring ceramic work throughout March. The conference runs from March 8-11 and many galleries have First Thursday openings prior to the event. For a complete listing of NCECA exhibitions, click here. Read on...

It's nearly time for Reed Arts Week, an annual frenzy of activity that descends upon Reed's campus in SE. This year, the student-organized festival has taken as its central theme the notion of ego, manifesting itself in everything from the alter ego of Paul D. Miller operating under his performance moniker, DJ Spooky, to the mutable sense of self in the performance art of Eleanor Antin. Some R.A.W. events that might be of interest to PORT readers:

Kick off the week with a dancepod party, a collaborative project masterminded by painter Marty Schnapf that "begins as a conventional art exhibit and devolves into an uninhibited and live webcast dance party."
"Dance party/postmodern dance performance" • Wednesday, March 1st • 9 pm – midnight
Student Union • $3 suggested donation for the public, free to the Reed community

On Friday, Eleanor Antin will discuss her work as a performance artist, creating a cast of historically-based identities through which she delves into issues relevant to the present. Lecture • Friday, March 3rd • 6 pm
Vollum Lecture Hall • $7 general, $5 students, free to the Reed community

If you missed Paul D. Miller's lecture during the PICA's tba Noontime Chats, you missed the best part of his appearance at the festival. Happily, Miller is back to present another iteration of "Rhythm Science," teasing out the parallels between art and hip hop in an engaging and articulate lecture.
Lecture • Saturday, March 4th • 3:30 pm
Kaul Auditorium • $10 general, free to the Reed community (limited seating)

The photographs of Elena Dorfman explore both the banal and erotic lives of RealDolls and their owners in the mostly suburban environments they inhabit. While Dorfman's photos lure the viewer with images of fetishistic attachments normally hidden behind closed doors, her close attention to light and subtle compositions allow her to reach beyond pure shock value, lending the scenes a rather surprising tenderness and humanity.
Slide lecture • Sunday, March 5th • 2 pm
Vollum Lecture Hall • Free and open to the public

Nan Curtis' Pregnancy Peep Show

In addition, projects by Nan Curtis, Paige Saez, Chas Bowie and Reed students will be on display. If you're a Reed student, things get even better, with workshops lead by Chas Bowie, Eleanor Antin and Harrell Fletcher taking place throughout the week. Check the R.A.W. 2006 website for a complete schedule.

Reed Arts Week – Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd
Tickets: 503.777.7758

A few years ago Edie came to Portland on a residency and proceeded to raise hell. She showed in the extinct but excellent Field Gallery at the Everett Station Lofts, dressed up as Miss America while strolling down Burnside and livened things up at many of the 2Girls performance festivals. Then she left for San Francisco and promptly landed herself in the very prestigious Bay Area Now triennial (we'd like the upcoming Oregon Biennial to be as relevant). Now, because Portland consistently steals a lot of SF's best talent (Chris Johannson, Harrell Fletcher, Patrick Rock, Brendan Clenaghen and Jesse Hayward etc.) she's back.

Edie Tsong's recent projects have utilized fax, video, teleconference, performance, and plasticene to explore identity as an interactive group project. She has performed collaboratively with Pete Kuzov in Portland's enterActive Language Festival in 2002, 2003, and 2004.

Tsong has exhibited and lectured nationally. She has recently shown at the Mattress Factory, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, and Atlanta Center for Contemporary Art. Tsong lives and works in Portland, OR.

Monday, February 27th • 7 pm
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA, PNCA, and Reed College

Red 76's Ghosttown, U.S.A., which descended upon Portland in January, is now going to New York City. As part of Reshuffle: Notions of an Itinerant Museum—organized by students at Bard's Center for Curatorial Studies at Art in General—Red 76 questions the differences between one's experience within the white box versus one's experiences on the streets and in the cities. Beginning today and continuing through March 2, Red 76 will enact projects throughout the five boroughs, creating the kinds of ephemeral structures and social encounters that define many of Red 76's projects. They will kick off Ghosttown's NYC iteration by a DJ Parasite performance tonight in Manhattan and continue the project throughout the week with "Sounds of Ghosttown," playing an NPR broadcast recorded on-site at the Ghosttown Clothing Exchange in Portland last January; a lecture by Kris Soden exposing the historical underbelly of Washington Square Arch; an Incident Report from the steps of the Met, relayed via cell phone by Stephanie Snyder; a Memory Dinner in Brooklyn reliving Hope Hilton's gastronomical roots in the South; and a clothing exchange at an undisclosed location in Manhattan.

A complete schedule of events is posted on Red 76's website. A reception for Reshuffle, which also includes work by Portlander Harrell Fletcher, will take place tonght at Art in General, 79 Walker Street, from 6-8 pm.

Guillermo Gómez-Peña will give Portland audiences a dose of his classic genre-busting, politically potent performance this Thursday at PNCA. A MacArthur fellow and longtime performance artist, Mexico-City–born Gómez-Peña brings to the forefront issues of globalization, immigration, identity politics, cyber culture and post-colonial theory in a mix of video, audio, spoken word and performance. Portland is no stranger to Gómez-Peña's breed of performance. He has been through town before and was part of Reed's Film Series exhibition in 2002. He also shares a close affinity with the work of fellow performance artist Coco Fusco, who presented a PICA-commissioned work dealing with many of the same themes for the first tba festival. In 1992, Fusco and Gómez-Peña collaborated on a notorious performance, which involved the pair posing as "undiscovered" and caged Amerindians from a fictitious island, originating at the Walker and continuing to both the Sydney and Whitney Biennials.

Since 9-11, Gómez-Peña has been coming to terms with a political and culture climate increasingly restrained by conservatism and fear, and much of his most radical work, often done in collaboration with his troupe La Pocha Nostra, is now being performed outside of the United States. In a recently published statement, Gómez-Peña made a frank declaration of his decision to perform his more "extreme" works outside US borders, finding a last refuge to confront the most provocative issues in his solo, spoken word performances, "since language in the contemporary USA appears to be less dangerous than live art." In Thursday's performance, Mexterminator vs. the Global Predator, Gomez-Pena will present a solo performance, unleashing "demons, both personal and political, and...[inviting] them onstage for a mano-a-mano, from which no one will emerge unscathed."

Thursday, February 23 • 7 p • Free
Pacific Northwest College of Art • 1241 NW Johnson • Tel 503.223.2654

This performance is the Oregon College of Art & Craft 2006 Jamison Lecture and is part of Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery's Excellence is Craft Lecture Series. Co-presented with 2 Gyrlz Performative Arts and Pacific Northwest College of Art.

Arnold J. Kemp, Untitled (Played Twice series), 2001

This week, Harrell Fletcher welcomes Arnold J. Kemp, artist, writer and former associate curator at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. During his 10 year stint at YBCA, Kemp was involved in curating the first three Bay Area Now shows, Rapper's Delight, and solo shows by Laylah Ali, Tracey Moffat and Mark Dion. His own work has been shown at the Studio Museum in Harlem, The Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts and Chisenhale Gallery. Kemp is represented in permanent collections at the Met and the Studio Museum. From PICA's press release: "Kemp is currently at work on several projects including a series of paintings and a radio-film inspired by Dada and what curator Thelma Golden has called the 'post-black.'"

Monday, February 20th • 7 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA, PNCA, and Reed College

Courtney Booker, Freelance Animator and figurative painter has an opening of new work tonight (!) from 6-10 pm at the Homestar Cafe. Booker's expressive linear approach to the figure is rooted in Kathe Kollwitz, Egon Schiele, and Alice Neel, but her animation work and hip-hop flava bring a new personal dimension beyond simple emulation of the masters of figurative expression. Booker has shown extensively in the San Francisco area.

*With Music by Casey Neill!*

Courtney Booker • Opening • Friday, Feb. 17th (today) • 6-10 pm • Homestar Cafe • 4747 SE Hawthorne •

Josh Mannis, Obsessed By Cruelty (video still)

On Thursday, Chicago artist Josh Mannis, who had the best work in small A project's inaugeral show, will be on hand for the opening of Iron Eagle, a solo exhibition featuring new video and large, gloriously Bavarian photo collages. "Mannis' videos and photo montages are populated by characterizations and dramatizations drawn from the canons of science fiction, PBS, drug culture, National Geographic, cultism, astronomy, soft-core pornography, the evil mysticisms of rock and roll and of course, Modernism."

Opening Reception • Thursday, February 16 • 6 to 9 p
Small A Projects • 1430 SE Third Ave • Tel 503.234.7993

Dan Attoe, Slayer on Ice

Dan Attoe will be this week's Monday night guest. Born in Washington and, according to his Chicago gallery, based in Portland, Attoe is a painter who makes pseudo-narrative work, often with a Lynchian eerieness and an obsession for pine trees, lonely landscapes, woodsy interiors and tents, attesting to his Pacific Northwest origins. If he is indeed based here in town, he keep a low profile, probably because he's busy showing work at Peres Projects (LA), John Connelly Presents (NYC), Hiromi Yoshii (Tokyo) and Vilma Gold (London). Read a nice interview here or just show up Monday evening to hear for yourself.

Monday, February 13th • 7 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA, PNCA, and Reed College

Seamus Heffernan, the student champion of last year's Comics Battle at PNCA, now faces a titanic onslaught not from another student, but from the faculty! Daniel Duford will challenge Heffernan for his title at 12:30 on Valentine's Day, a day that will live on forever in infamy. Both contenders are given specific themes they must address while rapidly improvising narrative, dialogue and imagery in sequential art form. Kind of like Iron Chef, only with comics. The winner is determined by audience applause and will henceforth be known as: Omniversal Intergalactic Sequential Art Overlord, as well as recieving a substantial prize. That is of course, until next year, when a new challenger must arise! With commentary and trash talk by your MC, last year's challenger, Ryan Alexander-Tanner. The vitriolic ink slinging has already begun, with spontaneous comics throw downs appearing mysteriously over night...

This one's for all the marbles, folks!
Will Seamus (the incumbent) defend his title from the onslaught of Earth Elemental Daniel Duford?
Will a lone student comic artist topple the faculty Goliath (once and for all)?
SEE the dreadful collision of Behemoth and Fledgling Hero!
FEEL the shockwaves ripple outward from the event horizon of burning graphite and splattering ink!
HEAR lightning split the sky as nature itself recoils from the spiritual fission of this fearsome melee!
SCREAM as the very foundations tremble beneath the feet of these sequential art juggernauts!
FLEE IN TERROR as Seamus and Duford recode the outside of PNCA so that in place of the Rimbaud poem, the visual encryption henceforth reads "ITS CLOBBERIN' TIME!!!!"
um... maybe I went a little too far with that last one.... so, um... you get the general idea, right?

Daniel Duford vs Seamus Heffernan • Comic Battle Title Match
Tuesday, February 14th • 12:30 to 1:30 pm
Swigert Commons • PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson St. • Portland, OR • 97209 • 503•226•4391 • www.pnca.edu

Design: Shawna Ferreira

A modern symposium, replete with food, drink, and music, exploring the spatial logic of late capitalism as expressed in art, logging, and dancing...
Inspired by the spatial cacophanies, utopian visions, and intensive labors found in the Cooley Gallery's NEW TRAJECTORIES 1: relocations exhibition.

Psychedelic Logging begins at 6 pm, in the Reed library with the viewing of Case Works 9: The Valentine Exchange, and New Trajectories I , then moves to the Reed student union at 7 pm for live performances by The Watery Graves and We Two and the Universe.

Love poem recitation by Heather Watkins, curator of The Valentine Exchange; and a lecture on the history of logging by Doug Sackman historian at the University of Puget Sound. The event includes mind bending archival films of high-lead logging, and interstitial ephemera by Matthew Stadler accompanied by a slide exhibition curated by Stephanie Snyder.
Logger's stew prepared by Mickey Murch '06; Craft-in by Reed art collective Vitamin A.

Psychedelic Logging is organized by Stephanie Snyder and Matthew Stadler. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, visit Reed's public events website,REED, or call the events line, 503/777-7755.

Saturday • February 11 • 2006
Reed College • Portland • Oregon • 6 pm
Hauser Memorial Library + Cooley Gallery • 7 pm Reed Student Union
Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd • Portland.

The art vs. craft debate has been perpetuated in part because of the lack of analytic and critical thought devoted to craft, leading to an ambiguity that leaves crafts at the margin of art discourse. No doubt a DIY-inspired breed of craft has given new mainstream visibility for craft in the early 21st century by a generation of 20 and 30-somethings who are involved in knitting sessions and eschewing big business in favor of the handmade. But there's much more to it than that. Paula Owen, writer and curator at the Southwest School of Art and Craft in San Antonio is calling for a concerted effort on behalf of the craft community to establish a critical framework for craft. In a recent essay, she cites Roberta Smith's writings in 1999 calling for the "rematerialization" of art to provide a counterpoint to the emphasis on non-material practice in art since Conceptual art took root. Owen also sees Dave Hickey's observation and championing of a more material-based practice at UNLV as a key sign of the return to the tactile. It's clear that without a more sharply defined critical discourse artists like Teresita Fernandez—recent MacArthur winner who works with textile, glass and bamboo—will continue to be more readily compared to Robert Irwin than contextualized within in the craft lineage. Likewise, without such discourse, thousands of craft artists will continue to work in relative anonymity at the margins of the dominant art practice. Hear more from Owen on the craft establishment at tonight during her lecture, given as part of Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery's Excellence in Craft Lecture Series.

Lecture • Wednesday, February 8 • 7 p
Pacific Northwest College of Art • 1241 NW Johnson • Tel. 503.223.2654

Yan Chung-Hsien, Still from Knitting Tree

Last week, graciously, the mic was fixed and Jo Jackson gave us yet another invigorating Monday night lecture - especially invigorating for Jo, since she spent lots of time chasing her mop of a dog as he raced down the aisle, barking dutifully at latecomers. In all seriousness, it was yet another reminder of how Portland's art scene is benefiting from the recent influx of artists who are moving here for livability, afford ability, politics and a host of other good things about this city.

This week, Harrell Fletcher has invited Taiwanese artist Yan Chung-Hsien. I don't know anything about this artist, other than a quick visit to his website [warning: be aware there are lots of persistent pop-ups on his site] and I'm really intrigued. Chung-Hsien is a professor of Architecture design in Taipei, has authored over a dozen books and recently, has completed several high-profile international residencies at places including Art Omni and PS1. He creates odd, soft sculptures that sometimes take on architectural implications, other times seem like props from a post-apocalyptic sci-fi movie, and yet other times are employed as costumes. Several of his films involve performances using these costumes in ritualized performances, such as the scene in Knitting Tree, in which a group of figures in soft white costumes with long, tentacle-like appendages, are seen from an aerial view in an elaborate formation. I think this is yet another lecture you don't want to miss.

Monday, February 5th • 7 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA, PNCA, and Reed College

Group Show • Walter's Daydream • Drawings and Paintings This exhibit features new work by A.J. Purdy, Andy Rementer, Andy Dixon, Andrew Dick, and Justin B. Williams. The artists seek to represent the memories, fantasies, dreams, fears, desires, and ideas in a stream-of-consciousness creation they call Walter.
Renowned Gallery • 811 East Burnside #111 • Tel. 503.807.8128
Opening Reception Friday February 3, 2006, 6-9pm Show closes February 28, 2006

more....

Patrick Rock • I think there might have been some kind of mistake... • Interactive Installation
Some blond guy who also blogs for PORT is drooling over this internationally-experienced, native Oregonian and current PNCA Intermedia Artist in Residence's work because he had hoped Rock's installation, Cool, would be in his recent Inertia group show. The Styrofoam coffin was in Germany at the time. Now you have a chance to see what all the fuss is about!
Opening Reception • Thursday February 2, 6-9pm • Closes Feb 28
Interactive Media Arts Gallery, PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson Street • Tel. 503.226.4391

more...

Last week, hordes showed up to hear Chris Johanson narrate his life's work on a trippy vintage sound system. This week, let's hope they've fixed the mic in time for Johanson's wife and sometimes collaborator, Jo Jackson, who will be this week's PSU MFA Monday night lecture series guest. Even though they work so closely and both emerged out of the SF scene of the late 90s/early 2000s, they've both held on to their own distinctive styles. As Johanson reminisces in a long interview with the couple in the latest ANP Quarterly magazine, "...her work, I didn't get it immediately."

Monday, January 30 • 7 p
PSU 5th Avenue Cinema • 510 SW Hall St. Room 92 (on the corner of 5th & Hall)
Sponsored in part by PICA

Richard Prince, Untitled (Publicity)

In 2005, Reed's Cooley Gallery filled the gap in Portland's contemporary art programming that PICA left with the discontinuation of its ongoing exhibition program and that the Portland Art Museum is only beginning to address with its excellent new Meigs endowment programming. The Cooley will not slow down in 2006, beginning the year with a major two-part exhibition of work from the Ovitz Family Collection, opening on Thursday. Jeff's rundown of hotly anticipated art exhibitions and events can tell you why Ovitz has positioned himself as a major collector. But his position as a major collector should be obvious just by looking at the artist list for New Trajectories I: Relocations. Artists include jokester Richard Prince, recent MacArthur fellow Julie Mehretu, Stefan Thiel, Cosima Von Bonin and Idris Khan.

If you're looking for something to do before the opening, NYU professor Jonathan Brown will be lecturing on another noted collector - okay, a seventeenth century collector - Philip IV of Spain. Co-sponsored by the Robert Lehman Foundation.

Opening Reception • New Trajectories I: Relocations • Thursday, January 26 • 6:30 p
Cooley Art Gallery, Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd • Tel 503.777.7790

Lecture: Philip IV of Spain, the Greatest Picture Collector of the Seventeenth Century • Thursday, January 26 • 4:30 p
Reed College, Psychology Auditorium • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd (closest parking: East lot)

Photo: Richard Prince, Untitled (Publicity), 2001
Double-sided frame with stand, Publicity photograph with handwritten jokes, 33.5 x 27 in., Ovitz Family Collection

Chris Johanson is Portland's top living international artist but of course he's here because it is a great place to live and work, especially if you follow your own iconoclastic drumbeat.

He will present his work as part of the PSU MFA Monday Night Lecture Series
The public is invited and it's free!

Monday, January 23rd, 7:00pm 5th Avenue Cinema Room 92 510 SW Hall St.
(on the corner of SW 5TH & Hall on the PSU Campus)
Sponsored in part by PICA

Nina Jun

One thing that curator Matilda McQuaid made clear during her lecture at W + K several months ago on her recent exhibition of industrial textile design at Cooper-Hewitt, is that industry is far ahead of art in pushing the material limits of a medium. The newest exhibition at Lewis & Clark College's Hoffman Gallery touches on the use of technology in ceramics, another media whose high-tech industrial applications rarely enter the realm of art. Though one could easily pull together a show of industrial ceramic products analogous to McQuaid's Extreme Textiles, L&C curator Linda Tesner has focused instead on how ceramic artists incorporate technology within their practice. The majority of artists in the show are relatively unknown, but the list includes work by Richard Notkin, whose post-apocalyptic wall tiles can be seen in PAM's new wing. There will also be work by Garth Johnson, who writes a very good crafty culture/design blog and makes work that perverts traditional ceramic ware, using the same high-low clash exploited by 2003 Turner prize winner and transvestite ceramist Grayson Perry.

A quick web search on the other artists leads me to believe that I won't be seeing much influence from the kinds of industrial materials that I find so intriguing and full of potential. Regardless, the exhibition brings up some interesting questions about how technology is advancing even what we consider the most elemental of materials and art practices. In the realm of art, where the notion of progress seems to be merely a Modernist fantasy, it's interesting to consider how technology still carries an aura of progress and advancement.

The New Utilitarian: Examining Our Place on the Motherboard of Ceramics
Opening Reception • Thursday, January 19 • 5 to 7p
Lewis & Clark College Hoffman Gallery• 0615 SW Palatine Hill Road • Tel. 503.768.7687

This Thursday marks the grand opening of Marilyn Murdoch's new gallery, Guestroom. Marilyn has long been a supporter of the Portland arts community as an art lover, collector and the matron of Katayama framing. On Thursday, she sets sail as a gallerist with an innovative new space. Guestroom is thus named because each month will be guest curated, offering a constantly rotating and evolving collection of artwork from local and national artists, ranging from emerging to established. Housed in the Wonder Ballroom alongside Mark Woolley's space, Guestroom promises a dynamic format for art exhibition. On Thursday, she opens her first show, Selections from Sketchbooks by Ted Katz, followed on Sunday by an artists' chat covering Katz' 50-years of sketching people, animal and places.
Grand Opening • Thursday, January 12 • 6 to 9 p
Artist Talk • Sunday, January 15 • 2 to 4p
Guestroom • 128 NE Russell • Tel. 503.284.8378

Also on Thursday, Local 35 continues their tradition of Second Thursday openings for the Sk8 set with new paintings by Justin Fry. If you've got the arting bug, drop by to see what they're up to. There will likely be a DJ, drinks and a fashionable crowd.
Opening Reception • Thursday, January 12 • 7 to 9p
Local 35 • 3556 SE Hawthorne Blvd • Tel. 503.963.8200

Belgian artist Anne Daems will speak tonight, marking the first in a series of Monday night lectures presented by PSU's MFA program. Daems work ranges from spare, pseudo-narrative drawings with long, poetic titles (think Ty Ennis) to serial photographs that poignantly reveal the strangeness of mundane social behavior and posturing. A recent series of street photographs shows women wearing fur coats, ring-laden fingers clutching luxury goods shopping bags, reminiscent Jessica Craig-Martin's severely-cropped photographs of the rich and famous.

Monday, January 9 • 7 p
PSU Art Building • 2000 SW 5th Ave Room 200

A raucous First Thursday is followed by some good shows in the Central Eastside Industrial District.

The CEID arts district is making some bold expansions with a new gallery opening this month on Division. 12X16 Gallery celebrates their grand opening tonight, unveiling their new space on Division. The inaugural show includes a smattering of collage, photography, mixed media and painting from Cary W. Doucette, Luke Dolkas, C.W. Doucette, Maureen Herndon, Israel Hughes, Eunice Parsons, Lee Ann Slawson, and Edward Story.
Grand Opening • Friday, January 6, 6 to 9 p & Sunday, January 8, noon to 6p
12X16 gallery • 1216 SE Division • Tel. 503.239.4766

For the last 3 years Newspace has been offering great photographic exhibitions, studio space and instruction thanks to volunteers who work in trade for darkroom time. Tonight they showcase the artistic skills of this upstanding crew with a Volunteer Group Show including the belevalent and talented Faulkner Short, Ran Ben, Laura Valenti, Joshua Dommermuth, Phillip Goetzinger, Sika Stanton, Valerie Dolan, Ben Wizansky and Lyla Emery Reno. Artists will be in attendance for the reception.
Opening Reception • Friday January 6th • 7 to 11p
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th Ave • Tel. 503.963.1935

Small A Projects opens a solo exhibition from Michael Bise, Joey and Melissa. "Bise makes narrative drawings that depict an uncanny, yet stereotypical suburbia and a fetishistic attachment to the objects, textures and patterns of that mundane setting." These graphite on paper drawings dramatize the relationship of three characters with an aesthetic that seems to have jumped right off the kraft paper book cover of a high school math book. The artist will be present for the opening and giving a gallery talk during the reception.
Opening Reception • Friday, January 6 • 6 to 9 p
Artist’s Talk • 8 pm
Small A Projects • 1430 SE Third Ave • Tel 503.234.7993

Victoria Haven @ PDX

Well, as a New Year's treat, I have the First Thursday listing up ahead of time (who-hoo!) and have included every single opening I received a press release for. Usually, I comb through the announcements folders and pick some favs but this month, I'm pulling out all the stops. There's lots going on so you've got no excuse to sit at home. And don't forget to save room for First Friday!

Read on for complete listings...

Tonight at Small A Projects, Joe Sola discusses his work. Sola is a L.A. based artist who uses images, structures, and spectacles from Hollywood films to create artwork in film, video, performance and watercolor. For several years, Sola has been mining the history of Hollywood films as a source for imagery of masculinity and power. Tonight he talks onhis past and present work and his upcoming solo projects at the Atlanta College of Art Gallery and the Wexner. There will even be comfortable seating as well as cookies and delicious beverages!

Grin and Bear It, Joe Sola discusses his work
Tuesday, December 20th • 8p
Small A Projects •1430 SE Third Ave

Everyone's favorite frenchie crêperie celebrates its 5th Anniversary with much fanfare including an anniversary group show featuring art stars Wesley Younie, Caitlin Troutman, Natascha Snellman, John Roos, Corrina Repp, Marne Lucas, Cecilia Hallinan, Ty Ennis, Bruce Conkle and John Brodie. Le Happy always has great stuff hanging on their red walls. I even scouted an artist for the gallery there myself once. Come out for the opening party on Sunday. As an added bonus, all Nutella crêpes are 50% off during the entire month of December! We ♥ Le Happy.
Bon anniversaire!

Opening Reception • December 18, 6 to 9p
Le Happy • 1011 Northwest 16th Avenue • Tel. 503.226.1258

Tomiko Jones @ Newspace

Newspace strays from the pack this month with a mid-month opening. Tomiko Jones presents Landscapes, a reinterpretation of the female gaze, "destabiliz[ing] the viewer momentarily by placing them in an unexpected private view in what might normally be portrayed as a public neutral view". These luscious b/w landscapes and portraits are executed with a formal and technical precision and some unexpected subject matter.
Opening Reception • Friday, December 9 • 7 to 10p • *artist will be in attendance
Artist Lecture and Workshop • Saturday, December 10 • 1 to 4 p • $35
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th Ave.• Tel. 503.963.1935

Radius Studio holds over their 2nd Annual Holiday Studio Sale for two more weekends "featuring an eclectic assortment of unique hand-crafted gifts from Radius Studio artists and Portland community artisans." Including pottery, sculptural ceramics, paintings, prints and more! Priced between $1 and $50, there is something for everyone...
Saturday & Sunday, December 10 & 11 • 12p to 5p
Saturday & Sunday, December 17 & 18 • 12p to 5p
Radius Studio • 2515 SE 22nd Ave (at Division) • Tel. 503.231.4145

And, P.S., I don't have anything against PAC. I didn't remember their benefit last night because they didn't send me a press release. To be considered for the PORT Openings & Events listings, send all press releases to calendar@portlandart.net at least 2 weeks prior.

Ultra qualifies as one of my favorite bloggy pleasures. This week, they're full of news about lots of great holiday sales going on around town, including the Winter Art Bazaar tonight at Homestar and the official O.G. PDX Handmade Bazaar this weekend at the Wonder Ballroom. If you'd like to give the gift of handcrafted delights this season, you can also drop by Portland's many shops featuring handmade/locally made goods including Seaplane, Motel, Relish, Reading Frenzy, Memoir and more. Keep checking Ultra for other seasonal sales for a happy handmade holiday!

Tomorrow night, the Guild Theater hosts Take it EZ, a collection of animation and video works by innovative local artists, orchestrated by Jeffrey Kriksciun. Zach Reno, Hooliganship, WYLDFILE (E*Rock and Paperrad), Ryan Alexander-Tanner, and Eliza Fernand sweep the screen with pieces ranging from hand-drawn to computer driven to experimental.
Wednesday, December 7th • 7p • $3
Guild Theater • 829 SW 9th Ave

Tonight you can throw one back for a good cause. The Low Brow Lounge is opening their bar to benefit PICA. For one night only, half of every beverage sold will benefit PICA's artistic programming. The benefit runs all night from 3p to 2:30a. From 4:30 to 11p, there will be PICA memberships and merch for sale, with a chance to win two Flex Passes for TBA:06 and a showcase of short films selected by the PICA staff. Grab a frosty one for a good cause!
Monday, December 5 • All night long
PICA @ the Low Brow Lounge • 1036 NW Hoyt Street

Marne Lucas at Homestar

The Eastside wraps up a drippy week with a strong showing from the young ones.

In what must be a bona fide East Burnside art revival, Moshi Moshi opens next to Denwave (formerly Fix) and Renowned with Rainbow Connection, a group show featuring Meredith Dittmar, Guy Burwell, Tyson Summers, APAK, and Justin "Scrappers" Morrison.
Opening Reception • December 2 • 6 to9 p
Moshi Moshi • 811 E. Burnside

For Renowned’s second exhibition they present Hold Me, Please new work by Casey Watson (PDX) and Isaac Lin (PDX).
Opening Reception • December 2 • 6 to10 p • artists will be in attendance
Renowned • 811 E Burnside Suite 111 • tel. 503.445.9924

With Denwave, Renowned and Moshi Moshi are all in the same building, I am hoping they'll come up with a name for themselves as a group (something other than LoBu, please).

While you're in the 'hood, don't miss Bailey Winters' paintings and Greg Simons' multimedia installation at NAAU. Winters shoots Hi-8 and still photographs which elaborates into expressionist paintings which bear a quiet isolation.
Opening reception • December 2 • 7 to 10 p
NAAU • 922 SE Ankeny Street • tel. 503.231.8294

Marne Lucas presents Amusement, a series of color photographs from road trips and travels at Homestar. "Humorous self portraiture, an eye for the unusual and quirky use of animal figurines express a sense of discovery and playfulness she experiences while traveling." Also, in the back room, the Velour Girls Pin Up Lounge, Lucas' latest Pin Up photographs of women in a boudoir atmosphere.
Opening Reception • December 2 • 7-10p
Homestar • 4747 SE Hawthorne Blvd • tel. 503.235.0349

Bailey Winters @ NAAU

Cythia Lahti @ PDX

Lots going on tonight. We'll just have to see how the weather pans out, right now they're forcasting a winter storm. Happy Holiday arting!

Cynthia Lahti • New Found Land (New Sculptures and Drawings)
I lahve Cynthia's work. Hopefully she'll have more of those beautiful Rorschach types she's been doing recently. If I wasn't working tonight, I'd be there. Then again, maybe Jane isn't holding a reception...
PDX • 925 NW Flanders • Tel. 503.222.0063

Anna Fidler • Oblivious Peninsulas (Paintings, Collages, Film and Soundtrack)
Saw this one at the preview last night, loved it too. The colors are sublime
Pulliam Deffenbaugh Gallery • 929 NW Flanders Street • Tel. 503.228.6665

Jenene Nagy (PNCA Artist-In-Residence) • Backyard Icing (Sculpture)
Manuel Izquierdo Gallery • Pacific NW College of Art • 825 NW 13th Avenue

Hap Tivey • Leukos Transit (LED light, acrylic and painted surfaces)
Elizabeth Leach • 417 NW 9th Avenue

Four Squared (Group Show)
Small works on paper (4" x 4") by 22 young up and comers including Tauba Auerbach, Chris Duncan, Nikki McClure, Bwana Spoons, Harrison Haynes and Katherine Bovee.
Motel • NW Couch between 5th & 6th • Tel. 503.222.6699

Hear Me Roar (Group Show)
Featuring Cicci & Sulley, Jilliam Tamaki, Lesley Reppeteaux, Amunisim and Anna Cangialosi.
Compound • 107 NW 5th Ave • Tel. 503.796.2733

Wid Chambers and Abi Spring • Process (Paintings)
Chambers • 207 S.W. Pine Street

Crack Press turns ten with a retrospective at Berbati's including collaborations with Portland movers and shakers.
Berbati's Restaurant • 19 SW 2nd, Portland OR • Tel. 503.248.4579 • 7 to 10p

New Gallery Opening...
We've reported on Rake before. Tonight they're opening a permanent space in the Everett Station Lofts with a giant group show.
325 NW 6th Ave • Tel.503.750.0754 • 6 to 11p

Chris Duncan @ Motel

Make sure to stop in to PNCA's Annual Holiday Art Sale this first Thurdsay, December 1st. The sale will be going on all day from 9 am to 9 pm and also runs at the same times on Friday and Saturday.

Artwork for sale is all by PNCA artists and on Saturday a raffle will be held for two flawless Hokusai reproduction prints: The Wave and Mt. Fuji.

PNCA also features new work by Chandra Bocci, constructed with assistance from the PNCA student body. Here is a preview of the new work:

Pacific Northwest College of Art • 1241 NW Johnson •

Portland, OR, 97209 • www.pnca.edu • 503•226•4391

Will Rogan at small A projects

Here's a brief rundown of some things to do through the weekend...

Small A Projects defies the conventions of First Thursday, First Friday, Second Tuesday and what have you with an opening smack dab in the middle of the month. For her second exhibition, Gitlen presents a solo show of new work by Will Rogan entitled Getting Through. Rogan is a Bay Area artist known for his photographs and video works of “found situations” and incidental sculpture. His work is often about awe, and the incongruous conjunction of the everyday and the fantastic. In this body of work, Rogan takes as a central theme an ordinary life renderedextraordinary. Join Rogan tonight for the opening reception with a conversation with Harrell Fletcher at 8p.
Opening Reception • Thursday, November 17 • 6 to 9p
small A projects • 1430 SE Third • Tel. 503.234.7993

Tomorrow night Mark Woolley presents The Art of Tom Cramer and Music of Klaus Schulze. This evening of art and sound-scapes features Klaus Schulze, Germany’s pioneering electronic space musician, and his brand new album, Moonlake. Klaus has been exploring the outer reaches of electronic music since 1970, as co-founder of legendary space-rock bands, Ash Ra Temple and Tangerine Dream. Now, some 35 years later, is considered to be the father of, what has come to be known as "21st Century Classical Music." In addition to the new album, there will be a kaleidoscopic selection of music from Klaus’ other major works, as well as unreleased material and rare DVDs.
Friday, November 18th • 8p to 2a
Woolley @Wonder • 128 NE Russell

On Sunday, critic Arthur C. Danto speaks at the Portland Art Museum on Modern Aesthetics, The Gap Between Art and Life. From PAM's website, "Arthur Danto, Johnsonian Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University and art critic for The Nation, has been a major shaper of recent aesthetic theory. Find out how the celebrated author of The Madonna of the Future: Essays in a Pluralistic Art World, After the Death of Art, and the award-winning Encounters and Reflections: Art in the Historical Present looks at art today." Jeff says, "it will sell out."
Sunday, November 20th • 2p • $10
PAM • 1219 SW Park Ave • Tel. 503-226-0973.

On Monday, Justin Oswald talks to Eva Lake on Artstar Radio. Maybe he will release his granndiose plans post-Gallery 500...
Monday, November 21 • 5p
1450 am on your radio dial or kpsu.org

On Tuesday, NAAU offers Mona Hatoum films through Cinema Project. Over the approximate span of twenty years, Hatoum has traveled freely between performance, video, photography, drawing, sculpture and installation. Cinema Project will be screening several of Hatoum’s early video work including Changing Parts, a video inter-cutting imagery from her parents’ house with the documentation of a performance in which the artist was trapped inside a plastic walled container; and Measures of Distance, a video that focuses on Hatoum’s separation and isolation from her family in Beirut. This screening is part of a series of public events surrounding her solo show at the Cooley Memorial Art Gallery at Reed College.
Tuesday, November 22 • 7:30 p
Cinema Project @ NAAU • 922 SE Ankeny Street • Tel. 503.231.8294

Joe Macca at Marylhurst

A few things going on around town...

Tonight Michael Brophy speaks at Powell's on The Romantic Vision of Michael Brophy, a recently released book edited by Rock Hushka. The book explores how Brophy's art reassesses the historical events and decisions that shaped the American West. Brophy is best known for his quietly haunting landscape paintings addressing forest ecology and history (he is currently showing sumi-ink drawings at Laura Russo).
Wednesday, November 9th • 7:30p
Powell's City of Books • 1005 W Burnside

drawing(s)
40+ artists / 200 works
The 25th anniversary drawing show at Marylhurst that opens today. "Old heavyweights, mid career artists, and young turks." Including Henk Pander, Tad Savinar, Judy Cooke, George Johanson, Michael Brophy, DE May, Marie Watt, Linda Hutchins, Ryan Boyle, Melody Owen, and Joe Macca. While you're out there, don't miss Brad Adkins' re-enactment of Michael Bowley’s 1979 Walking in a Circle Until a Mark is Made, a 25ft dirt/crop circle on the south side of the driveway into Marylhurst.
Show runs through December 11th.
The Art Gym @ Marylhurst • 17600 Pacific Highway (Hwy. 43) • tel. 503.636.8141

Tomorrow night is On The Wall, a group art show to benefit Skaters For Portland Skateparks featuring customized Vans slip-on's and hand-painted skate decks by local up-and-comers and national talent. All monies raised from the sale of artwork will be donated to S.P.S. to aid them in their goal of free public skateparks in metro Portland. Drop by the opening for DJ’s, limited edition catalogs and posters. Work by Russ Pope, Paul Fujita, Joker, Jesse Reno, Klutch, Chad Kelco and more.
Opening reception • Thursday November 10th • 7 to 10p
Local 35 • 3556 Hawthorne Ave • Tel. 503.963.8200

Also, the SE Portland Artwalk's Call to Artists continues through Nov. 15th. Apply at seportlandartwalk.com.

If you're tiring of the same old gallery reception schtick but still love an arty party, then tonight's your night. The Eastside does First Friday with a flare, including a gallery grand opening and celebrity-graced movie night.

Across from the Jupiter Hotel, Fix has been holding down fort for the past year or so. Through some incredible magnetism and muscle, they have attracted at least 3 other young independent art-minded businesses to take up shop in the same building. Tonight, Tony Nguyen opens Renowned with Soon and Very Soon, a group show of local and national artists including Bwana Spoons (PDX), Maya Hayuk (NY), Erik Sandberg (LA), Jill Bliss (SF), and Deanne Cheuk (NY).
Grand Opening • Friday, November 4 • 6-10p
Renowned • 811 East Burnside, Suite 111

Around the corner, NAAU offers What it all Meant, the second solo exhibition by Ty Ennis. This collection of minimal drawings walks the line between irony, rebellion and social critique.
Opening Reception • Friday, November 4 • 7 to 10p
New American Art Union • 922 SE Ankeny St. • Tel. 503.231.8294

A hop, skip and jump away, Homeland takes up fort at their second (temporary) location with new
works by Scott Wayne Indiana. My interest is piqued by the promise of a 72 foot scroll stretched from pillar to pillar, "a long painting resembling the artist’s sketch book and revealing a reflective exercise of examining his own
stream of consciousness as a visual representation." There will also be a collection of smaller new works.
Opening Reception • Friday, November 4 • starting at 7p, live music at 8
Gallery Homeland • 222 SE 10th (within the Troy Building)
CHANGE OF VENUE: NOW AT WONDER BALLEROOM • 128 NE RUSSELL

A little further south at Newspace are Myron Filene and Jodi Boatman. Filene presents a series of panoramas in the form of prisms, splicing together thin slices from full panoramic shots to effect an extreme stretching of the vertical field. Boatman’s work deals with memory; her images dwell on objects or spaces that trigger personal recollections.
Opening Reception • Friday, November 4th • 7 to 10p
Newspace • 1632 SE 10th Ave. • Tel. 503.963.1935

Over at small A projects, Laurel Gitlen wraps up her inaugural exhibition All I Want is Everything with a movie night screening of Velvet Goldmine featuring a casual conversation with director Todd Haynes. Seating is limited so call the gallery to RSVP or bring your pillows to sit on the floor. Beer, soda and popcorn will be provided.
Movie Night • Friday, November 4 • 7 to 10p
small A projects • 1430 SE Third Avenue • Tel. 503.234.7993

Wrap up your Eastside Evening at Holocene with a benefit for Flight 64. Flight 64 is a non-profit co-op dedicated to providing affordable access to a press in order to nourish a new generation of artists and Portland's printmaking community. Prints will be for sale by over 30 local artists. The evening will be punctuated by a $5 raffle of prints by Chrisy Wycoff, Emily Ginsburg, and Martha Pfanshmidt. The evening will be accompanied by live music from Horsefeathers, Sexton Blake, and Blitzentrapper.
Flight 64 Benefit • Friday, November 4 • Doors at 5, Raffle at 8:45
at Holocene • 1001 SE Morrison • Free until 9, then $5 cover

There's plenty of great events going on tonight. First Thursday madness has put me a little behind on my PORT posting. Expect a complete run-down of tonight's receptions this afternoon. Hopefully by 2pm or so.

Victoria Haven at PDX

Laura Russo presents large, monochromatic drawings by Portland strong-holds Michael Brophy, Mel Katz and Lucinda Parker. Brophy takes a break from two years of focused painting offering sumi ink washes and drawings hauntingly depicting the Pacific Northwest. Katz presents charcoal drawings depicting the realized designs for his 3 dimensional works.
Opening Reception • November 3 • 5 to 8p
Laura Russo • 805 NW 21st Ave • Tel. 503.226.2754

At Pulliam Deffenbaugh, sumi ink reappaears in Jerry Iverson's Nerve Block. Iverson works with tissue paper, ink, rabbit skin glue and varnish on gessoed chip-board for a result that is as much collage as painting.
Opening Reception • November 3 • 5:30 to 8p
Pulliam Deffenbaugh • 929 NW Flanders Stree• Tel. 503.228.6665

PDX has reached a milestone. The gallery that has so long resisted First Thursday receptions finally joins the brouhaha in their new location in the heart of things on Ninth Ave. PDX christens their new space with Next a group show featuring gallery artists. It promises to be a strong showing with new works by D.E. May, Eric Stotik, Marie Watt, Joe Macca, Storm Tharp, Brad Adkins, Nick Blosser, Ellen George, Cynthia Lahti, Kevin Burrus, James Lavadour, Terry Toedtemeier, Jacques Flechemuller and more.
Opening Reception • November 3 • 6 to 8p
PDX Contemporary Art • 925 NW Flanders • Tel. 503.222.0063

Froelick presents glass sculpture by Joe Feddersen and works on paper by Sally Finch. Fedderson, a member of the Coleville Confederated Tribes (and faculty at my alma matter, go geoducks!), creates hand blown glass sculpture with traditional woven basket froms. Finch presents a collection of delicate assamblage pieces loosely based on grids, cellular substructures, printed circuit boards and book text.
Opening Reception • November 3 • 5 to 8p
Froelick • 817 SW Second Ave • Tel 503.222.1142

Motel announces the first solo exhibition of Jen Corace. In this new body of work on paper, Corace elaborates on her distinctive linear style by introducing meticulously detailed scenery to otherwise minimal compositions. This exhibition marks the most elaborate series to date from this talented up-and-comer. Corace’s precise line work, subtle use of color and restrained composition crafts a series that is remarkable for both its artistic and narrative qualities.
Opening Reception • November 3 • 6:30 to 9:30p
Motel • Located on NW Couch St, between 5th & 6th Aves • Tel. 503.222.6699

On the heels of last week's news that Gallery 500 is closing it's doors, it seems obvious that you won't want to miss this, their final First Thursday reception and what promises to be a blow-out party. Nicholas DiGenova and Troy Briggs each present new bodies of work, DiGenova with bold detailed drawings using animation techniques of cel painting and Troy Briggs' moody, minimal portraiture and landscapes. Bring flowers and tip your hats as we bid adieu to Gallery 500.
Opening Reception • November 3 • 6p till late
Gallery 500 • 420 SW Washington • Tel. 503.223.3951

Mona Hatoum at Reed

Tonight, as part of the Portland Arts & Lectures "Literary Arts" series, Charles Jencks presents a slide/lecture presentation on The Iconic Building, his new book surveying modern structures that challenge the traditional architectural monument. Jencks is a seminal theorist on architecture and postmodernism. This evening, he will discuss the work of his contemporaries Frank Gehry, Norman Foster, Peter Eisenman, Enric Miralles, Zaha Hadid, Daniel Libeskind, Renzo Piano, Will Alsop, and Rem Koolhaas. A Q&A session and book signing will follow the event.
Tuesday, November 1 • 7:30p (Doors open at 6:30)
First Congregational Church • 1126 SW Park Ave
Literary Arts • $15 General, $12 College/Senior, $10 Youth/Architecture Interns
Call 503.227.2583 for tickets

Mona Hatoum stands as one of the most important British artists of her generation. You may have seen her humorous photographs and small-scale sculptures in the project room at the Affair last month. Through the hard work of Stephanie Snyder and the Coolley Gallery, we are fortunate to have her and her work in Portland. Hatoum emerged onto the British art scene in the 1980s during the brouhaha of the YBA (Young British Artists) movement. Since that time she has been exploring the cultural dynamics of immigration, gender, and physical and psychological displacement,often using the personal space of the body and its products as a context for broader cultural and political concerns. Tomorrow night, she talks about her work, which has ranged from physically extreme public performance in her early years to more recent video, photography, and mixed media sculpture. This is one not to be missed!
Wednesday, November 2 • 7 p • Free
Vollum Lecture Hall • Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd • Tel. 503.771.1112
Hatoum's exhibition runs through December 23

Today and tomorrow, 333 Studios presents its 9th annual October Show, a group exhibition featuring new work by professional and emerging artists who work at the the multi-studio space. The event offers a rare opportunity to inhabit the studio environment in which the work was made, allowing both a glimpse into the artistic process and sources of inspiration. With its cult-like following, the October Show has become a must-attend event for Portland’s art community and beyond. Resident artists showing work include: Blair Saxon-Hill, Marty Schnapf, Una Kim, David Inkpen, Robin Hoffmeister, Stephen Hayes, Cecilia Hallinan, Gilles Foisy, Carol Ferris and John Brodie.

Saturday, October 29 • 4 to 9p
Sunday, October 30 • Noon to 4:00p
333 Studios, 333 NE Hancock Street (at MLK) • Free!

If you are vacationing in or near Istanbul this time of the year, you've got one more day to catch Two Continents and Beyond: Waterways, at the Official Independent Project of the 9th Istanbul Biennale. This project, which counts Portland-tied Paul Middendorf and Mary Mattingly as its curatorial advisors, debuted at the Venice Biennale this year and now makes a second showing. Installed on one of Istanbul’s largest ferries, Waterways sails between historic ports of the European coast and the Asian to actively engage and explore the complex dynamic inherent in the systems of politics and international exchange as it relates to environmental conservation and global warming. Over 30 artists have collaborated on the project including Portlanders David Eckard, Ryan Jeffery, Paige Saez, Stephanie Snyder and Amy Steel.
For more info, click here and here.

Ryan McGinness comes to Portland tomorrow for a PICA talk about his new exhibition on view at Deitch Projects and his recently released book installationview. In case you're somehow in the dark, McGinness has been garnering international acclaim over the past five years or so for his stylized baroque compositions crafted from an amalgam of inconographic symbols. "His graphic drawings and personal iconography are replicated, recontextualized, and materialized infinitely throughout his densely layered paintings and installations." His work is notable not just for its coneceptual thematics of language and symbolism but for its innovative marriage of art and design lexicons. McGinness has exhibited in traveling museum exhibition, Beautiful Losers and at the Greater New York exhibition at P.S. 1/MoMA. The talk will be followed by a book signing of installationview, which was released this month by Rizolli.
Thursday, October 27th • 7pm
PICA • 224 NW 13th Ave • Tel. 503.242.1419
Members $8 • General $10 • Tickets available at the door

Two Lectures this weekend to satisfy your critical cravings....

A Voice in the Crowd: The Art Exhibit and the Citizen by William Ray
Ray, Reed College Professor of French and Humanities, will present a talk on the roles that public art exhibitions and museums have played in the formation of the modern citizen, exploring "how the enjoyment of art introduced the larger public to practices of self-expression and consensus that were crucial to the development of modern citizenship and representative government." The lecture is followed by a reception in the newly restored Field Ballroom of the Mark Building. Hey, why not?
Friday, October 21 • 7p • Free
The Whitsell Auditorium • Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park Ave

African American Vernacular Art: A Secret Language, A Hidden Tradition by William Arnett
Arnett will lecture on the often-overlooked aesthetic traditions of Black art in the American South with particular attention to the Quilts of Gee’s Bend, which demonstrate a sophisticated color play evocative of 20th century abstract painters. Quilters Mary Lee Bendolph and Louisiana Bendolph will be in attendance. The original quilts were exhibited at Liz Leach last June.
Saturday, October 22 • 6p • Free
Kaul Auditorium • Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd
Park in the West Parking lot, off Botsford Drive, via SE 28th Avenue

A couple of months ago I attended an under-publicized screening of films made by 10 up-and-coming artists (many with no filmmaking experience) on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of Super-8 film. These short films were beautiful, humorous, chaotic, experimental and unexpected. This Thursday, the Northwest Film Center offers an encore presentation for those of you who missed the first event. Included in the program are Ryan Boyle, Zachary Reno, Sean Healey and Andrea U-Ren, Chris Johanson, Chris Larson, Philip Cooper, Matt McCormick, Morgan Currie and Melody Owen. The films will be accompanied by an original score by Tara Jane O'Neill recorded live at the initial screening.
Thursday, October 20th • 7pm
Guild Theatre • 829 SW 9th Ave.

Today and tomorrow mark the last two days for free admission to the Art Museum. Your best bet is to pick your free tickets up at Fred Meyer but you can also score some at the door. And, if you're wanting to know more about the collection, architecture, and the long-term plan for the New Wing, one of the museum's most contentious figures, Bruce Guenther (the Museum's Chief Curator and Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art) will be giving a lecture tomorrow on The Vision Behind the Center for Modern and Contemporary Art.
Sunday, October 16th • 2p
Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park Ave • $10

Tonight, if you're looking for an opportunity to officially usher in fall (as if the wind and rain weren't enough), the Guild Theater presents Murnau's Nosferatu with live musical accompanyment by Boston's Devil Music Ensemble.
Saturday, October 15th •7:30p
$10 general • $ 8 members & students
Guild Theatre • 829 SW 9th Ave.

Image (above): one of my favorite surprises in the new collection.

Don't let this mid-month opening slip by you. TJ Norris opens Nucleo tonight at Chambers, the second in a tri-part series of installations entitled tribryd . The artist explains, "It is the centerpiece of the series and as such acts as a balancing point. The work includes photographic imagery (or "evidence"). The images were found in mostly industrial and abandoned areas of cities in the Pacific Northwest, New England and Montreal. These images have gone through many manifestations to end up in a spherical state, representing a sort of zen center, by editing the edges of my own perception (my peripheral vision), and in a way mimicking the camera's lens."

Opening recepetion tonight • 5:30 to 8:30p • Through November 26
Chambers • 207 SW Pine St No 102

Barb Choit at small A projects

Well, there were a few changes and missteps last night and turns out Erwin Wurm isn't at Liz Leach this month after all and PDX didn't debut their new space yet, but all in good time. Sorry for any confusion or misdirection. Eight days of art madness is winding down tonight in the Central Eastside Industrial District with three openings and one tailgate party.

My pick of the evening is the housewarming party at Laurel Gitlen's small A projects. She kicks of her new digs with All I Want is Everything a group show celebrating everything rock 'n roll. The reception starts at 6p and at 8p there's a free screening of Heavy Metal Parking Lot, a cult classic that chronicles a day in the life outside a Judas Priest concert circa 1986. There will be a tailgate party throughout the evening with hot dogs and libations. Be there or be, well, wussy.
small A projects • 1430 SE Third Ave • Tel. 503.234.7993

Newspace shows Station to Station by Lisa Gidley (PDX). The exhibition maps NYC through a collection of photographs shot within one block of the Metro stations, 443 in total. A nice homage to public transit and the Big Apple.
Opening Reception • 7 to 10p
Newspace • 1632 SE 10th Ave • Tel. 503.963.1935

At NAAU Arcy Douglass presents Panta Rhei, a bold series which negotiates the line between representation and abstraction.
Opening Reception • 7 to 10p
NAAU • 922 SE Ankeny Street • Tel. 503.231.8294

After a last minute relocation, Homeland debuts tonight in the Hall Gallery. I can't seem to find the press release but I think the show is still Zak Margolis, Charles Moss and Amy Steel. I'm guessing from 6 to 9p or 7 to 10p, something in that range.
Gallery Homeland @ The Hall Gallery • 630 SE Third Avenue

* Don't forget, only one more weekend of Fresh Trouble. Saturday and Sunday, noon to 5p. 4246 SE Belmont.

Robert Yoder at Froelick

First the Affair, then the Museum wing and now, don't forget, First Thursday! This month offers the best line-up of shows I've seen since PORT launched. Things have been so busy in gallery land, I've hardly had a wink of sleep though, so this month's post is a list of top picks (with the gallery's name as a link to their site where you can get more info including address and reception times). See you all tonight!

• Bernd and Hilla Becher at the brand new Pulliam Deffenbaugh space
• Masao Yamamoto at the brand new PDX space
• Robert Yoder at Froelick Gallery
• Erwin Wurm at Liz Leach
• Megan Whitmarsh at Motel
• Tom Cramer x 2 at Mark Woolley East and Mark Woolley West
• Gregory Grenon at Laura Russo
• T.J. Norris at Chambers

• Plus, the launch party for Fake Your Own Death, a new art magazine with Issue 1 featuring Ryan Jacob Smith, Jessie Rose Vala, Emily Counts, Nathan McKee and more, at Valentine's (232 SW Ankeny).

Critter, Vanessa Renwick's experimental documentary about the reintroduction of grey wolves into the West, has been several years in the making and, well, you'll just have to wait a little bit longer. But luckily, you can help speed along the creative process by attending a special benefit screening on Wednesday, where Renwick and partner in crime/art/life Bill Daniel will be on hand to present two new documentries based on their shared and ongoing obsessions with trains, American folkloric mythology and graffiti.Who is Bozo Texino? is described as the "culmination of Daniel's twenty-plus year investigation into the century-old folkloric practice of boxcar graffiti." Renwick will premiere a film that documents the man behind Portland's Lovejoy Columns, Greek immigrant and rail worker Tom Stefopoulos. Renwick will also debut a new short, Cascadia Terminal, with a score by Tara Jane O'Neil.

Wednesday, September 28 • 7:30p
Presented by Cinema Project • Hollywood Theatre • 4122 NE Sandy Blvd.
Sliding scale $6-$25

Friday at PNCA the Adachi Institute of Woodcut Print in association with the Japan Foundation gave a crowd of spectators a startling insight into the process of a master.

The Adachi Institute continues the Ukiyo-e hand made print tradition. The mass production and circulation of woodblock prints underlay the blossoming of Japanese popular culture that occurred during the Edo era (1600 - 1867).

The Adachi Institute makes exact replicas of famous prints from the Edo era. Friday's lunchtime demonstration was a step by step walk- through of the printing process of one of Hokusai's most famous prints: The Great Wave...

Ellen George's Broadcast

Tonight PORT's own Jeff Jahn opens his latest curatorial endeavor, Fresh Trouble. Much coverage has already been given to this biennial-style exhibtion, including write-ups in the Oregonian and Ultra. You would be foolish to miss this independent exhibition which features a slew of talented (mostly younger) artists from around the globe. FT occupies a 10,000 square foot warehouse for 2 weeks to "highlight artists who bravely seek to change or redefine the world they live in even if it is similar to the effects of butterfly wings kicking up storms farther away. Some are primarily ironists who point out areas that lack of change but require it; others are visionaries who make objects that lift one above the everyday experience and effect change one viewer at a time." The exciting roster includes China's Cao Fei with her West Coast debut of cosplayers, Jack Daws (Seattle), Matthew Picton (PDX), Ellen George (PDX), Chandra Bocci (PDX), Laura Fritz (PDX), Matt McCormick (PDX), Sean Healy (PDX), PORT's Katherine Bovee with husband Philippe Blanc (PDX) and so many more.

Opening Reception • tonight! • 5 to 9p
4246 SE Belmont • Through October 10th
Hours: Saturday & Sunday, noon to 5p • Special Hours: Sept 30, 6 to 9p

Tonight, Walid Raad, who is showing in Mapping Sitting at the Cooley Gallery, gives a public talk on his ongoing project, The Atlas Group Archives. The talk, The Loudest Muttering is Over: Documents from the Atlas Group Archives, delves into his fictional non-profit collective which works towards a re(creation) of Lebanon's history through notebooks, films, video and photographs. Calling into question assumptions of history, memory, agency and representation, Raad's work toys with these provocative ideas by rooting them in the real-world context of a politically troubled and heartbroken nation.

Raad is an internationally acclaimed artist whom we are fortunate to have in our fair city. He is Assistant Professor of Art at Cooper Union in New York City. His works include textual analysis, video, and photography. He has performed in the 2003 Venice Biennale; the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; the House of World Cultures, Berlin; and the Institute of Contemporary Arts, London. The Atlas Group was included in the 2002 Whitney Biennial, and Documenta 11 in Kassel, Germany.

Friday, September 23 • 7p
Kaul Auditorium • Reed College
Free and open to the public
The gallery will hold special hours from 5 to 10 to accomodate the talk

From the moment she fluttered onto the stage-dressing gown clutched around her, her short dark flyaway bob bracketing crimson lips-- Meow Meow held us captivated. Was it her childlike giddiness? Her manic starlet hysteria? Her worldly, womanly curves? Or that in her query, "What is Love," she seemed to be asking another question entirely...

I've heard rumors that it's really big. And, for Ellen George, the PDX artist who makes accumulations of small, delicate polymer clay objects resembling fungus and colorful biological phenomena, that's a really good thing. The show's title is a glyph - * - a clue to the formal geometry that gives structure to the approximately 8,000 pieces that make up the installation and a reference to the number 8 (look down, silly), which the press release explains is "a constant number in the personal life of the artist" as well as a sideways infinity symbol. Portlanders, you'll have to trek up north to see this one - it's across the Columbia in Vancouver, where George resides.

Opening Reception • Wednesday, September 21 • 4 to 7p
Show runs through October 23
Archer Gallery at Clark College • 1800 E McLoughlin Blvd, Vancouver, WA • Tel. 360.992.2246

Wynne Greenwood took the stage at the Works last Tuesday performing in her cyborg/ multiple selves/ lo-fi band Tracy + the Plastics.

She came on in ugly white pants and sheepskin boots and spent a few moments adjusting her gold headband before turning on the microphone and the single synthesizer. She asks that the lights be dimmed and starts arranging the audience:

"Can't we make a less hierarchal space in here? Why don't you guys sit down?"

Wynne plays Tracy...

The website for my Fresh Trouble warehouse show has been updated. Things are looking very good indeed with a combination of international caliber art, and some frankly thrilling Dia/Marfa meets Superflat presentations of art that go beyond just minimal industrial fetishing and expands into strong art as an inhabitant. Special focus will be placed on how artist's activities (creating trouble and making the world fresher) effect the cities they live in.

Tonight, V-Gun opens their latest exhibition, Trippin' Balls: A Mycological Exploration. I imagine there will be some, uh, inspired work by over 20 local and national artists (including Jesse Hayward, Tom Cramer, Wesley Younie, Carolyn Zick and Michael Oman Regan). Works range from painting, drawing, sculpture and fabric arts to other curiosities, all in homage to the 'shroom.

Opening Reception • September 14 • 5 to 7p• Through November 5
V-Gun (inside Veganopolis) • 412 SW 4th Ave • Tel. 503.226.3400

TBA (Portland's Time Based Art festival) kicked off at Pioneer Square on Thursday night with a free performance by Streb and an emotional send off celebration for Kristy Edmunds, whom the tribute video repeatedly called a "Pied Piper". Kristy, PICA's beloved founder leaves PICA and Portland for Melbourne Australia to peddle her particular brand of rabble rousing for their performing arts festival. So raise a glass to the toast of the town this week. -I.P.

Review:

The Streb performance was physically elemental and each set tended to focus on formal concerns like; spinning, squirming, gravity, slipping and sliding, cramped quarters, being tied together etc. Some of these were...

Mike Rathbun

For those of you looking for something to do, The Art Gym opens their 25th season with two great installations, Mike Rathbun with N45º23.871’ W122º38.864’ and Diane Jacobs with Cross Hairs. Rathbun's installation consists of three interrelated structures: a wave floor, a suspended 20-foot boat, and ceiling-high matrix of 2,800 linear feet of two-by-twos that the artist hand-cut and split from logs(!). Jacobs presents a collection of sculptures made from human hair, which she incorporates with cultural linguistics for an innovative and heady (get it?) body of work. Both Rathbun and Jacobs developed and executed their projects for approximately two years with funding from Artist Project Grants from RACC.

Opening Reception • Sunday, September 11 • 3 to 5p
Show runs through October 23
The Art Gym at Marylhurst University • 17600 Pacific Highway (Hwy 43), Marylhurst • Tel. 503.636.8141

tba:05 has begun.

And, this afternoon, in the Wieden + Kennedy lobby, the tba institute kicked off with a lecture by Paul D. Miller, known to many as DJ Spooky that Subliminal Kid, who set the stage for his performances later tonight and tomorrow of Rebirth of a Nation, which takes D.W. Griffith's shamelessly racist 1915 film, Birth of a Nation as its starting point.

Miller is a DJ, artists and writer equally fluent in the vocabulary of electronic music, philosophy, art history, cultural studies, 20th century composition and hip-hop. In his recently published book, Rhythm Science, Miller states that he began DJing as conceptual art. Miller is certainly one of the most articulate DJs around and his work fits as comfortably in a warehouse as in a museum (in fact Rebirth of a Nation was performed last year at Paula Cooper Gallery in NYC).

DJ culture embodies a postmodern aesthetic and none of its potential as a medium for cultural commentary is lost on Miller. During the lecture, he parsed the way in which he conceptualizes DJ culture as art. For Miller, it's more than just sonic play, it's a form of sculpture. The DJ as sculptor borrows freely from a media-saturated culture of sound and image, what Miller refers to as "information ecology," implying the ways in which data gives way to meta data. The DJ is a sculptor of memory, and when constructing mixes for an audience, the DJ is playing with context as much (or perhaps more) than content. DJ culture lays bare the fluidity and unfixed nature of meaning, a demonstration of how meaning functions in a Structuralist sense.

Miller's lecture was as fluid as his prose, freely folding in sound and image, explanation and demonstration. Complimenting his explanation of sampling as a sculpture of memory, audience members walked away with CDs, each with a slightly different mix burned straight from Miller's Powerbook, bringing in everything from 20th century composition (Monk, Glass, Reich) to traditional Gamelan to work by other contemporary DJs. Miller's work is as much about deconstructing as reconstructing and Rebirth of a Nation promises to confront these issues head-on, but of course, not without style or humor.

See the performance of Rebirth of a Nation tonight and tomorrow. You can also catch him spinning around midnight at The Works late night tonight and tomorrow at PNCA for Saturday's noontime chat.

Visit the tba website for details.

Tonight marks the opening of Mark Woolley's second gallery, "Mark Woolley at the Wonder Ballroom" with Form and Emptiness: Works of Contemplative Paradox. Of course, there will be lots of Buddhist-inspired artwork in this inaugural group show but this is also the ideal opportunity to get a first glimpse of the new gallery space. For those in the dark, the Wonder Ballroom is something of a Northeast cultural mecca with the upstairs ballroom hosting musical and performance events while downstairs houses the Woolley space, Marilyn Murdoch's forthcoming Guestroom Gallery and a fine dining restaurant.
Opening Reception • 6 to 9p
Wonder Ballroom • 128 NE Russell St. • Tel. 503.224.5475

Plenty to do tonight...

Bootsy Holler at Newspace

Accompanying their Bay Area Bazaar exhibition, Pulliam Deffenbaugh hosts the Red and the Green, a play written by Kevin Killiam and Karla Milosovich satirizing pop culture and politics, with a cast of 30 artists reading from scripts and relying on improvisation. The evening begins with readings from curator Larry Rinder, poet Dodie Bellamy and writer Jocelyn Saidenberg,
Doors at 7pm • $5 • *Limited Seating
Pulliam Deffenbaugh • 522 NW 12th Ave • Tel. 503.228.6665

Newspace continues their consistently good programming with Ruby & Willie by Seattle-based photographer Bootsy Holler. This series documents the details of Willie's Richland, Washington, home after Ruby's death. With a museum documentary style, Holler captures the subtleties of the family abode.
Opening Reception • 7 to 10p
Newspace • 1632 SE 10th Ave. • Tel. 503.963.1935

FIX gallery takes on Dan Ness with Blackboard Drawings. Ness is one of Portland's most prolific young artists popping up everywhere from the Pearl to Chinatown to Alberta to SE. With his classic iconic imagery and well-executed collage style, he maintains a consistency and drive that makes him one to watch.
Opening reception First Friday 7-10pm
FIX • 811 East Burnside, Studio No.113 • Tel. 503.233.3189

DK Row once said of me that I continue to show artists that nobody's heard of. Although I don't think this was or is true (yes, there is an art savvy world outside of Portland, Oregon that tracks the careers of emerging artists), I now bestow this honor to the Portland Art Center. PAC brings us another exhibition featuring talent I've never heard of. Tonight they open Natura Naturans, an installation and print study by James Jack. Using media appropriated from nature (pigments from the Oregon Coast and inks from Seder bark) Jack brings the outside in with a meditative and existential body of work.
Opening Reception • 7 to 10p
Portland Art Center • 2045 SE Belmont Street • Tel. 503.239.5481

Rake Art Group presents Space Ambulance "A Night with the Thief", a group show featuring photography, paintings, prints, film and music. Featuring 18 participants, this group introduces a number of unknown emerging artists working in various media.
Opening Reception • 6p to midnight
Rake at Voleur Restaurant. • 111 SW Ash St • Tel. 503.227.3764

James Jack at PAC

If there ever was a month that art ruled Portland, September would have to be it. The galleries are packed with top-notch exhibitions, independent curators are creating site-specific exhibitions, TBA takes over the 9th through the 18th and the Affair at the Jupiter Hotel kicks off on the 30th. For those who share Seaplane's "vision of fashion as art", there's even the Collections next week offering a heady roster of exclusive studio and runway shows. You almost can't go wrong, no matter where you end up. We recommend the Willamette Week for a comprehensive listing of all gallery exhibitions but here's a few picks for First Thursday:

Inertia 2005 at Gallery 500

Gallery 500 presents Inertia 2005, an exhibition juried by our own Jeff Jahn featuring 13 of the freshest emerging artists from across the nation. Expect giant chickens, Wal-Mart receipts, vinyl upholstery, and "the dangerous intersection of knitting and power tools". From what I've seen so far, this should be a good 'un.
Opening Reception • 6p to midnight
Gallery 500 • 420 SW Washington, Suite 500 • Tel. 503.223.3951

PNCA presents Troca Brasil. Read Isaac's post from yesterday for an overview of the exhibition with preliminary photos.
Opening Reception • 6 to 9p
PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson St • Tel. 503.226.4391

Pulliam Deffenbaugh presents Bay Area Bazaar, a massive group show of 50 curated by Laurie Reed. "Reid has assembled a group based on friendship and time spent working together—either as students, colleagues or theatre/writing cohorts." The result is an impressive collection of work from some of SF's finest.
Opening Reception • 5:30 to 8:30p
Pulliam Deffenbaugh • 522 NW 12th Ave. Portland • Tel. 503.228.6665

Carson Ellis at Motel

Motel presents Works in Pen and Ink by Carson Ellis. This solo exhibition includes pen and ink drawings on paper featuring Ellis' signature illustrative style. With a new collection of work anchored by two larger, more ambitious pieces, Ellis continues her obsession with uncommon characters and the scenery of Russia and Ireland. A superb showing by one of Portland's finest up-and-comers.
Opening Reception • 6:30 to 9:30p
Motel • On NW Couch Street, between 5th & 6th Aves • Tel. 503.222.6699

Chambers opens their second exhibition with work by two abstract painters, Sidney Rowe and Agnes Field. Sidney Rowe is a painter who also works through performance, often craftings her works live in front of an audience. Tonight she creates a new piece LIVE at 7pm as part of the exhibition. Also showing is painter/curator Agnes Field with a body of work exploring the local topographies around her studio in Astoria, Oregon.
Opening Reception • 5:30 to 8:30p
Chambers • 207 SW Pine, No.102 • Tel. 503.939.2255.

The Alysia Duckler Gallery opens a photography exhibition by Berlin-based artist, Stefanie Schneider. There is something distinctly Deutsch about these portaits with their overexposed lighting, a color palette of tertiaries, and skin-tight vinyl catsuits; a sort of Barbarella meets Thelma and Louise.
Opening Reception • 6 to 8p
Alysia Duckler • 1236 N.W. Hoyt Street • Tel. 503.223.7595

At Froelick, Stephen O’Donnell presents Galeri des Modes and Still, two series of work on portraiture and the male form. The first is a series of acrylic paintings that allude to the quest of ancient Greek sculptors to carve the perfect physique. The second series uses ink and watercolor to explore dress, costume and this history of fashion.
Opening Reception • 5 to 8:30p
Froelick Gallery • 817 SW Second Avenue • Tel. 503.222.1142

Sidney Rowe at Chambers

I first encountered Ernesto Neto's sensual soft sculptures at London's ICA in 2000 and was as intrigued by their seductive forms as by learning that their interactive nature caused gallery attendants to continually tend to minor tears in the thin lycra fabric. Neto's large, biomorphic, womb-like interactive sculptures are complete with orifices and dangling appendages, and must be seen in person to experience their full sensory impact.

This fall, Neto's work comes to Portland as part of Troca Brasil, an exchange between PNCA and A Gentil Carioca, the gallery that Neto co-founded in Rio de Janiero. Neto, along with fellow founders Marcio Botner and Laura Lima, kick off the exhibition early this week with a series of lunchtime lectures on their work in the upcoming exhibition, which opens this Thursday. On Friday, the series culminates in an evening lecture by Neto, who is by far the most widely acclaimed and exhibited artist in the group.

Marcio Botner lecture • Monday, Aug 29th • 12.30 - 1:30 pm
Laura Lima lecture • Tuesday, Aug 30th • 12.30 - 1:30 pm
Ernesto Neto, Marcio Botner & Laura Lima lecture on A Gentil Carioca • Wednesday, August 31st• 12.30 - 1:30 pm
Ernesto Neto lecture • Friday., Sept 2nd • 7 pm

All lectures are free and take place at PNCA, Swigert Commons • 1241 NW Johnson St • Tel. 503.821.8962

Directly after Zicmuse fled the premises, we met Joseph Del Pesco, who gave us a tour of his posters.

Joe Del Pesco

Joseph lives in San Francisco where he works at a press. Over the years he has accumulated a collection through trading and by printing posters designed by artists. Del Pesco sees poster collection as an alternative to fine art collection that is less materialistic as well as more portable. One of the most notable in his collection is a poster John Baldassari created as a campaign idea for California Public Libraries. It shows a beautiful young woman taking a break from a weighty biography of James Joyce in order to look up and smile seductively. Its caption: Learn to Read. It has the hallmark of the best of Baldassari. It is subtly disjointed...

How to...Create a Cultural District (and Have it Vanish Into the Morning Mists of Dawn)

Continuing along 2nd street just before 12:30 Jessica and I found Matthew Stadler sitting behind a small desk on an elevated street corner. His reading light illuminates a stack of paper and a minidisk recorder with which he is intently fiddling.

We sit down in one of the chairs and he welcomes us to help ourselves to a beer.

Matthew Stadler

He is going to start his performance exactly at 12:30. What time is it now? He is from Seattle but he finds the art scene here much richer, and travels back and forth frequently. He is a fiction writer, but finds it enriching to operate within a community of artists. He is associated with a radical, individual centered cultural movement in Europe called Amsterdam 2.0. The idea behind Amsterdam 2.0 is that the citizens are writing a constitution for themselves, one they prefer to live by, rather than the constitution of the government. Their constitution values the rights of the individual at all costs. Stadler was commissioned to write a piece of short fiction in honor of the beginning of Amsterdam 2.0. He saw a parallel between Amsterdam 2.0's assertion of the rights of the individual and the plight of turn of the century immigrants on the west coast. His story is called City of Wool, and is set in 1914 in Astoria, Oregon. It follows the lives of immigrants from the Middle East who are gradually assimilated into their new surroundings. His story seems driven completely by vivid, sensual imagery, and it is easy to see why Stadler spends so much of his time associating with artists. His descriptions are lucid and poetic. He identifies his work as a prose piece: just barely...

Don your finest, brightest, shiniest, putting attire. Tonight and tomorrow, Holocene presents the Second Annual Mini-Golf Art Invitational. The Mini-Council of Jurors has again selected a group of outstanding local artists and designers, presenting them with the challenge of creating an on-site mini-golf hole that is both functional and artistic. These will be unveiled over the next two nights to the spirit of friendly competition, drinks and dancing. Patrons are invited to test the cunning designs and their skill on the course then cast their votes for their favorites. Plaids, pleats, caps and oxfords are all encouraged. There will even be a photographer on hand offering souvenir snapshots.

Participating artsts/designers including Ryan Jeffry, Elise Bartow and Logan McLain, Shoshonah Oppenheim and Bonnie Barrett, WK12, Paul Lynch, Holst Architecture, KidMonkey, Lightbox, Adrian Melnick, KPSU, Scott Mazariegos, Adam Sorensen and Midori Hirose, and Johnne Eschelman.

Deejays will be spinning odd hits throughout the event.
Performance at 11pm on Tues by San Francisco dancepunk stars Hey Willpower
Awards announced at 10pm on the 24th
Tuesday, Aug 23rd, 9p - 2a • Wednesday, Aug 24th, 2p - 2a • $5 dollars • 21+
Holocene • 1001 SE Morrison • Tel. 503.239.7639

*flier by the illustrious Ryan Jacob Smith

How to...Create a Cultural District (and Have it Vanish Into the Morning Mists of Dawn)

My friend Jessica and I attended the latest Taking Place event on Thursday, and dutifully documented our experiences for PORT. The second person we met was Sam Baldwin Gould. It was just after midnight and intending to be fashionably late (by seven minutes) we arrived at quarter past the hour. Sam was handing out programs which gave viewers instructions on how, exactly, to find the art. Standing under an overpass at 215 SE Morrison street, he looked more like a subversive political agitator than an artist. He gave us a stack of booklets to bring back to a project called Tailgating occurring out of the back of a powder blue Subaru. One of the Tailgaiting artists, Nat Andreini, was the first person we had met, a few minutes earlier.

Sam Baldwin Gould - Walking Tour of My Old Neighborhood

Sam's piece is an audio walking tour of the area, his old neighborhood, Produce Row. Listening to the CD later, I found it a loving and detailed catalog of his favorite graffiti, parts of buildings that were falling apart in aesthetically striking ways, posters that had been partially torn down leaving swaths of white paper that looked like ghosts...

Two institutional shows open today. If you're looking for some late summer art-ing, this is the perfect opportunity. Plus, if you're dying to beat the heat, chances are good they're air conditioned...

Mapping Sitting

At the Cooley Gallery, Mapping Sitting: On Portraiture & Photography, an installation by Walid Raad and Akram Zaatari, curated from the archives of the Arab Image Foundation in Beirut, Lebanon. "Raad and Zaatari reveal how Arab portrait photography not only pictured individuals and groups, but also functioned as commodity, luxury item, and adornment... Collectively, the photographs convey pluralistic and dynamic Middle Eastern communities through the lenses of indigenous photographers—images far different from photos of the region circulating widely today in the popular press."
August 22nd through September 30th
Cooley Gallery at Reed College • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd • Tel. 503.771.1112

David Eckard (PNCA faculty and artist) presents a new body of installation-based work, Heroes and Apparitions. "Specter, fictive recollection, temporal marker, arrested gesture and the potential theatrics dormant in articulated space." In Eckard fashion, it should involve some innovative apparatus and unusual machinery.
August 22nd through October 15th
Manuel Izquierdo Gallery at PNCA • 1241 NW Johnson St. • Tel. 503.226.4391

Amos Latteier was co-opting Power Point presentations as art before David Byrne published his book on Power Point as fertile creative medium. Last year, during PICA's tba festival, Latteier delved into cell phones as a device for disseminating audio tours of urban wildlife in Portland's Park blocks. During tonight's Taking Place event, learn about Latteier's next cell phone project as he explains his latest endeavor, entitled We're Not Gonna Take It, involving the use of cell phones as a means of political protest.

Friday Aug 19 • 7p Aalto Lounge (back room) • 3356 SE Belmont St

Catch a warm summer night before they're gone. Grab your flashlight and meet at 215 SE Morrison at midnight for tonight's Taking Place event, How To...Create a Cultural District (and Have it Vanish Into the Morning Mists of Dawn). Upon arrival, you will be provided with a map informing you of the locales of site-specific artwork. All pieces are situated on the streets, in the doorways, broken windows, trees, open bay doors of produce trucks within a five block radius of Portland's Produce Row neighborhood. Participating artists include Le Ton Mite, Jo del Pesco, 0009, Khris Soden, Sam Gould, Jessica Hutchins, Harrell Fletcher, Theo Angell, Nat Andreini and R. Scott Porter. Till 3am.

Tonight Vladimir (two-time reigning champ of the PDX Film Fest Invitational) presents two Vladmaster viewings, Jeremiah Barnes and Actaeon at Home at Dunes. These enchanting hand-made Viewmaster narratives are unlike anything you've seen before. If you haven't caught one yet, tonight's your chance. Also on the ticket is a traveling puppet show from New Orleans, a slide show from the quirky and eclectic Beau Von HinklyWinkle, and a short film by Miss Pussycat. All of this at 10pm behind the unmarked door at 1909 NE MLK. A word to the wise, it can sometimes get smoky in the small bar. 21+

see Bent. Chandra Bocci, Jesse Durost and Ryan Boyle have been hard at work the past few months developing site-specific mixed media installations in the old Liz Leach space. These three exemplify some of the finest emerging artists in Portland.

Chandra Bocci has rightfully earned a reputation as a driven and talented installation artist. She was last seen almost a year ago with Bubble Speak at the now-dead Haze Gallery. This time around she offers Wash, an abstract garden fabricated of "industrial and consumer castaways" that wanders over the gallery ceilings, walls and floors.

Jesse Durost builds on his recent solo exhibition, the Hum of God with Pop Mantra, a suspended collection of verbal fragments on vellum from internal and external dialogues. He elaborates on this visual chatter with an accompanying sounds collage of repetitive, ambient everyday sounds, a reminder of the ephemeral nature of pure silence.

Ryan Boyle stands as one of Portland's most talented, yet elusive young artists. He is rarely to be pinned for a formal gallery exhibition which perhaps makes his obessively detailed 3-D creations even more captivating. Exploring "imagined architectures and fantastical ecologies" in the Greenhouse Effect, he fabricates a minature post-industrial village with commercial cardboard as his primary building material.

Organized by Stephanie Snyder as part of the Taking Place event, Bent is a non-commercial labor of love. To miss this event would be to miss what Portland's emerging art scene is all about: dedication, integrity, innovation and community.

Opening Reception • Saturday, August 6 • 6 to 10p
Located at 207 SW Pine
Exhibition viewing hours • 1 to 6p •Tuesday through Sunday • Through August 21

Rachael Allen at FIX

FIRST FRIDAY

Anne Ploeger's "Portraits" at Newspace
Opening Reception • Friday, August 5th • 7 to 10p
1632 SE 10th Ave • Tel. 503.963.1935

Vintage Vandals at Savage Art Resources
Closing Party • Friday, August 5th • 7 to 10p
1430 SE Third Avenue • Tel. 503.230.0265

Rachael Allen at FIX
Opening Reception, Friday August 5th • 6 to 9p
811 East Burnside studio #113 • Tel. 503.233.3189

Gabriel Liston at NAAU
Opening Reception, Friday August 5th • 7 to 10p
922 SE Ankeny Street • Tel.503.231.8294

SATURDAY

Bent: Chandra Bocci, Jesse Durost and Ryan Boyle
Opening Reception • Saturday, August 6 • 6 to 10p
Located at 207 SW Pine

Paul Middendorf discusses the latest efforts of Manifest Artistry, Lifeboat-Hamptons, at Scope-Hamptons.
PORT covered Paul's endeavors here and here.
Saturday, August 6th • 7:00p
Gallery 500 • 420 SW Washington St. Suite 500 • Tel. 503.223.3951

Free Form Film Festival
2005 shorts program, plus live musical performance by Inlake
Saturday, August 6th • 9:00p
The Know • 2026 NE Alberta

FFFF is also at the Clinton Street Theatre with American Astronaut "A Musical Space Western"
Tuesday, August 9th • 10:00p

Dan Gilsdorf at G5

One of the exhibitions I'm most excited about this month is at what I'm now calling G5 (that's Gallery 500 to you). Dan Gilsdorf takes the bull by the horns with Interstate, an exhibition of kinetic sculptures and installation. Gilsdorf himself calls it “mechanical simulacra as homage to human consciousness”. This body of work embodies rich conceptual ideas exploring masculinity, industrialization, militarization and entropy while conveying the enchantment of mechanized animation. The repetitive and destructive nature of the automata is both fascinating and disturbing. You'll want to catch this exhibition early in the month before it meets its own demise.
Opening Reception • Aug 4th • 6p to midnight • Through August 27
Gallery 500 • 420 SW Washington St. Suite 500 • Tel. 503.223.3951

At Motel, Jessie Rose Vala and Emily Counts unveil their mixed-media installation, The Future Remnants of Dreamvilles. In this ambitious exhibition Vala and Counts create a Victoriana living space, complete with hand-silkscreened wallpaper, custom upholstery, organza boughs and extensive collections of new drawings hung on the walls. Enter a world of wilderness, refinement, danger and mystery in the transformed gallery space.
Opening Reception • Aug 4th • 6:30 to 9:30p• Through August 27
Motel • on NW Couch between 5th & 6th Aves • Tel. 503.222.6699

Local independent press emporium Reading Frenzy presents international art-stars Chris Johanson & Jo Jackson with Casual - Imagistic, a cacophony of posters, editions, video, ephemera, books and more. These Portland-based artists explode their archives onto the bookstore walls with some unseen and unconventional pieces for (purportedly) affordable prices. Not to be missed.
Opening Reception • Aug 4th • 6 to 8p?
Reading Frenzy • 921 SW Oak St. • Tel. 503.274.1449

The Everett Station Lofts host their annual Rooftop party. Also, at Compound, SUPERHERO group show featuring artists from around the globe.

Kenny Higdon at Artreach Gallery

In one of the more politically charged exhibitions of the month, Kenny Higdon presents Questions for the Christian, a collection of paintings and sculpture. Higdon, whose conceptual work flirts with the darker side of social history, was last seen at Lovelake with the Misadventures of Lewis and Clark.
Opening Reception • Aug 4th • 5 to 8:30p • Through September 30
Artreach Gallery: First Congressional United Church of Christ • 1126 SW Park Ave

Portland Modern delivers its latest installment from Issue No.2 at Gallery 114 with the work of Troy Briggs and Amanda Ryan. Ryan is a Portland native who creates rich abstractions. Briggs' work is more subdued, with distorted figure drawings conveying a sentiment of "elegant sadness".
Opening Reception • Aug 4th • 6 to 9p • Through August 27
Portland Modern at Gallery 114 • 1100 NW Glisan • Tel 503.243.3356

In what may be the last event in their 12th Avenue space, Pulliam Deffenbaugh houses a "best of" Summer Group Show featuring their represented artists. New works by Brian Borrello, the recently departed (for L.A.) James Boulton, Brenden Clenaghen, Anna Fidler, Ken Kelly, Jeffry Mitchell and many more.
Opening Reception • Aug 4th • 5 to 8:30p • Through August 27
Pulliam Deffenbaugh Gallery • 522 NW 12th Avenue • Tel. 503.228.6665

Mel Katz has been a Portland staple for the past 42 years. He held his studio across the street from Motel for much of this time and until he relocated last summer, would drop by regularly to tell me I was either crazy or brilliant for opening an emerging artist gallery. His influence on the city as an artist, teacher, mentor and activator has been sizeable. This week you can catch the kind-hearted curmudgeon at Laura Russo with his freestanding aluminum sculptures. Exploring the interplay of positive and negative space, his colorful and often humorous pieces may seem dated to some but speak to the artist's own aesthetic integrity and historical context. Also showing are Jun Kaneko and Manuel Izquierdo.
Opening Reception • Aug 4th • 5 to 8p • Through August 27
The Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st Avenue • Tel. 503.226.2754

Ok, Northview Gallery curator and artist Marie Watt has finally found a way to get me all the way out to the PCC Sylvania campus. PORT's own Katherine Bovee and her evil genius husband Philippe Blanc have another show so Euro you might need to rename yourself Per and pay $5 a gallon for fuel to really see it properly. All kidding aside, they are two of the most promising artists around here and I watch their development closely. You can see what I mean because there is an artist lecture & gallery reception Thursday, July 28, 2 pm for their legacy: boxed version show.

It sounds promising but will it be better than Savepoint, their previous show? They had strong, sophisticated ideas but the visual vocabulary was a bit anonymous in that outing.

Here is their statement:

"Playing with the intersection between art history, technology and gaming environments, legacy presents an idealized landscape fashioned out of simulated computer parts. The work included in legacy continues our exploration of the culture and vocabulary of computers by introducing computers as aesthetic objects, while simultaneously transposing discourse surrounding contemporary art into terms familiar to the computer user."

During the lecture, they will discuss the implications of presenting tech art within a gallery space as well as several current, past and future projects.

Northview Gallery
Portland Community College, Sylvania Campus
12000 SW 49th Avenue, Portland, OR 97219

Hours: M - F 8 am - 4 pm or by appt (503.977.8017)

The Northview Gallery is located in the CT building

I have been doubly blessed this week with not one, but two art battles! Spoiled indeed. First, Ingredients and now, Iron Artist, SCRAP's annual fundraiser. For those of you somehow in the dark, SCRAP is a local re-use, re-cycle funhouse packed with all sorts of strange arts and crafts supplies you never knew you needed for dirt cheap. Saturday afternoon their fundraiser kicks off with 10 teams of artists, celebrity judges, raucous referees, and loud-mouth MCs, plus beer garden, carnival games, raffle, costumes, DJs and much, much more.

Each team will be given boxes of similar materials and three short hours for the "sculpt off". Materials will be provided by SCRAP, the ReBuilding Center, Wacky Willy's and Free Geek. The event is timed and monitored by a raucous team of referees who will throw yellow flags while handing out bonus points and demerits. Watch Team Tazo, Lensbabies, Wild Oats, Gallery 500, Junk Town and others hash it out to determine who is The Iron Artist.

The winning sculpture will be placed in the lobby of the 5th Avenue Suites Hotel for First Thursday, August 4th. Plus, this event is the perfect opportunity to check out the Northeast's newest hotspot, the Wonder Ballroom.

July 23rd, 3:30 to 10p
The Wonder Ballroom • 128 NE Russell

Justin "Scrappers" Morrison at V-Gun

The Enchanted Forest at V-Gun
And the winner of this summer's prolific artist award is... Justin "Scrappers" Morrison. Justin is showing in six (count 'em!) exhibitions this month. Tonight you can catch him and his newest paintings at V-Gun with The Enchanted Forest. Using recycled, salvaged, and eco-friendly paint, Morrison works on found and discarded wood. Exploring the wilderness within, his colorful narratives play host to a cast of lumberjacks, savage scouts, happy hobos, vintage beer commercials, protesters, strange trees, unicorn and yetis, all reminding you to "stay wild". As a bonus, 10% of proceeds go to benefit animal welfare.
Opening July 22nd, 6 to 9p • Through September 10th
V-Gun • 412 SW Fourth Avenue • Tel. 503.226.3400

Taking Place: A Summer of Programming Gets Underway
Taking Place is a cultural investigation initiated by Sam Gould, Stephanie Snyder and Matthew Stadler. With an action-packed schedule of events between now and September 12th, Taking Place will investigate different modes and meanings of "taking" and "place". It all kicks off tonight at the Oak Street Building with A NEW BEGINNING. Attendees will be met at the door by a host who will guide them to a musical convocation at Marriage Records by Mount Eerie, Karl Blau and the Watery Graves. Visitors will then be accompanied on a stroll to the second venue to meet with the organizers and the Dynamite Family for general carousing, beer and discourse to celebrate the beginning of the project.
Music at Oak Street, 6 to 7p • 425 SE 3rd Ave
Socializing and conversing 7:30p to late • 222 SE 10th

To keep abreast of all the Taking Place events, check the calendar for regular updates.

Divorce Film Installation at Gallery 500
Collaborating with composer Brede Rørstad, Daniel Kaven will present several short films to accompany his Divorce exhibition. One night only.
July 22nd, 9pm
GALLERY 500 • 420 SW Washington St. Suite 500 • Tel. 503.223.3951

Tonight Holocene presents "Ingredients: a Music and Video Art Invitational"

It's my wildest fantasy come true. I've long been dreaming up an "art battle" where artists would be forced to create Iron Chef style with limited time and resouces. Well, somehow Holocene has heard my cry and answered it. Tonight, 10 video artists and 20 musicians create original works in a limited time frame using provided source materials. There will be two sections, one for sound artists, and one for video artists. Contributors will be supplied with 10 visual or audio samples, which they will in turn use as source material for an original piece of music, sound, or video. Performances will be at least one minute long and no longer than 5; no pre-arranged sounds or images can be used; only the given source materials. The evening will be augmented by DJs and performances, as well as installation pieces related to the event. To top it all off, the whole thing is FREE to the over-21-year-old public!

Wednesday, July 20th • 9p • 21+ only
Holocene • 1001 se morrison • Tel. 503.239.7639

And you thought openings were only for the Firsts of the Month... Get your mid-month kicks with a few summer-style events.

Little Cities Build Yr Own House Party

Wednesday

Savage Art Resources presents new work by Zack Kircher and a group exhibition, Vintage Vandals Reprised. Kircher and the Vandals take on pop culture through painterly appropriation. Kircher's works explore the current media fascination with the cult of celebrity. Vintage Vandals is a collection of reconfigured thrifted paintings curated by Jason Sturgill of the Wurst Gallery.
Opening July 13th, 6 to 8p • Through August 13
Savage Art Resources • 1430 SE Third Avenue • Tel. 503.230.0265

Red 76 is at it again with another Little Cities Build Yr Own House Party/Barbecue. This time, Dynamite! joins in for a discussion of their work with a preview of Potential Energy, a project opening on July 22nd at Correspondence Space as part of the Taking Place project by Sam Gould, Stephanie Snyder, and Matthew Stadler. Bring your own grillings and beverages for a night of cardboard construction and collaboration.
One night only, July 13 • 7p
Red76 • 916 SE 34th st. (Just off Belmont Ave.)

Thursday {Bastille Day}

Eva Lake is something of an art scene triple-threat as gallerist, artist and Artstar radio jockey. After closing Lovelake a year (or two?) ago, she's back in the saddle with a new gallery with Wid Chambers called, appropriately enough, Chambers. Opening in a space you will most likely find familiar, Chambers gets up and running with Cut and Paste, the assemblage and collage art of Eunice Parsons and Paul Fujita (of Zeitgeist Gallery).
Opening July 14, 5:30 to 8:30p • through August 27
(Also Open First Thursday August 4 5:30 to 8:30p)
Chambers • 207 S.W. Pine Street, No. 102 • Tel. 503.939.2255

Elsewhere

Portland flexes its muscle at ~Scope Hamptons as Paul Middendorf and Mary Mattingly of Manifest Artistry captain the Lifeboat to Security Island. Micro-Scope, is a political education project involving a group of artists "transforming their bodies into well-oiled tanning machines while discussing security, the conditioning of humans, and other related topics against the back drop of island/oasis necessities, including a wading-pool, miniature working fountains, a small vanity table and mock-ups of large stocks of Evian and sculptures of other brands essential to modern culture. Additionally, video monitors will be set up by the Lifeboat team around various pulse-points in Southampton to watch the on-going performance and importance of the newly secured scene." Collaborating artists include Red 76, David Eckard, Bruce Conkle, Marne Lucas, Chandra Bocci, The Camouflagemuseum (NL), and many more. Definitely worth a look-see if you're on the other coast this weekend.
~Scope Hamptons • July 14 to 17

Paul Fujita at Chambers

This First Thursday is all about the young ones. Chinatown and Downtown flex their youthful muscle with some great showings along with a couple of hits from the old guard.

In Chi-town there's a veritable slew of young movers and shakers.

Erika Kohr at Motel

Everything is a-buzz at Motel with Pollinate, the works of Erika Kohr and Suzanne Husky. Kohr offers a sophisticated collection of narrative glass works exploring fertility and nature. Husky presents a series of psychedelic botanical drawings on paper featuring fluorescent flora and fauna.
Opening July 7, 6:30 to 9:30p • Through July 30
Motel • Located on NW Couch St, between 5th & 6th • Tel. 503.222.6699

Compound delivers the Return of Digmeout, a visual artist excavation project out of Osaka, Japan. This group exhibition showcases young artists whose mediums are often posters, stickers, or magazine illustrations. The first Digmeout show was strong collection of unknown Japanese up-and-comers. This second helping promises even more and better.
Opening July 7, 7 to 9p • Through July 30
Compound / Just Be • 107 NW 5th Ave • Tel. 503.796.2733

Genuine Imitation presents the Worldwide debut of the deliciously French artist, Fanélie Rosier. Rosier's distinctive pop-illustration style infuses these devilishly playful series of godesses.
Opening July 7, 6 to 9pm with DJ IZM • Through July 29
Genuine Imitation • 328 NW Broadway, No.116 • Tel. 503.241.3189

Also in the Everett Station Lofts, Pepper Gallery presents Artists of Kentucky, an eclectic group show featuring artists from the Bluegrass state.
Opening, July 7th, 6-10pm
Pepper • 328 NW Broadway, No.113

Downtown hits...

"Male Pattern Baldness & Hummingbirds" at Reading Frenzy

South of Burnside, Gallery 500 presents the solo exhibition of PDX photographer-romantic extraordinaire, Daniel Kaven. Divorce is a collection of mixed-media works and installations exploring the separation of the artist's past. Brede Rørstad, who scored Kaven’s film, Naked Seoul, will conduct a string quartet during the opening, translating the emotions of the exhibition.
Opening July 7, 6p to midnight • Through July 29
Gallery 500 • 420 SW Washington St., Ste. 500 • Tel. 503.223.3951

On a lighter note, artist/curator/illustrator/great guy Bwana Spoons packs 'em in at Reading Frenzy with a Sharpie show, Male Pattern Baldness and Hummingbirds, featuring a great collection of local and national up-and-comers, including Souther Salazar, E*Rock, Jessie Rose Vala, Ryan Jacob Smith, Amy Ruppel and many, many more. This is my pick for a steal of a deal. A handmade zine of the included artwork will even be available at the opening.
Opening July 7, 6 to 9p • Through July 31
Reading Frenzy • 921 SW Oak St. • Tel. 503.274.1449

And in the Pearl...

Gretchen Bennett at PDX Window Project

Gretchen Bennett takes over the PDX Window with Hi, It's Me, a faux-naturalist take on the tensions and representations of interior/exteriors. Expect wood-grain Contact paper, buttons and more...
Open 24 hours a day through August 13
PDX Window Project • 612 NW 12th Ave • Tel 503.222.0063

Portland cult literary icon Walt Curtis (Mala Noche) invades Mark Woolley with The Land of Ch'i, featuring his expressionist folk paintings.
Opening July 7, 6 to 9p • Through July 30
Mark Woolley • 120 NW 9th Ave, Ste 210 • Tel. 503.224.5475

I (finally!) dropped by Pacific Switchboard for the first time this weekend. It's a great space located in the Albina Press with an inspired studio attached. They have been hosting regular shows for quite a while now but since I've never called the Northeast "home", I've been shamefully in the dark. When I stopped in there wasn't anything on the walls because they are preparing for their next exhibition Dedicated to You: a show for Ex-Lovers, "a night of rememberance, catharsis, and awkwardness dedicated to those with which we have been so intimate." Ah yes, lust, sweet lust. There will be artwork, movies, love songs, mix tapes, performance and an anonymous confessional booth for those still healing a heartbreak. Who knows, maybe you'll meet someone special...

Featuring works by Jen Kruch, Charles Salas-Humara, Alicia McDaid, Mike Miller, Anna Simon, Cynthia Star, Paige Saez, Zak Margolis, Matthew Yake, Ruby Fitch, Elina Tuhkanen, Amy Steel, Ashley Shabo, Tara Jane O'neil, Matthew Hein, Jennifer Gleach, Thandi Rosenbaum, Tracy Olson, Emily Henderson, Daphna Kohn and Jeff Brown, Michelle Klein, Courtney Nyman, Gretchen Hogue, Molly Roth, Emily Henderson, Gretchen Vaudt, Fred Nemo, and more.

Opening Wednesday, July 6, 7-10p • Through July 31
Pacific Switchboard • 4637 North Albina Avenue (located at The Albina Press)

I am sitting in a Seattle hotel room spoiling myself with the IFC this morning and what is on but a behind-the-scenes of You, Me and Everyone We Know replete with numerous interviews with Miranda herself. I happened to catch the Portland debut of the film a couple of months ago at the PDX Film Fest. Now you and everyone else we know can see what all the hype is about as it opens this weekend in theaters nationwide.

Also, as I was walking to work last week, I happened upon a stream of yellow paint dribbles which I recongnized as Brad Adkins' "cover" of a performance by Francis Alys. The performance entails punching a hole in can of paint and going for a walk until the paint runs out. Anyone who is interested in assisting with this reenactment should meet at the LANDMARK exhibition space on NW 13th & Flanders Saturdays at 2pm through July 16th.

Rake is yet another arts collective in Portland, adding to a list which starts with the internationally active Red 76 arts group, but also includes Telegraph Arts and The Most etc... Yes, Portland is a close knit place and PORT supports these endeavors. It represents yet another wave of young artists in a crowded scene but the question of their seriousness needs to be raised?

Will Rake amount to something more than a party? That said there will be a party and you can check them out at Palla (a new fashion, music, lounge venue) June 30th at NW 3rd and Couch. I like their snappy diamond logo with various aircraft but I've yet to see anything really serious in terms of art. Sometimes, these groups need to do a few events to get it together and this is event #2.

These fine fresh fellows took over a house last month and there is also talk of a loft show in July. Good luck.

Josh Sanseri at Newspace

I hope that Newspace is getting the press and collectors they deserve because not only is Chris the nicest guy, he keeps putting on amazing shows. This week they open a new exhibition by Josh Sanseri, Individual Dignity. A project that began in 1999, this series documents small business owners from around the globe, including Oregon, Illinois, New Mexico and Tennessee. His portraits are vibrant and sincere, capturing the creativity and community behind entrepreneurship, "With these photographs, my intentions are to document the character and sense of pride that I have found to be a common thread among small business owners and non-existent in large, corporate chains." Should be a good 'un.
Through July 31• Opening July 1st, 7 to 10p
Newspace • 1632 SE 10th Ave • Tel. 503.963.1935

At NAAU Joe Macca's Flotsam offers a wild ride with his collection of deconstructed Artforums, mail art and a video piece featuring Jeff, Jane, Joe and a collector making chocolate chip cookies in Joe's kitchen. Joe usually exhibits his soft color field paintings at PDX but crosses the river for a more experimental exhibition.
Through July 30 • Opening July 1st, 7 to 10p
NAAU • 922 SE Ankeny • Tel. 503.231.8294

Jacqueline Ehlis continues at Savage through the 9th.
That's right, only nine more days to catch the exhibition that everyone, like it or lump it, has been talking about. Read PORT's review here.
Savage Art Resources • 1430 SE Third Avenue • Tel. 503.230.0265

The fine folks at Holocene, the Eastside's Danish Modern-inspired non-smoking music venue, have begun hanging art on their lofty walls. This month, they present the photographs of New York artist Gavin Stevens. Custom Fit is a series of twelve color prints documenting the artist's work as the manager of San Francisco’s notorious gold front retail outlet, “Mr. Bling.” Grab a gin and juice to go with your gold caps to top off the night.
Opening July 1st, 6 to 9p • Music by DJ Sew What
Holocene • 1001 SE Morrison • Tel. 503.239.7639

D.E. May's Untitled

…someone is always making the claim that art (or art writing) was better in days past. The sheer ubiquity of that Chicken Little statement through the ages undermines its argument. Sure, it might look that way because art from the past has been filtered through the passage of time. Time is the litmus test, sifting out the good stuff. For example there is a touring retrospective of Jean-Michel Basquiat going on right now (next stop LA July 17th), possibly making us think the 80's were so much better than today. Whereas I suspect being subjected to a touring retrospective of Julian Schnabel's 80's work might leave me hungry for the iffy mess of Greater New York Part Deux. It depends on what you focus on.

Still there is no time like the present, so try and catch at least one of three Portland related shows that come down today.

In Chelsea @ Pavel Zoubok gallery, D.E. May's Template-Grid-Inset has its last day. I like his free standing cardboard towers better than the wall works.

In Portland, it is also the last day for Gallery 500's Habitat. It's a refugee camp as an art happening that some lucky person will have to clean up. Stop in and see how the art slum has changed in the last month.

Also in the Rose City, right next to the Burnside bridge Sean Bracken has an open studio sale at 77 NE Burnside 9-7PM, June 25th and 26th. No it is not a soup kitchen, and it is probably worth a trip just to see who else has studios in the building.

In Great Expectations: John Singer Sargent Painting Children, the Portland Art Museum has put together a comprehensive look at the career of the famous portraitist as exemplified by his paintings of children.

The exhibit, which continues through September 11, might be seen as an historical record of the changing views of childhood and the developing personality from infancy through adolescence. It might also be seen as the wistful imaginary family life of the never married, childless artist. Or, as an object lesson in how talent, drive, and commercial sensibilities combined to create one of the leading icons of nineteenth century art.

Sargent, perhaps best known for his Portrait of Madame X,1884, is also famous for one of the best-loved images of children, Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose, 1886. He found a revival of commercial success often hinged on images of children. After the scandal of Madame X took him into self-exile in England, he was able to charm the British upper-crust, and divert their attention from his sketchy, controversial impressionistic style, with images such as Garden Study of the Vickers Children, 1884.

Garden Study of the Vickers Children, 1884

Sargent began his career as a portraitist by drawing the models closest at hand: his siblings. Some of these images are included in this exhibition, as is the type of painting that caused him to finally abandon portraiture in favor of landscapes and murals. Little Ruth Bacon's mother was so emotional in both praise and condemnation as the painting progressed, and Ruth as uncontrollable as any toddler, that the artist took advantage of Mom's absence one day to hastily sketch in the background, call it good, and depart.

Portrait of Ruth Sears Bacon, 1887

Adolescents challenged Sargent to see beyond their often veiled emotions. Sometimes, it seems he didn't try, but only painted the veil as it was shown to him. Elsie Palmer might have been a model for Edvard Munch, with her almost depressive stare and pale complexion. Also known as Young Lady in White, this painting draws one in with fine brush work and classical symmetry, but hidden emotions. It is also an example of how Sargent continued to alternate academic finesse with impressionistic painterliness, as in the Vickers scene.

Portrait of Miss Elsie Palmer, 1889-90

Overall, this show is successful on many levels: as cultural history, with examples of portraits in the grand tradition, as well as genre scenes and examples of the use of professional child models; as art history, as seen in the progression of one successful career; and as a chronicle of child psychology, and the changing role of the child within the family. It exemplifies the phrase "Great Expectations," as one can see a visual representation of the potential that is inherent in every child.

Resurrectory Performance Photo by Basil Childers

Tonight is the last night of The Resurrectory by the Liminal performance group at the brand new Portland Art Center.

This is PAC's second show, an interactive theater performance based around the famous Burke/Hare serial murders. It was a provocative choice, especially for an institution that has devoted its main gallery space to installation art. This is a time when Portlanders are a little sensitive to visual arts programming being cut to focus on performance art. ...bait and switch...grumble...

So is it theater or installation art? Good question….but you simply have to see legendary local filmaker Jim Blashfield's video projection work.. Blashfield did those great Peter Gabriel videos in the 80's.

One tip, definitely be there early (they were turning em away last night) for the performances (8-10PM) and use it as an impetus to discuss the different demands of installation art and set design. They can be the same but not always. Yes, PAC is doing some solid (if perplexing) things… but their plans for an expanded space in Chinatown and the critical appointment a new board of directors make this a young institution with a future.

As we swing into the weekend, there's plenty of great art chatter including lectures, talks, a reading and even an auction...

Thursday, June 16th

Blumenfeld at PICA

Erika Blumenfeld Lecture @ PICA
Blumenfeld's piece in the Landmark show is one of the most captivating and enchanting. In a dark side room, her white light projections shift slowly, catching the shadows and silhouettes of her onlookers. During the fall of 2004, Blumenfeld worked in an astronomer's house at the the McDonald Observatory's main peak where she created the video work Moving Light: Lunation 1011, now on display. Thursday night she talks about this project and her unique and delicate process of capturing light on film by by hand.
PICA Annex • NW 13th & Flanders • 7pm • free to PICA Members / $2 general

Pinball Publishing Book Release with Vladmaster performance
922 SE Ankeny Portland
Local champions of the small press, Pinball Publishing, release their second poetry title, "Suspension of a Secret in Abandoned Rooms" by Joshua Marie Wilkinson. This book-length poem emerges from the author's exploration of Egon Schiele's work, region and era. Also joining in the festivities is local indie-film rock-star Vladimir, presenting one of her classic Viewmaster performances. If you haven't seen one of these before, you are truly missing out.
at NAAU • 922 SE Ankeny • 7:30p to 9:30p • free

Friday, June 17th

Andi Kovel & Justin Parker Reception at Contemporary Crafts
You may be most familiar with the work of these talented two as Esque functional glass objects and home accessories, gracing the tables of Clarklewis and GBT. At CCG they bridge art, craft and design, each presenting site-specific installations revealing their technical skill and conceptual wit. Sure to be playful and voluptuous. Also on view, works by ceramist Ted Vogel. See Saturday for accompanying lecture.
Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery • 3934 SW Corbett Avenue • 5:30 to 8p

Saturday, June 18th

Hilary Pfeifer on the panel at CCG

Panel Discussion: Making a Living Through Making Art: Bridging Craft & Design
Hello young artists (and older). This one's for you! In this day and age there's nothing more formidable than a business-savvy artist. Listen up as Andi Kovel, Hilary Pfeifer and Tom Ghilarducci discuss working as a professional artist in a variety of arenas: museum exhibitions, fine craft shows, design shows, galleries and interior design. They will discuss the merging of studio practice with aesthetics and business and the challenges of making your living through art. I just might have to sneak in a tape recorder for this.
Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery • 3934 SW Corbett Avenue • 1p

Art on the Block @ Disjecta
(THIS POST WAS ORIGINALLY INCORRECTLY LISTED ON FRIDAY)
Andrew Dickson wanders back from sunny L.A. to grace us with his auctioneering expertise and City Commissioner Sam Adams joins in for Disjecta's action packed fund-raiser. I'm certain there will be a lively crowd and perhaps some festive shenanigans as Disjecta makes a run for phase two of their development. Who knows, you could walk out with a steal of a deal from Brad Adkins, Damali Ayo, Chandra Bocci, Troy Briggs, Bruce Conkle, Harrell Fletcher, Kim Hamblin, Sean Healy, Chris Johanson, Jesse Durost, Ericka Kohr, Marne Lucas, Melody Owen, Bonnie Paisley, Joe Thurston, Terry Toedtemeier... Need I continue?
Music provided by Clampitt, Gaddis & Buck
Disjecta • 230 E Burnside • 7 to 10p • $?

One Min Film Festival + Themed Art Show @ Holocene
And the theme is... "pockets"! Over forty short-shorts, art on the walls and then a DJ. Participants are a mystery but with 40 to choose from, there's sure to be some gems. Then you can dance your little heart out.
Holocene • 1001 SE Morrison • doors at 8p, show at 9 • $3 to $10 (sliding)

Also opening Saturday is the John Singer Sargent exhibit at PAM.

Part of Portland's charm is its Do It Yourself ethic. This weekend offers great events from two prominent underground groups, Red76 and the Handmade Bazaar. Break out your flip-flops and let the summer begin!

Red76 hosts the Little Cities Build Yr Own House Party and Barbecue. You bring the grillables and they'll provide the building supplies (cardboard, sharpies, paint, tape, etc.). Make your own miniature abode and then reconvene on Sunday for the homesteading of the Little City. It's fort building for adults!
Red76 • 916 SE 34th st. (just off Belmont)
Saturday, June 11 • 5:30 to 9pm

The Handmade Bazaar has been going strong for the past three and a half years, supporting young artisans and the handmade community. Meredith and Katie have created a tradition with these events, offering free space to local crafters of any skill level twice a year. This is a great place to find young innovators of new craft. Plus, there's always music and vegan treats. In the past it's been in their backyard, this year it moves to the Liberty Hall.
6th Annual Handmade Bazaar • Liberty Hall • 311 N Ivy St
Saturday, June 11th 10a to 4p • Sunday, June 12th, 10a to 5p

Tonight Disjecta does what they've always done best, performance, with a double-dutch jump-off between SF-based Double Dutchess and Seattle's On the Double. Expect costumes, choreography, camp and sass as these teams go head-to head (feet-to-feet?) to prove who's the best of the West. Also on the ticket is Daniel Addy's aerial dance group, Aviator, who defy the laws of gravity by walking on walls, suspending beneath bridges, and dancing in mid-air.

Disjecta • 230 E Burnside • Friday, June 10th • 9 p • $8

This weekend marks the 10th anniversary of PICA. Yes, it's been a whole decade.

LANDMARK: PICA'S 10th Anniversary Visual Exhibition celebrates the artists that have left their mark on PICA and Portland over the past ten years, including a "cover version" of Francis Alys "famous" Portland walk by Brad Adkins, a series of commissioned photographs by Mike Slack documenting the exhibition and new work by William Pope.L, Kate Shephard, Jeffry Mitchell, Carol Hepper, Nan Curtis, Joe Sola, Malia Jensen and Erika Blumenfeld {for a complete list of participants, visit PICA's website}.

Head out Saturday night for the LANDMARK party and exhibition opening.
Artwork by 32 artists + a DWR lounge + nibbles from Bluehour, Ripe, Masu (and more) + adult beverages + DJs = a bona fide fancy-pants birthday party. And they even promise surprises and cake, cake I tell you!

Birthday Party and Exhibition Opening • Saturday, June 11th • PICA Annex: NW 13th & Flanders • Tel. 503.242.1419 • $5 PICA Members, $10 General
LANDMARK runs through July 16 • Wed - Sat, 12-6 pm • free to PICA Members, $2 General

Julia Sherman at Newspace

NEW PHOTOGRAPHY
Newspace Center for Photography presents "New Photography", it’s 1st Annual National Juried Exhibition featuring 39 photographers from 16 states. Curated by Terry Toedtemeier, Mariana Tres and Chris Bennett, the exhibition includes color, black & white, digital, traditional silver and alternative processes. According to Toedtemeier, “The diversity of images in the 'New Photography' exhibit form a broad survey of the kinds of work being produces by emerging photographers today. The vitality of the show accrues to the richness of styles, humor, and varied traditional and digital media.” For a complete list of participants, see the Newspace website (click below).
Through June 26 • Opening June 3rd, 7 to 10p
Newspace • 1632 SE 10th Ave • Tel. 503.963.1935

JACQUELINE EHLIS
After Andy Coolquitt's over-stimulating, down-home, folk-inspired love-fest last month, Savage returns to more traditional gallery programming with Jacqueline Ehlis' "Vigor". Bolder and more confrontational than her earlier work, Ehlis' new paintings assert themselves as sculptural forms in the gallery space. Using a neon palette and abstract gestures, Ehlis' work is both visually seductive and formally challenging. Everybody's been chatting about this show for weeks now...
Savage Art Resources • 1430 SE Third Avenue • Tel. 503.230.0265

THRILL OF IT ALL
My pick of the night is tucked away on Produce Row at the Hall Gallery. "Thrill of it all" feaures sound + video + installation + performance. For those who don't know, Hall has been an artist run space for at least half a decade, showing the artists who house their studios there as well as their friends and collaborators. Literally and figuratively an "underground gallery", I've seen some of my favorite works there. This Friday, they're at it again with a few of Portland's best kept secrets Ryan Boyle and Zach Reno as well as SF-based photographer Tim Sullivan. Also showing are Jeff Kriksciun, Claudia Mendoza, Candice Lin, and Maggie Foster.
Opening 6 to 11p
The Hall Gallery • 630 SE Third Avenue

Ken Kelly at Pulliam Deffenbaugh

Portland's galleries are overflowing this month with fresh young talent. Thursday evening you might as well make a night of it...

ON 21ST
Don't miss the recent works of one of Portland's most promising young gems, Timothy Scott Dalbow at Laura Russo (in conjunction with the Carl and Hilda Morris Foundation Young Artist Exhibition). Dalbow's abstract landscapes capture Portland's architecture with a varied palette and a skilled and easy stoke. Also showing are Josh Arseneau (Paintings), Anna Daedalus (Photography), Anne Glynnis Fawkes (Paintings) and Eric Franklin (Glass Sculpture).
Through July 2, 2005 • Opening June 2, 5 to 8pm
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st Ave. • Tel. 503.226.2754

IN THE PEARL
Over 50 recent grads present their accomplishments and celebrate their new-found freedom at the reception for PNCA's Focus 2005 BFA exhibition. My picks are Alex Felton's stop animation drawings, Scott Porter's overly precise minimalist installation, Shawna Ferreira's restrained intaglios, Sarah Nordbye's custom commercial interiors and Patrick Meloy's towering neckties.
Through June 18 • Opening June 2, 6 to 9pm
PNCA • Steven's Studios • Corner of NW Johnson & NW 15th • Tel. 503.226.4391

Reminicient of Rorschachs, tattoos, spiderwebs and heavy metal, Ken Kelly presents "Babble" a new collection paintings on canvas at Pulliam Deffenbaugh. Impressive large patterned abstractions.
Through July 2 • Preview June 1, 5:30 to 7:30pm • Opening June 2, 5:30 to 8:30pm
Pulliam Deffenbaugh • 522 NW 12th Ave • Tel. 503.228.6665

CHINATOWN
Over in the Everett Station Lofts, Martin Ontiveros presents "Mestizo" a semi-autobiographical exhibition exploring the boundaries and borders of culture through a series of superheroes. See his bold, precise, graphic-inspired paintings at Genuine Imitation.
Through July 1• Opening June 2, 6 to 9pm
Genuine Imitation Gallery • 328 NW Broadway #116 • Tel. 503.241.3189

Motel is packed with the luminous large-scale works of local up-and-comer Jesse Durost. Inspired by the color palettes of Baroque painters, Durost works with coffee, India ink and gold paint pen to craft transcendental drawings bursting with fluidity and rhythm.
Through July 2• Preview June 1, 6 to 8pm • Opening June 2, 6:30 to 9:30pm
Motel • NW Couch St between 5th & 6th Aves • Tel. 503.222.6699

DOWNTOWN
Gallery 500 presents "Habitat", the culmination of a week-long on-site endeavor where six artists build their own shelters and inhabit them alongside one another. After Thursday night, the completed art habitats will transition from lived-in community to preserved ghost town, as only one artist remains in the space until June 1. Katrina Scotto di Carlo, Nana Hayashi, Marc Snegg, Jeff Stratford, Liz Harris, and Gabrielle Woladarski.
Through July 1 • Preview June 1, 6 to 8pm • Opening June 2, 6pm to midnight
Gallery 500 • 420 SW Washington, Suite 500 • Tel. 503.223.3951

ON THE EASTSIDE
You thought Disjecta was dead or maybe just sleeping? Not so. They've been hard at work securing a new home and a gradiose vision for contemporary art in Portland. Preview The Donut Shop 9 and Portland Modern's latest gallery installment as Disjecta energizes the Templeton Building with 8,000 (!) square feet of unfettered exhibition space.

Since 2000 The Donut Shop has been a forum for imaginative art in purposefully non-traditional environments with a total of eight incarnations of the yeasty project. Donut Shop 9 features the work of Alex Hubbard (NYC via PDX), Frank Parga (NYC), Melissa Dyne (LA), Jon Harris (Australia), Molly Dilworth and Daniel Heffernan (NYC).

Portland Modern, Mark Brandau's gallery-in-print, presents its second exhibition from the sophomore issue in the same building. Diedrich Dasenbrock offers vibrantly colored nighttime photographs while Don Olsen exhibits humorous improvisational paintings on recycled panels.

Special Preview June 2, 6 to 9pm • Opening reception, June 4th, 6 to 10pm.
Disjecta • the Templeton Building • 230 E Burnside (Under the Burnside Bridge on SE 3rd)

Jesse Durost at Motel