Saturday, May 25, 2013

May 25 May Ragas

Yoga Shala hosts a concert of ragas by Michael Stirling and his students. At Yoga Shala 3808 N Williams 8PM Donation

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

May 20-26 Experimental Experiment

The Portland Experimental Film Festival happens throughout this week at various venues. See www.effportland.com

Saturday, May 18, 2013

May 19 Birding

Portland illustrator Trish Grantham has new stuff now. Grantham's work is instantly recognizable to Portlanders. She is an early put a bird on it artist. Some of her work has become signboards by cafes and even material for the big ad agency. Tonight is a reception for Grantham's new work. At Stumptown Division stumptowncoffee.com/trish-granthama-sympathetic-seaart-at-division-may-2013/ 4PM-6 Free

May 18 Radio Rogue Sound Plain High Who

Radio is magic. I'm an engineer, with deep specialization in the field. Even to me it is magic, though not in its mechanics, but in the ethnographies of its application. The first radio receivers were crystal radios. The same principal then, the electrical properties of rocks, is at work today in microchips of ultra purified sand. Artist Stephanie Symek is interested in the magic of radio too. She has made an art installation, Radio Room, of a crystal radio and other artifacts, such as rare earth magnets, of her own construction.

Rogue Waves is geometric op art illustration by Nathanael Thayer Moss. It is a pun; op art is a visual system artifact, not produced by [wave] diffraction.

Safe & Sound? is a video installation and website by Portland community members, journalists and artists Julie Perini, Jodi Darby, Erin Yanke, Amelia Cates, Christopher Hamann and Ian Wallace. Its theme is the power relationship between police and community. The creators also participate in a discussion: Socially & Politically Engaged Art, Sunday, May 19th 4PM-6 in the gallery.

Off the Plain is a group show curated by TJ Norris including artists Ben Buswell, Brooks Dierdorff, Jacqueline Ehlis, Melanie Flood, Ted Hiebert, Harrison Higgs, Tricia Hoffman, Joshua Kim, Heidi Kirkpatrick, Sarah Knobel, Elizabeth Papadopoulos, Richard Schemmerer, Michael Sell, Jennifer Vaughn, Chao Wang, Colleen Woolper and Bea Nettles.

All at Place, www.placepdx.com a gallery on the 3rd floor of the Pioneer Place Mall along with the People's art of Portland and the Woolley Gallery. If the mall appears closed, enter the film theater building adjacent, travel through the tunnel to the Place mall, and take the elevator to the 3rd floor, sometimes the bridge on the 3rd floor is open too. 700 SW Fifth. 5PM-9 Free

At the same location, the Mark Woolley Gallery and People's Art of Portland will likely be eventing.



There is a theory that it is a universal human need to get high. People climb mountains, trees, fly and even go into space to slip the surly bonds of earth. People like to dance too. Combine them and you have aerial dance.

Early aerial dance in Portland was established by Do Jump, with a focus on children's classes. Robert Davidson, a national pioneer in aerial choreography, choreographed a scene for the Portland Center Stage production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Davidson created a lyrical work informed by Skinner Releasing Technique. A performers in those works spread branches through a series of Portland dance units: Aero Betty, Pendulum and AWOL. It is the brave desire of these performers to get high and our pleasure to be audience to them.

AWOL, Aerial Without Limits, opens their studios this evening for a student performance at a very reasonable price. At AWOL www.awoldance.org 2303 N Randolph, back of building, enter at A-WOL door in gravel lot. Tickets http://www.awoldance.org/2013/05/a-wol-2013-student-showcase/ 7PM $5



In art, annuals, biennials and other periodic competitive group shows are olympics. They are not scored, but they are curated. The curator, with their singular vision, sifts thousands of artists to select a handful. Once upon a time, the Portland Art Museum hosted a biennial group show. It was a bold move: it is unusual for collecting museums to be interested in the local region. They have little incentive to do so in the museum value system. The local focus here was driven by philanthropists the Schnitzers. Arleen Schnitzer had one of the first art galleries in Portland, the Fountain, operating from 1961-1977. Local and regional collectors, the Schnitzers, have been a strong force in encouraging the museum to collect locally and engage the local art community. The Oregon biennial relocated a few years ago from the Museum to Disjecta. In a bold and savvy move, Disjecta has invited an out of town curator, Amanda Hunt, based in LA and operating internationally, to select the 2014 biennial. Her resume is on the Disjecta website.

Tonight there is a reception for Hunt, an opportunity to sense her aesthetic interests in person. She will be introduced by Disjecta curator Summer Guthery, with a short Q&A. At 923 NW Flanders 6PM Free

Thursday, May 16, 2013

May 17-19 Engaging Open Engagement

Social Practice art is relatively new, though it has roots going back. Portland Oregon is a world center for Social Practice Art studies. Today those centers include Chicago, San Francisco and maybe London. So art types come here for the only conference on social practice art. They practice exchanging ideas, likely leading to experiments and classes elsewhere. The conference is packed with talks, panels and meals. Best of all it's entirely free. Most venues are in walking radius downtown. See the entire schedule at www.openengagement.info Friday, Saturday, Sunday 10PM-midnight Free (except Shine a Light at the Museum Friday evening)

May 17 Shine a Light All Over Again

Shine a Light is what happens when social practice artists take over the Museum and create a series of interactive tableau throughout its many galleries. In the courtyard and many spaces in the Masonic Temple Building there is food and drink. It's about as filled as the Museum ever gets and as late night as galleries go. Flirty, friendly and conversational. You can see the whole schedule here: www.portlandartmuseum.org/document.doc?id=103. There is often a waity line for admission, so picking up hard tickets in advance is recommended. The cost is a regular Museum admission, good all day, come early before the crush if you like. Members are free, so by becoming a member, you can save admission. Shine a Light at the Portland Art Museum, a production of the PSU Social Practice Art program www.pam.org 1219 SW Park 6PM-midnight $15, $12 students

Friday, May 10, 2013

May 11 No 5upremacy

Gallery Homeland hosts Activated Complex curated by Julie Perini and Jodie Cavalier. Two completely different artists. It's Trojan Horse, Brian King; Salt Lick, Allison Halter; Human ontology – why we are the way we are, Helli Kontinnen; Transmission, Ernest Wedoff & Tim Ferrell and Uncertainty Principle. At the same time is Happening #5 by the PSU time arts club. Modeled after 1980's NY events organized by Warhol, Portland's happening tonight includes time-based painting by Kaila Farrall-Smith, 16mm film projections by Colin Manning, video Performances via Buenos Aires by Daniela de Sarasqueta, a visit from the Future by Bugenhagen, Soup Purse, Portland Bike Ensemble, Manny & Lyrels. It is all part of the Portland Experimental Film Festival. Wow, just wow. At Gallery Homeland www.galleryhomeland.org in the Ford Building www.fordbuildingpdx.com 2505 SE 11th x Division. Enter through the cafe on the corner if the main doors on 11th are locked. all ages 6PM-9 Free



Vancouver is a suburb of Portland. I'm mystified by it. But this weekend they are hosting a b-boy/b-girl battle, Street Supremacy. It's an all day into evening event. 11 starts preliminary rounds. Noon is a junior-adults battle. 2 is 2on2 all style battles. 6 is the championships and guests Elm & Dancers and Beat Freaks. It is at Skyview High School. Details and directions to the suburbs at the link on the facebook: www.facebook.com/events/329843243802311 11AM-9:30PM $20 attend, $25 to compete, which is a little weird

May 10 Fly Room

New York artist Hayley Silverman presents a performance Fly Room tonight at 9PM Sharp. At Appendix Project Space www.appendixspace.com On the alley between 26th and 27th, South of Alberta. Map 9PM arrive early Free

Thursday, May 09, 2013

May 9-11 Compassion and the Earth

Compassion is a human value learned when we are babies. A little older, many of us apply the principle to the natural environment and all its non-human actors. Yes that is a jump, but it definitely falls into the realm of self actualization. The earth and its environment need a counterbalancing force to the forces of raw short term economic exploitation. It is not clear that we have enough compassion, or even common sense as a species, to balance exploitation and sustainability.

The indigenous nature-based religions of the world have a strong tradition of that balance. Without the tools of the scientific method and with a mystic view of nature, perhaps destructive exploitation did not occur to them. And without vast machinery of industry, their ability to exploit beyond sustainability was limited.

Christianity's "multiply and subdue" passage, coupled with the tools of industry, has resulted, though not necessarily by intelligent design, in a culture of unsustainable exploitation of nature. That is not to say that philosophy is shared by all Christians, or that there have not been Christians with a focus on sustainability. One need only look at the work of Thomas Merton.

Taoism, with strong roots in nature, proposes a balance between man and nature. Modern Buddhism has addressed the question too. This week is a series of talks in Portland and Eugene by the Dalai Lama and others on the application of compassion and spirituality to environmental sustainability.

The events are long since sold out. But each event is being webcast live. Free!

May 9: “Spirituality & the Environment” at the University of Portland 9AM-11:30
Live webcast can be viewed at http://www.dalailama.com/live-portland9am

May 9: “Universal Responsibility & the Inner Environment” at the University of Portland 1:30PM-3
Live webcast can be viewed at http://www.dalailama.com/live-portland9pm

May 10: “Life and After Life” at Maitripa College 9AM-11
Live webcast can be viewed at http://www.dalailama.com/live-portland10am

May 10: “The Path to Peace and Happiness in the Global Society” at the University of Oregon’s Matthew Knight Arena 1:30-3:30
Live webcast can be viewed at http://www.uoregon.edu/

May 11: “Universal Responsibility & the Global Environment” at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland 9:30AM-11
Live webcast can be viewed at http://www.dalailama.com/live-portland11am

May 11: “Inspiration for the Global Environment” at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum 1:30PM-3:30
Live webcast can be viewed at http://www.dalailama.com/live-portland11pm

The webcasts are also available at http://youtube.com/dalailama or http://www.dalailama.com/liveweb.

All times Pacific time, now GMT-7.

We live in an era of spiritual remix. Each of us today can construct a personal spiritual system from samples of many available. Maybe a little Buddhist compassion for sustainability and the environment is a good sample for each of us to include?

Live, learn, act (compassionately).

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

May 8 Innovation is Free

Quality is free was a realization beginning in the 1960's applied to space manufacturing. Innovation, progressively driven out of American business, is free too. It is just that management does not want to pay for it. Writer Bruce Nussbaum discusses his book Creative Intelligence: Harnessing the Power to Create, Connect, and Inspire. He also speaks at 4 tomorrow at Ziba but reservations are closed. At Ecotrust 721 NW 9th noon-1 Free



Bullseye Glass is a world class manufacturer of glass sheet, powder and rod, right here in Portland. They also operate a gallery and glass art residencies. We don't cover glass art here because it has its own aesthetics and collector base, distinct from contemporary art. Tonight is a rare opportunity to tour the Bullseye factory. The local chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Arts sponsors a tour tonight. You can register at this link. At Bullseye Glass 3610 SE 21st 6PM $10



The first year students of the joint OCAC and PNCA MFA in applied contemporary craft present a show tonight. At the Bison Building, 3610 SE 21st 6PM-9 Free