October surprises

October 1

Holocene presents T. Raumschmiere, Glass Candy and The Chromatics: a night of sleazy electro-fried glam/punk/electronic hybrids -

t.raumschmiere.com/front/index.php
myspace.com/glasscandy
www.goldstandardlabs.com/chrom...s.html

From their press release: T. Raumschmiere's notable skill is this: "his line-so-far of joybanging singles and especially remixes (of Goldfrapp, KomÎit, 2raumwohnung): Monstertruckdriver, the track one imagines led the New York Times itself to compare his music to "a monster truck rolling through a rave." (And this was even after they resumed double-checking to make sure their stories were, like, true: you can't argue with that.)"



October 1-2

The Portland Art Museum opens their contemporary wing in the old Masonic Temple. www.pam.org is a small art museum with a collection that is patchy broad and of varying depth, but they sure can raise money! The director's passion for French realism and impressionalism of the 18th and 19th century is somewhat tempered by the realization that contemporary art is where it is now in Portland. The contemporary curator, Bruce Guenther, has a strong eye for photography, our left coast flavor of painting, and occasional diversions into installation and sculpture. Right now with the demise of PICA's art programs, they are filling a needed role. If you are a member of the museum, tour the new wing Saturday, it's open to everyone Sunday. The primary value of any museum is to preserve and contectualize the past in art, useful, but never on the front edge. They do run a biennial art contest which greatly benefits local artists who often gain gallery representation as a result. They also collect local artists on a small scale.

The art museum has free admission October 2-16



October 2

On Sunday, Oct. 2 from 10-11:30am, PNCA, in conjunction with the Affair at Jupiter Hotel, hosts Wayne Koestenbaum who will give a talk about poetry, art writing, desire, and hotels. Koestenbaum is the author of 4 books of poetry, a new novel, and numerous articles about contemporary art and culture. His writing on Andy Warhol, Jackie Onassis, opera, identity politics, and fashion is some of the most intelligent and passionate criticism around. Koestenbaum is a professor of English at the City University of New York and a visiting professor at the Yale School of Art. Free and open to the public at PNCA.



October 5

Holocene presents the short films of Portland filmmaker Chel White. Chel White www.skysociety.com/chelwhite.html will be celebrating the release of a DVD compilation of many of those films "Fever Dreams and Heavenly Nightmares" tonight. The event is free.


Pacific Switchboard at Albina Press reprises Rose McCormick's Dovetail project in which she delivered 800 hand drawn and painted postcards to neighbors in North Portland. 7-10. 4637 N Albina


Preopenings at the usual suspects.



October 6 First Thursday

Mark Woolley Gallery presents "The Politics of Experience" by Tom Cramer. Cramer is known for his murals and painted vehicles www.tomcramer.net/pages/jungle1.htm - oh that guy. His recent body of lushly pigmented abstract low relief carvings in wood www.tomcramer.net/pages/redwood.htm was developed in collaboration with the late Portland artist and traveler Cassie Wright. Tom's aesthetics could loosely associate him with visionary artists, you decide. Opening 1st Thursday 120 NW 9th, and Saturday Oct 8 noon-8 in the Wonder Ballroom Woolley space.


Viewers may be interested in John Mace's installation at the Nine Gallery inside Blue Sky Gallery NW Hoytx13th. Mace's ambitious installation combines water and video projection. He is also known for his installatons at the Portland Art Center, themed on the medical travails of his family. Mace is about 85% there, putting him ahead of most other Portland installationalists. Judge for yourself.


Motel presents Megan Whitmarsh's ( tinyindustries.com ) Crystal Logic - sparse compositions of tiny characters.


Compound presents Monster - an international take on the theme - with work by Charles Glaubitz, Gordon Wiebe, Jon Burgerman, David Barneda, David Lee, Kristian Olson, Saiman Chow, Teriyaki Tagashira, Rokutaku Sakamoto and Gen ( justbedesign.com )


Visage presents drawings by Kendra Larson ( kendralarson.com ) of Oregon forests cleansed by fire. Larson's work represents a nascent forest fire meme including Chandra Bocci's "blaze - celebrity hair" in Fresh Trouble ( freshtrouble.com ) and Justine Kurland/Jonathan Raymond's "Old Joy ( www.artbook.com/1891273051.html )


Gallery 500 presents an emergency replacement show - installations by Portland's fashion community, and, on first Thursday, a fashion show at 8:30


The Everett Station Lofts should be highly variable, but will never be dull. Some I know of: Trish Grantham at Genuine Imitation, Dan Ness at Pause


Pulliam Deffenbaugh and PDX open their new spaces at 925 NW Flanders


Kim Hamblin shows her collaborations with street kids at p:ear


Fashion mavens may sample fashion shows at 7 and 8PM at Urbaca 120 NW 9th themed on pink - see ultrapdx.com for details.


October 7 First Friday

The usual suspects Fix, NAAU and Newspace photo present evening openings.


Laurel Gitlen opens her new gallery space, Small A Projects. "Adopting a strategy that combines the best attributes of commercial galleries with the experimental attitude of alternative exhibition spaces, Small A Projects will present exhibitions and projects with emerging and underrecognized artists as well as more established artists." Her first show is ALL I WANT IS EVERYTHING, "a group show celebrating the transcendental, transformative and humorous aspects of heavy metal and rock and roll" featuring Michael Bise (Houston), Barb Choit (Vancouver/NY), Zoe Crosher (LA), Craig Doty (New Haven), Erik Hanson and Josh Mannis (Chicago). www.smallaprojects.com


The Portland Art Center www.portlandart.org/ ) presents an artist talk with James Jack on his current show Natura Naturans, an ephemeral installation and print study. Artist talk—6:30 pm, reception follows 7-10 with drinks and Japanese snacks. Portland Art Center, 2045 SE Belmont St. Portland, OR 97214



October 7-9

HP Lovecraft Film Festival materializes at the Hollywood Theater Friday-Sunday October 7th- 9th.

The festival features films, panel discussions and artwork on Lovecraftian themes.

Author Lovecraft (1890-1937) is considered to be the father of modern horror, more focused on dark occult themed stories than what passes today for horror in cinema. Afflicted with childhood disease, he suffered from poikilothermism leaving his body cold to the touch. He also suffered insomnia and is reported to have written for 60 hours without sleep to complete one story. His prolific letter writing, over 87 thousand letters in his lifetime, qualifies him as the first blogger. His father was hospitalized for psychosis when Lovecraft was 3 and remained so for the rest of his life, later his mother was committed to the same asylum. He suffered a nervous breakdown at age 18, never completing high school. Many of his stories were inspired by his nightmares.

There will be a live performance by Patti Smith OG buddhist-punk-poet-rocker 11:30 Saturday at the festival.

www.hplfilmfestival.com/schedule.htm


also October 7,8,9

"the edge of the fell" a dance piece by Linda Austin w/ Cidney Wilkes, Karla Betts, Lilly Chamberlain, Anne Furfey, Rebecca Harrison, Kathleen Keogh, Paige McKinney & Emily Stone. I have not seen this work, but includes visual design by Portland artist Linda Hutchens. Oct 7,8 8PM Oct 9 2, 8 $15/12 students - performanceworksnw.org



October 8,9,15,16

The Portland open studios presents this proposition: artists pay $160 to apply to a jury for selection. If not selected, $150 is returned. Portlandopenstudios.com displays an image on their website and sells a guide for $12 with a map to the studios of artists selected admitting 2. See the website for details.



October 12

TJ Norris opens at the Chambers Gallery - chambersgallery.org



October 13

Intelligent Design officially opens their new store filled with seductive minimalist design, international style from 5-8 at 537 SE 12. The store is in the vintage building rehabed by Portland architect, Jeff Kovel, designer of the Doug Fir/Jupiter Hotel. Thx Lisa at ultrapdx.com for the tip.


Gus VanZant's first film, Male Noche, celebrates its 20th anniversary with a screening to benefit Outside In and the Social Justice Fund.

"An independent film in the truest sense, Van Sant financed Mala Noche after saving $25,000 from his tenure at a New York advertising agency. Based on Walt Curtis’ novella, Mala Noche is a tale of doomed love between a gay liquor store clerk and a Mexican immigrant. Filmed in Portland’s Old Town and starring Tim Streeter, Doug Cooeyate, Ray Monge and Nyla McCarthy, Mala Noche features some of the director's hallmarks, notably the sensitive portrayals of societal outcasts, an unfulfilled romanticism, a dry sense of the absurd, and the refusal to treat homosexuality as something deserving of judgment.

Shot in black-and-white, Mala Noche earned its director almost overnight acclaim on the festival circuit, with the Los Angeles Times naming it the year's Best Independent Film. Over the past two decades Van Sant has gone on to wider acclaim with a filmography that includes Drugstore Cowboy, To Die For, Good Will Hunting, Elephant, and Last Days."

Mala Noche takes place Thursday, Oct. 13 at 8pm at Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell Street in Portland. Tickets (subject to service charges) are $15 general admission or $75 for patron tickets (which includes a catered pre-screening reception with Van Sant at the Mark Woolley Gallery, downstairs from the Wonder Ballroom



Local 35 hosts its Hawthorne Second Thursday, October 13th 6-10PM

Local painters Brett and Whitney Superstar, who represent regularly at 1st Thursday's Urban Art Network on NW 13th street as well as Alberta's Last Thursday open their show at Local 35. Their often figurative or landscape themed work is characterized by heavy black outlines and an off saturated palette. These hardworking artists and their faithful dog have traveled widely, working hard to self represent themselves as artists. (Note another Portland artist, Trish Grantham, who has done the same, has been able to quit her day job, showed in September at Local 35, has been signed by a NY/London-based gallery)

Dj Barrett Ryker from Portland's PGE provides sounds. 10% off the entire store during show, 6-10p that night...



October 18

Saving the world from mass production, Portland craft superheroes Susan Beal, Torie Nguyen, Rachel O'Rourke and Cathy Pitters host a book release party for "Super Crafty" st the Doug Fir Lounge. Doors 8, show 9, MC'd by Andrew Dickson and including Olympia softrocker Rebecca Pearcy, Millions of Birds and Roy Tinsel. FREE

More info and a host of craftactivism information at www.pdxsupercrafty.com/



October 19

An experimental participatory movement experience, Axolotl, will occur Wednesday. October 19 at the Mississippi Rising Ballroom at 8PM. It is presented by Seattle movers with backgrounds including contact improv dance.

In Axolotl, you are invited to place a blindfold over your eyes and spend two hours interacting and exploring with each other and a group of actors, dancers, and musicians. There are no rules per se, other than that you are asked to keep your blindfold on until asked to remove it. The piece is not a singular event on a stage, but a multiplicity of events occurring simultaneously in the minds of the members of the audience... an experience of movement, touch, theater, conversation, soundscape, environment and interpersonal interaction. The performers come to the space with a shared culture of investigation, rather than a specific pattern of experiences to give the audience. The audience interacts with each other while the performers offer possibilities and challenges, kinesthetic and psychological. One could call it an improvisation with an intuitively apprehended search for meaning. What arises is a co-creation amongst those present…

$12 advance/$15 door, more background including reviews at www.toishou.org/Axolotl.html



October 20 Thinking about art school?

California College of the Arts CCA (nee CCAC) presents an open house Saturday afternoon at the Kennedy School. As the balance of aesthetics shifts West, CCA has become a major player along with UCLA, Art Center and Cal Arts. The graduate program in studio arts allows students to use a chunk of their weighty private school tuition to hire any named artist they can recruit as a mentor. Larry Rinder, enfant terrible curator of the 2002 Whitney Biennial, and curator of some Portland artists into that biennial (Miranda July, Harrell Fletcher), is dean of grad studies. Graduate programs presentation noon, undergrad 2PM. Details on art programs at www.cca.edu RSVP for the presentations and discussions with admissions and financial aid at 415-703-9523



October 27

Ryan McGinness, an artist whose stenciled sensibilities cross to very non commercial installation and very commercial graphic design speaks Thusday October 27 at 7PM. McGinness' work www.ryanmcginness.com combines two of my favorite aesthetic vectors, clean lines- bright colors- pop and maddening complexity. McGinness will sign copies of a new book Installationview ryanmcginness.com/pdf/insta...onview.pdf after the talk. Talk sponsored by the Art Institute and PICA. $10/ $8 AI students,PICA members. PICA/ W+K atrium 224 NW 13th

Pacific Switchboard est mort, yet may rise again...

Last Thursday at Pacific Switchboard October 27
"take my life, please"

Help commerorate the end of our time with The Albina Press Cafe by
joining in the destruction of Jennifer Gleach's installation "altar
ego". This incredible labyrinth of ephemera is comprised of the
artist's entire collection of collage materials including fabric,
metal, wood, and x-rays.

"altar ego" will be on view as a whole on October 9th, 16th, and 23rd
from 12-4 pm.
last Thursday hours will be 6-10pm on October 27th. All visitors this
evening will be encouraged to steal this art.

Pacific Switchboard is located at 4637 N. Albina Ave.
for more info please call 503-515-7319


October 29, 30

Studio 333 stages its annual studio open house and sale. This long time artists' studio has survived speakeasy, Russian disco and now ultra hipster downstairs neighbors plus the travails of the fire martial to produce a lot of great art. 333 NE Hancock St Saturday 4-9, Sunday noon-4

And

The new Portland Modern catalog #3 is out and available free about town. This instance includes excellent work by two recent PSU MFA grads. Holly Andres - working in installation and video ( www.marylhurst.edu/artgym/i...ndres.jpg ) has a great DVD, Brave New Girl. Mariana Tres, photographer, installation artist and performer makes work that would be at home in the Museum of Jurassic Technology, but focused on her discoveries of the lost work of creative women in a faux performance that works. Also included is TJ Norris, known for his sound art gallery, making loose minimalist abstractions. Norris has a show later in the month at the Chambers Gallery. Though some have been critical of the application fees for artists submitting work to Portland Modern, the free publication is not breaking even. They did distribute 1000 copies at the Jupiter Affair art show to gallerists and collectors, including out of towners.