Wednesday, November 24, 2010

November 30 Place is the Space at Curiosity Club

Tonight Portland industrial design mecca Hand Eye Supply hosts a talk by Portland cyborg anthropologist Amber Case. Case is interested in applying ethnographic analysis to today's and tomorrow's human-machine interactions. She is also a principal at a leading location-based mobile concern and noted visionary in that space. At Hand Eye Supply www.handeyesupply.com 23 NW 4th 5:30PM Free

November 28 Lucky Dragons Battle

Lucky Dragons is artist-musicians Luke Fischbeck and Sarah Rara. Their work plies the edges of open source and social practice; open edition to exclusive; free to precious. There is more in previous posts, and their talk at the PSU Monday Night Lecture series was fascinating. Their music project visits this evening. All ages. At Holocene www.holocene.org 1001 SE Morrison 8:30PM $14, $12 advance



Portland is not the hip hop capital of the world. But like everywhere, it has an active b-boy/b-girl community. In that amazing world, an interchange of moves and creativity, B-Boy/Girls battle in a nonviolent way. We need more of that. Tonight is the first of a six session battle for cash money, and feeing into a West Coast competition. In a dramatic oddity, the competition takes place in a boxing ring erected in the venue for another event. Judges for th efirst round are Dirty Abe, Sacramento/ Flexible Flav; Mattia Rufy, Italy/ Livin Dead Army. Rick, Seattle/ Misguided Steps; Demy Andre, PDX; Ibraham Ra Boogie, PDX and Brian Mightymoves Baker, PDX. Live performances by Lil Texiz, Anam8tion, Logic, Late Davis and Kyle Baltus. At Bossanova Ballroom 722 E Burnside. 5PM $5

November 27 Belly Ragas

This monthly belly dance cabaret includes some compelling performers tonight: troupe Scarlet Thistle; soloists Danielle Smith, NagaSita, Jewels, Bevin Victoria, Endymienne; and hooping by Shpongled Hoops. Live music throughout by the Juan Prophet Organization. At Vino Vixens, 2929 SE Powell Blvd. 7:30PM $10



Portland has a small community of people who love Indian music. A longtime teacher and performer is Michael Stirling. Joined by Aran Adams on tabla; Derek Ecklund and Bobek Djeyfroudi on tamburas, he presents an evening of Autumn ragas, in an otherwise quiet yoga studio, tonight. Stirling has studied deeply with Pandit Pran Nath and Terry Riley, both innovators in their own ways. A special evening. At Yoga Shala North www.yogashalapdx.com 3808 N Williams 7PM by donation

November 26 Free Art Museum Day

The Portland Art Museum is free this evening after 5. Always a good thing. At the Portland Art Museum www.pam.org 1219 SW Park 5PM-9 Free

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

November 21 Research Club Brunch, Public Art and Weird Fiction

The Research Club is back - from a trip to Europe. They invite you to one of their research pot luck brunches today. Speakers include Alan Waxman, a landscape anthropologist; Chris Teso, co-founder of The GOOD, Portland branding agency; Olivia Everett, an artist, discusses her project on mining in her Montana home town; Nim Wunnan on the Research Club Heavy Meta Tour, and a documentary on artist run spaces; with experimental piano, drums duo Why I Must Be Careful. Bring vegan or vegetarian-friendly brunch food, arrive early, stay to talk. A project of research-club.org At PNCA www.pnca.edu 1241 NW Johnson Map Noon-3 Free



The Art Museum has a panel discussion on public art. It's connected to the show of sculptor Lee Kelly's work. His large metal sculptures may be seen around town. The panelists sound interesting: playwright, planner, artist provocateur Tad Savinar; leading force in social practice art, which operates in public, Harrell Fletcher; and Sandra Percival director of YU, a new Portland art center and former director of the Public Art Development Trust in London. The event will be moderated by Tim DuRoche, director of programs at the World Affairs Council. In Whitsell Auditorium at the Portland Art Museum www.pam.org 1219 SW Park. 2PM-3 $12, $5 members



Artist Mack McFarland has organized a show of video, to be accompanied live by Church No. 9, experimental musicians with a rotating lineup. Tonight they will be Tim DuRoche, Reed Wallsmith, John Savage and genius bassist Fred Chalenor. At Valentines valentineslifeblood.blogspot.com 232 SW Ankeny 9PM

November 20 Tribute to Ali Akbar Kahn

The great sarod player Ali Akbar Kahn passed last year leaving many recordings, such as this one with Ravi Shankar and Alla Rakha from 1971. Local presenters of Indian music, who brought Kahn to Portland in 1989 and 1994, present a tribute tonight. Alam Kahn, Ali Akbar Kahn's son, on sarod is accompanied by Vishal Nagar on tabla. Presented by Kalakendra www.kalakendra.org at the First Congregational Church, 1126 SW Park Avenue. 7:30PM $20 advance, $25 door, free for members.

Monday, November 15, 2010

November 19 Heidi Schwegler and Tomonari Nishikawa at Disjecta

Portland sculptor Heidi Schwegler opens a show at Disjecta this evening. Her past work has channeled vaguely disturbing material themed on medicine and the body. For this show, she expands into the space with installation and video projection. Tomonari Nishikawa also has an installation, and speaks and shows films made in Japan, organized by the Cinema Project. Art openings at Disjecta www.disjecta.org 8371 N Interstate 6-10PM Free

November 18 Art Spark Cart

Art Spark. Portland's monthly arts networking happy hour is at the Eastside dive bar the Goodfoot. It's not as improbable as you might think, as the Goodfoot sells quite a bit of generally outsider art from its gallery walls monthly. Most of the evening is engaging conversations with artists and arts administrators, in both visual and performing arts. There will be a short presentation at 6PM by Profile theater, with an excerpt from their current play. www.portlandartspark.com At the Goodfoot www.thegoodfoot.com/gallery 2845 SE Stark Map 5PM-7 Free



The Art Department is a multi-space, hosting many visual art events and short run shows. They are also an event rental space with catering connections, conveniently next to a microdistiller. Tonight they host the release party for a book on Portland food carts, Cartopia. And come to think about it, an afterlife without food carts would be sad.

One of the Art Department cofounders is cowriter to the book. It's a history and manifesto, tracing the connections between locavore culture, great chefs, Portland's evolutionary-experimental culture and the new economy. It's packed with interviews and photographs, of the cartrepreneurs; and architects, planners and City officials. No doubt this book will be the seed of a cart revolution in many cities to come.

For the release, there will be a show of photography from the book, musicians, food, beer and wine, as well as Dino Tarot(!). The event is also the terminus of a food cart bike tour.

At the Art Department www.artdeptpdx.com 1315 SE 9th Avenue Map 6PM-10 Free

November 15 Signal Fire Crossing

Signal Fire is a locally-adapted artist residency program in tents in the Mt Hood forest. There was an opening of resulting artwork November 4, see the notes here for that date for more information. One of the coorganizers, Ryan Pierce talks about the project and his own artistic inspirations. Talk in the Shattuck Hall Annex out front, 1914 SW Park Avenue, at the corner of SW Broadway and Hall on the PSU campus. 7:30PM Free



Bright Lights explores the Columbia River I5 transportation project tonight. The series is a meetup of architects, developers and influential volunteer civic leaders connected to the Portland City Club. So that it is being discussed there says something. I have an amateur interest in planning and architecture, and my thoughts on the project have evolved, and are certainly not settled. The project has many moving parts. The bridges themselves; light rail; Hayden Island as a port, big box sales tax free mecca or blank land for developing thousands of condo-apartments in a flood plain; a giant smooth moving gently curved interchange at Marine Drive for triple trailer trucks; saving a Safeway, Hooters and the Jantzen mobile home park; what happens to downtown Vancouver and how it connects to neighborhoods to the East of I5; tens of thousands of Clark County residents working in Portland while craving cheaper housing, income tax arbitrage in dual income families, a more wealthy K-12 and university system, or the elusive 5 acre lot; a desire to spend roughly equally on interchanges between the states; air pollution in North Portland; bikes and walkers; the architecture of the bridges; an old airfield nearby; future federal transportation funding decreases and future election impacts on key House and Senate committee chair positions; the effect of the Alaskan Way project in draining available Washington funds - I'm sure there are many more parts too.

The presenters fall into the skeptics of the current highway department plans. They are Bill Scott, general manager of Zipcar’s Portland office; economist Joe Cortright, presenting an analysis of car volume and financing projections; and urban planner George Crandall who has a plan for upgrading the 3 current bridges and adding two more. They will be interviewed by Randy Gragg, noted regional planning and architecture editor, writer and journalist.

At Jimmy Mak's, 221 NW 10th. Doors 5:30PM, discussion 6. Free

Thursday, November 11, 2010

November 14 Circle Science

Circle Science is a B-Boy-B-Girl battle. It has a 2on2 breakin' battle and a 2on2 all styles battle, with urban dance in the mix. 2on2 judged by Tim Chips, Fraggle Rock (WA) and One8Kevin, Moon Patrol. All styles judged by Beau Sem, Groove Nation and Evie Graham of Vega Dance Lab. Performance battles by crews Floor Invaders vs New Birth and Mightee Moves vs M-PO. Exhibition performances by LDT, Push Jones and Remix. After party (21+) at Report. Circle Science at Bossanova Ballroom 722 E Burnside. Doors 5PM, event 6. $15

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

November 13 A Night of Exquisite Possibilities

Portland artist Amy Ruppel, opens her studio for a sale this evening. She shows many spots around town, but is well known as the champion of the online sale, so get on her mailing list. It's in the Ford Building, one of Southeast Portland's creative hubs, with Gallery Homeland programming the lobby, and Pushdot Studios taking a first floor space. At Ruppel World Headquarters in the Ford Building, 2505 SE 11thxDivision Studio #254. 6PM-10



Lewis and Clark College's ethnomusicology program has a gamelan, an orchestra of cast bronze percussion and supplemental instruments from Indonesia. They are tuned together in their making, making each gamelan, and this one numbers over 60 instruments, unique. It's been part of the music program at the college since 1980. Tonight is a public concert marking the 30th anniversary of the gamelan ensemble the Venerable Showers of Beauty.

The performance will be led by noted shadow puppet performer from UC Berkeley, Ki Midiyanto, with guest musicians from Gamelan Pacifica at Cornish and Lewis & Clark’s Friends of Rain New Music Ensemble.

The program will include traditional music and modern gamelan music by composer Lou Harrison, famous for incorporating world music elements into 20th Century composition.

The concert will be in Evans Auditorium, toward the back of the campus, leave time for parking and navigation. At Evans Auditorim, Lewis & Clark College. 8PM $15, $10 students and seniors.



Disjecta holds its annual auction of great Portland artists this evening. It's an impressive list, and the sale supports the operation of the art center which does an amazing amount of programming on a very thrifty budget. The list of artists is here. Guest auctioneers are the always entertaining Dave Allen and Andrew Dickson. Live music by Church No. 9. These events are great fun, lively, packed with Portland creatives and conversation. At Disjecta www.disjecta.org 8371 N Interstate 7-11PM $20

November 11-13 Human Nature

The Northwest and the Southwest are duals, a kind of mirror image. But they share a mystical reverence for the dramatic landscape. So it would be natural that artists would collaborate between regions, making landscape-inspired work. That is tonight, when Human Nature, primarily based in Arizona, but with Northwest ingredients, performs. They present Animal Etiquite inspired by animals on the land. We forget sometimes I think that we are animals on the land too. Performance at The Headwaters, an intimate theater in N Portland. There is also a film by the group and discussion Sunday. Details and ticket information at witdpresents.org 55 NE Farragut St. #9 8PM $18 advance, $23 door. Students $15 Advance $20 door

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

November 11 Cinema Provocateur

The Art Museum series of artist talks continues with filmaker musician McCormick. Each artist has chosen a work from the collection and discusses with the audeience how it inspires them. At the Portland Art Museum www.pam.org 1219 SW Park 6PM-8 $5 members, otherwise regular admission $12 so tour the Museum before

Friday, November 05, 2010

November 6 More Art

What is a curator? A curator is someone who sees a lot of art and is unafraid to fit the work and the artists into their own very brainy catalog system of interests and subjective quality. Then they do the reverse, carefully unpacking selected artists and works from that catalog into a show. Portland artist Chris Johanson, then in San Francisco, was curated into the Whitney as curator Rinder, scanning for new artists and movements reached down from the heavens, in a deus et machina move, and selected Johanson in 2002. There is no rule that artists can't be curators. So now Johansen is up to same, but with a Johanson vibe. He has selected works for "I Found This, This That Had Already Been Found" from submitted work by PSU grads, of any major, for a show at PSU. Artist reception in the Autzen Gallery, Second Floor of PSU Neuberger Hall, Room 205, 724 SW Harrison 5PM-9 Free



On a related note, the weekend long Society for Photographic Education conference hosts a talk "Photographic Practice as Social Tool With and Without a Camera" by Harrell Fletcher at Blue Sky. Not sure on admission, contact Newspace 503-963-1935. At Blue Sky 7PM-8 Reception follows.



Lyrik opens drawings and sculpture by Erik White & Adrian Melnick. This is one of the few cafes we note because they have had a well thought out art program from the beginning. At Lyrik Cafe www.lyrikpdx.com 2035 SE 39th at Lincoln Map 7PM-10



Filmed by Bike is a Portland-grown bicycle film festival. (Mark your calendars, the next one is April 15-17, 2011, at the Clinton Street) The Festival shows the best submissions each year, and some go on to their DVD series, which are shown in other cities. To find the best bike films, the organizers have to go through some of the worst films ever. This is painful, and they want everyone to know the agony and the ecstasy of that. And because they want potential filmmakers to make more "best" rather than "worst" films, they host a "best and worst" night tonight. It's a film showing discussion of why the best are best are best and the worst, worst. Interspersed are many short how-to make a bike film talks, by filmmakers who have done it, and the first showing of the 2011 festival trailer. And there may be food and beer for sale to fuel your further evening bike on adventures. At the Art Department www.artdeptpdx.com 1315 SE 9th Avenue 8PM-10:30 $5 Cash money only



All ages 2on2 and 1on1 battle tonight! It's a Bboy/Bgirl event with live music by Sam Omeechevarria and Fogatron beatboxing. At Center Space 420 SE 6th. Doors 6PM, starts 7. $5

Wednesday, November 03, 2010

November 5 Eastside Art Openings

The Appendix Space (and Little Field) have been presenting adventurous art installations and events. They are taking a seasonal break as they erect a moat on their unmaintained alley. Coincidentally they are moving into a warm well lit space this month at the New American Art Union. Appendix Collective members Maggie Casey, Zachary Davis, Josh Pavlacky and Benjamin Young present Tropical Depression. Recommended. At New American Art Union www.newamericanartunion.com 922 SE Ankeny



In the 811 Block

Lynn Yarne turns her formidable illustration skills on the North American nostalga for wild animals, cabins in the woods and ecomysticism in her show at Golden Rule Gallery www.goldenruleportland.com 811 E Burnside, Suite 122 in the back


Soluable, soft sculptures by Genevieve Dellinger, Melissa Gorman, Midori Hirose and Elizabeth Jaeger closes at Nationale thenewnationale.com 811 E Burnside Map


With more ecomystical illustrations of wild animals is Haley Ann Robinson at Redux www.reduxpdx.com 811 E Burnside

All 811 East Burnside



Painters Alexis Mollomo, Suwannee Sarakana and Morgan Murphy show at Worksound www.worksoundpdx.com 820 SE Alder Map 6PM-10



Homeland continues geonetworking, in this case with Houston 2 and a half-d painter Jonathan Leach. Homeland also has a show in Houston, good move. At Gallery Homeland www.galleryhomeland.org 2505 SE 11th x Division



Pushdot joins Homeland in the Ford building with a group show of artists shown before: Chris Bennett, Jill Bliss, Kimi Kolba, Angela Cash and Liz Haley. At Pushdot Studio www.pushdotstudio.com 2505 SE 11th Avenue Suite 104

November 4 Westside Art Openings +

Signal Fire Arts creates artist residencies in the quiet wilds, camping style. Tonight is a show of all the 2010 residents, Roads Make Nice Meadows. The artists are visual and performers, and the opening includes both. The artists are Katherine Ball, Portland visual artist, curator & social practitioner; Ellie Irons, New York, visual artist; Robyn Moore, Mississippi, visual artist; Sarah Meadows, Portland visual artist; Julie Perini, Portland filmmaker; Scott Schuldt, Seattle visual artist and Portland musicians Tara Jane Oneil and Laura Gibson. At PNCA's Manuel Izquierdo Gallery, NW 13th between Johnson and Kearny. 6PM-9 Free



Longtime Portland DIY artist filmmaker Vanessa Renwick shows as easy as falling off a log at PDX Across the Hall. While Bruce Conkle has his NW eco-baroque style, Renwick has sampled NW pathos. At Across the Hall Gallery. Recommended.

And across the hall from Across the Hall is PNCA department head Arnold Kemp. Since he has a big influence on the results of the MFA program, it might be interesting to understand his own artmaking. At PDX Contemporary Art www.pdxcontemporaryart.com map 925 NW Flanders early close 8PM



It is always a pleasure to see the work together of Ellen George and Jerry Mayer. Drawing Room, at the Nine Gallery, is a pattern of quiet shadows cast by tiny wires. Maybe it's a metaphor for the Interwebs, though that is unlikely their intention. Inside Blue Sky Gallery www.blueskygallery.org map 122 NW 8th



It's great to see the exchange of Korean (and Chinese, for that matter) art with Portland. An example is Gunwoo Kim from the University of Ulsan, Korea. Reception tonight at PSU's MK Gallery Room 207, 2000 SW 5 Ave. 5PM-7



Sometimes a Great Notion is a famous novel set in Oregon's woods and the name of a loosely curated art show opening this evening. Artists include Anna Magruder, Seann McKeel, Joy Leising & Molly McDavitt, Jennifer Finn, Emily Katz, Robyn Williams, Carrie Hardison, Nicole Linde, Jess Bronk, Sarah Morrigan, Elissa Tree, April Coppini, Luna Littleleaf, Karen Joy Campbell, Beth Ann Short, Jessica M. Breedlove, kerosene rose, Seaworthy PDX, S.I.D Need, Katie Veeninga, Aimee Fahey, Shawn Demarest, December Carson, Sienna Morris, Linda Rand, Suzy Kitman, Jeanne Levasseur, Anne Mavor, Noelle Ford, Jenny Siegel and Beth Olson. Music by DJ Anjali. At Albina Press SE, 5012 SE Hawthorne Blvd 7PM-10 Free



Portland New Yorker Malia Jensen's work is always interesting to see as her aesthetic influences are now big city, which is good. It's great she has continued her aesthetic evolution beyond the giant beaver sculpture at the ad agency, but we like that too. At Elizabeth Leach Gallery www.elizabethleach.com map 417 NW 9th



Portland photographer Olivia Bolles does a good job with dramatic high contrast color photos and portraits. Pretty accomplished work for age 16, including magazine credits. Good work! At Stumptown www.stumptowncoffee.com 128 SW 3rd



We think Ansel Adams is cool. Though there are many photographers who moved the field more, Adams is famous for his control of light and contrast in chemical photography - a perfector of "the zone system". His Western photographs were a romantic and dramatic call for conservation of Western wilderness as much as Carleton Watkins, Timothy O'Sullivan, William Henry Jackson and their contemporaries. At Charles Hartman Fine Art www.hartmanfineart.net 134 NW 8th



And as always, easier to just see than write about, don't forget the Everett Station Lofts, NW Broadway and Everett.

Monday, November 01, 2010

November 3, 5, 6 Butoh a Go Go!

Butoh is a somewhat obscure modern dance form based on improvisation and inspired by nature. That's the simple explanation. First created in Japan in 1959, it is an international style today, It has a special place on the US West Coast, and a special place in Seattle. The Japanese butoh group Sankai Juku was one of the first groups to perform in the United States, in 1984. They evolved out of the famous Dairakiudkan, but operate with a more quiet and subtle style. In 1985 in Seattle, one of the dancers tragically died in an outside performance. The group was to disband, but did not, resuming touring with Kinkan Shonen in 1978 in Seattle. With this history, there is a special intense relationship between the performers and audience in Seattle, you can easily feel it. Sankai Juku returns to Seattle with Tobari, tonight. At the Paramount, 911 Pine Street, Seattle. Tickets: www.stgpresents.org/artists/?artist=1319 7:30PM $20-75



The Seattle butoh wave continues with two nights of performances from Seattle Vancouver BC, Boulder and Portland. Friday evening Sheri Brown(SEA), Danse Perdue(SEA), Douglas Ridings(SEA) and Kokoro (Vancouver) perform. Saturday night Diana Garcia-Snyder, Momo Dance Company(SEA), Jyl Brewer, Haruko Nishimura(SEA), Joan Laage(SEA), Helen Thorsen, Sheri Brown & Sharoni Siegel (Boulder), and Mizu Desierto (Portland) perform. Tickets and details at www.daipanbutoh.com/events.html and www.brownpapertickets.com/event/134988. Performances at Velocity Dance Center, 1621 12th Avenue, Seattle 8PM $15-35 sliding scale

November 2 Vote!

This is a big issue to me. So Vote! It's free!

November 1 Art and Technology

The late 1960's and 1970's were a magic time in the development of what we know know as computing, online and the Internet, environmental consciousness, the craft revival, local agriculture. Kevin Kelly was in the middle of it with a crazy guy named Stewart Brand, later going on to edit Wired Magazine in the 1990's, which turns a pop culture eye on computing technology. Originally run by renegades, it was later bought by Conde Nast. He has continued his focus in that area with writing and blogging, including a new book "What Technology Wants". Since I have a deep involvement in that area, I'm curious what Keven Kelly thinks technology wants and reserve the right to disagree with him. He speaks in support of the book tonight, sponsored by Powells www.powells.com/events/#3745 and OMSI at the Bagdad. 7PM $3


Chris Johansen is just an ordinary guy struck by lightning. That would be when Whitney curator Larry Rinder (and Reed grad) traveled outside the New York insider art world to find hidden unique developments in art. That included Portland artist Miranda July in video and sound and Chris Johansen as representative of something now known as Mission Style. The documentary Beautiful Losers is an accessible take on some of the artists. Johansen is a modest and low key guy, not much caught up in the artstar making machinery. Working intuitively, his work slips by our glittery pop culture defenses, sometimes capturing the enigma of modern existence. Johansen speaks tonight as part of the PSU Monday Night Art Department Lecture series. Talk in the Shattuck Hall Annex out front, 1914 SW Park Avenue, at the corner of SW Broadway and Hall on the PSU campus. 7:30PM Free