Elizabeth Leach has a show of prints by Elsworth Kelly, a pioneer in minimalism beginning in his late 20's, in the 1940's. These are more obviously more recent, but worth a look. The Museum will also be putting on a major show beginning this month. At Elizabeth Leach Gallery www.elizabethleach.com 417 NW 9th Map 6PM-9 Free
Jenene Nagy has new 2d work at PDX. Measure is geometric charcoals. At PDX Contemporary Art www.pdxcontemporaryart.com 925 NW Flanders Map early close 8PM Free
A group show at Butters includes sculptors Vanessa Calvert and Brenda Mallory. Calvert combines upholstery forms and materials in a lush non-functional strategy. Mallory is known for sculptures made of arrays of similar organic units. At Butters Gallery www.buttersgallery.com 520 NW Davis, 2nd Floor Free
Stumptown has a group show by Project Grow artists QT Buggs, David Crittendon, Forrest Hellum-Willits, David Lechner, Olga Shchepina, Alvina Ternes, Dillon Vacheresse and Jamond Williams. The artists participate in Project Grow, a creative studio and community supported agriculture farm in NE Portland. The project was conceived by social practice artists and many continue to participate themselves. At Stumptown www.stumptowncoffee.com 128 SW 3rd. Early close 7PM Free
Caldera Arts is a long running inspiration for the power of arts and the outdoors. This summer camp gives kids who would otherwise not have a chance to focus on their arts a space to work in the company of professional artists. Tonight they show their work. At W+K www.wk.com 224 NW 13th Map 5PM-8 Free
The constellation of the evening is the PNCA thesis show occupying the atrium and some of the upstairs spaces in the main building. There is work in the Stevens Building up Johnson too. It will take some time to see it all, don't discount returning for a more leisurely viewing school hours. In an odd scheduling decision, the show will be taken down beginning Friday night. At PNCA www.pnca.edu 1241 NW Johnson Map Free
Another show with certain gems is the PSU BFA thesis show. It is distributed across 4 spaces. The Art Building Lobby Gallery has Chase Biado. The MK Gallery upstairs in the Art Building has Ross Farrier and Andre Fortes. In Neuberger, the Autzen Gallery has J.P. Huckins, Nicole McCormick, Rhiannon Rasmussen-Silverstein, Krystal South and Chloe Womack. In Smith Union, the Littman Gallery has Claire Hickox, Vanessa Robertson-Rojas, William Wheeler, Shannon Wolf and Andrew Yepello. At Portland State University check the map at www.pdx.edu. Early show 5PM-8 Free
Chickfactor is a music fanzine and website operating from 1992 to now. In its early days, Gail O'Hara, the project's creative mastermind, hosted musicians and artists from the Olympia independent music explosion couch surfing her NY apartment in the years around 2000. She made a candid record of Northwest festivals and of her friends visiting the city, as the community found itself and made history. This is a show of some of those photographs of musicians like Lois Maffeo, Nikki McClure, Sarah Dougher, Corin Tucker, Rebecca Gates, Scott Plouf, Calvin Johnson, Carrie Brownstein, Janet Weiss, Stella Marrs, Tae Won Yu and many others. O'Hara went on to a noted career in music photography and now makes Portland home. At Reading Frenzy www.readingfrenzy.com 921 SW Oak Free
PICA will be open in the evening. Alex Felton shows a mix of previous work alongside that of local collaborators in his PICA residency. The large video installation on the second floor by Glen Fogel may be operating. At PICA 415 SW 10th 3rd Floor 7PM-10 Free
Christine Clark is a Portland sculptor and member of the Nine Gallery, a long running space for installations. She has made sculptures of wire, hay, concrete, wool and steel. In form, it runs to abstract organic shapes in neutral colors. Excellent work. She opens Herded at the Nine Gallery inside Blue Sky tonight.
Also Dorothee Deiss has As If Nothing Happened, photographs made along the route of the former Berlin Wall, now a bike path. Gay Block has About Love, portraits spanning almost 40 years. At Blue Sky Gallery www.blueskygallery.org map 122 NW 8th 6PM-9 Free
Hellion has Michinori Maru and Sayuka Bloodstone. At Hellion Gallery www.helliongallery.com 19 NW 5th Suite 208. Through the lobby of the arched brick entry, up the stairs and to the back. Very upper floor Japan-style. Map Free
Compound has Taking My Life Back by Drew Tyndell, Derek Bruno and Benjamin. It's geometric work selected by their new curator Molly Georgetta. At Compound Gallery www.compoundgallery.com 107 NW 5th Free
The Everett Lofts are recommended as always. It's easier for you to see them all than for me to write suggestions. Some close as early as 9PM. At the Everett Lofts 625 NW Everett. Bounded by NW Everett, Broadway, Flanders and 6th Map Free
