Wednesday, August 23, 2017

August 24 Arch

Proscenium Arch is a group show installation by Inga Danysz, Keisuke Iiri - Le Makeup, Nicolette Polek and Kira Scerbin. It's curated by Spring PNCA BFA grad Charles Klein Stobbs III. LeMakeup provides a recorded soundtrack at 7:30. At S1, formerly Multiplex, www.s1portland.com 7320 NE Sandy Map 6PM-9 Free

Saturday, August 12, 2017

August 14 DIY Art in 1950s Japan

Neglecting the American-Native American war of expansion between 1690 and 1924, the last war on US soil was the civil war. It was 4 years, 150 years ago. They did not have modern weapons. But we are still fighting that war today.

Japan engaged wars of expansion too. The United States entered one of those wars in late 1941, transforming the conflict into total war with modern weapons. The definition of total war and absolute war vary. When it was formulated in the 1800s, modern weapons did not exist. I use it to mean war on civilians with modern weapons. By the time of the atomic bombings, which are the ultimate expression of total war, several Japanese cities had been already been leveled.

Tonight's talk is about individual artists and community groups of artists that flourished in the Japan of the 1950s. Protests in 1959 and 1960 against the US-Japan Defense Treaty also included street theater and experimental performance, leading to enduring artistic movements.

Americans have a limited understanding of the cultural impact of war on their home soil, and no understanding of total war. So the impact of those on artistic creativity is foreign. We make those war decisions today in the abstract, but the impact is not abstract for the individuals involved. We are sowing generations of unhappiness and, for some, the desire for revenge.

The Creativity of Uncertainty: Amateur Woodcut in 1950s Japan is a talk by Justin Jesty from the University of Washington, in the context outlined above, on people, time, place and beauty.

A longer more eloquent description is https://www.facebook.com/events/109729873045005/.

At Yu Contemporary Art www.yucontemporary.org 900 SE 10th 7PM Free

August 12 There is Still Time!+

There is Still Time! is a show by artists Rose Dickson and Sarah Smiley. They are artist friends, communicating as often as daily, making their works, separated by a thousand miles.

Their work is related. Dickson is more minimal, Smiley has a little more visual humor and she adds performance. They both were schooled at RISD, where they met.

Don't be shy, meet artist friends. There is Still Time! https://www.facebook.com/events/1233546403439933/ at OV Project Space 7604 SE Washington 6:00PM-9 Free



Volt Divers is a night of analog synth performers. This month they are Caustic Touch, Grease Envelope, Ben Davis, Big Mountain Fudge Cake, Greyjoy, Enough Static, Sea Moss, Kinder and Arkham Sunset. Visuals by Judy Gloom. Tonight 100% of the modest cover, $5, goes to the ACLU. Yes. Volt Divers at Lovecraft Bar 421 SE Grand 7PM Sharp-10 $5

Wednesday, August 09, 2017

August 9-12 Convergence

Converge 45 is a Portland visual art event with a lot of talk and some performance. It has keynote events and receptions requiring paid tickets. Other things are free. It places emphasis on artist networking and co-inspiration. The big list is here: http://converge45.org/event/year2017/august9-12/. Converge also promotes local galleries by publishing a list of the contemporary ones and their shows. Converge 45 various places, times and prices.

Tuesday, August 08, 2017

August 9-13 Drift Iteration Paths

PortlandORUSNow is event-oriented. We list the receptions where you might meet other artists. The reception for this is 11AM-1PM Thursday.

MSHR has Drift Iteration Paths, a large distributed musical synth and sculpture. It uses electronic circuits connected to optical circuits. The lasers, LEDs, incandescent bulbs and light-sensitive detectors make a continuously evolving sound and light show. They are part of a sculpture with Mayan- or ancient Chinese-like mystic sculptural units.

MSHR is now operating in NYC and getting some great shows there.

At the PSU Littman Gallery in Smith Union. www.littmanwhite.tumblr.com/post/163465069432/drift-iteration-paths-mshr-august-913-2017 PSU Smith Hall, Room 250, 1825 SW Broadway. Noon-5 Wednesday, Noon-6 Thursday Friday, check for other hours. Closes 5PM-8 Sunday. Free

August 9 Suspended Moment

Suspended Moment is a performance and a sculpture commemorating the atomic bombings in Japan on August 6 & 9, 1945. Yukiyo Kawano was born in Hiroshima. She has sewn her mother's kimonos into the shape of one of the bombs. It is suspended in the performance space. Meshi Chavez & Kawano perform butoh on that set with support by poet Allison Cobb, musician Lisa DeGrace and projectionist Stephen Miller.

From Despair to Hope is a commemoration at the Japanese American Historical Plaza, NW Naito Parkway, Waterfront Park from 6PM to 7.

The Suspended Moment is after at the University of Oregon White Stag Building in the main floor atrium 70 NW Couch 7PM-8 Free

Thursday, August 03, 2017

August 4 Eastside Openings+

Maya Vivas has Beauty in Fragility, two bodies of work: Radical Emergence: An exploration in adaptation, sensuality, & abundance and Black: Dissected & Articulated. At 7pm there is a poetry reading by t.a. edwards from her series The Ugliest Girl in The World. An artist talk & closing reception is 7PM August 25th. At adxportland.com 1015 SE Stark 6PM-9 Free



Butters has an anniversary group show by Dorothy Goode, Ted Katz, Julie Rall, Marlana Stoddard-Hayes, Elise Wagner, Rick Stare, Brenda Mallory, David Geiser, Jeffrey Butters, Deborah Gillis, Michael Kessler and Stephanie Shank. It is a good opportunity to survey the aesthetics of the gallery. At Butters Gallery www.buttersgallery.com 157 NE Grand 6PM-8 Free



Girls of Summer is work by Alea Bone, Stephanie Brockway, Heide Davis. At Redux www.reduxpdx.com 811 E Burnside 6PM-9:30 Free


Shades of Gray is a monochrome show of primarily landscapes. At Black Box Gallery www.blackboxgallery.com 811 E Burnside, Suite 212 upstairs Early close 5PM-8 Free


All at 811 East Burnside Map



Slater Herman has Images of Nothing, actually photographs of everyday items found traveling in the US. At Pushdot Studio www.pushdotstudio.com 2505 SE 11th Avenue Suite 104 6PM-9 Free



Chefas has cartoon-like paintings themed on pop culture. At Stephanie Chefas Projects www.stephaniechefas.com 305 SE 3rd Ave #202 - the City Sign Building, formerly a low cost artist space Map. 6PM-9 Free



Breaking the Mold are slip-cast ceramics works that take advantage of the resolution of porcelain, but on projects that would not be practical in mass slip-cast production. Artists are Julian F. Bond, Jeff Campana, Sharan Elran, Kyle Johns, Joris Link, and Peter Pincus. At Eutectic Gallery www.eutecticgallery.com 1930 NE Oregon 6PM-9 Free



Daniel H Wilson has a PhD in robotics. He's better known for his fiction works about robots and AI. He speaks tonight on his new thriller The Clockwork Dynasty. Could there be human-like machines hidden among us for centuries? Discovering that is the quest of an anthropologist. More anthropologist protagonists? Yes! At Powell's Burnside 1005 W Burnside 7:30PM Free

Wednesday, August 02, 2017

August 3 Westside Art Openings

August is a slow month for commercial galleries. Some are drawn away by the Seattle art fair and collectors are vacationing.



Katie Torn has surreal paintings and video. She is part of a trio of gallerists artists: Morehshin Allahyari, Brenna Murphy and Katie Torn, mounting a group show August 23 through September 2. At UpFor Gallery www.upforgallery.com 929 NW Flanders early close 6PM-8 Free



PDX continues the previous show. At PDX Contemporary Art www.pdxcontemporaryart.com 925 NW Flanders Map early close 8PM Free



The Eclipse Show is a massive show curated by Christopher Rauschenberg. It includes artists Blake Andrews, Jacob Aue Sobol, Karl Baden, Gloria Baker Feinstein, John Baldessari, Steve Beckly, Deborah Bergman, Matt Black, Romain Blanquart, Laurie Blakeslee, John Bridges, Anja Bruehling, Jason Burch, Catherine Cameron, Lucy Capehart, Kristin Capp, Caleb Charland, Jo Ann Chaus, Alexander Chekmenev, John Chervinsky, Adrain Chesser, Vince Cianni, Larry Clark, Jamila Clarke, Paul Dahlquist, Kris Davidson, Rocio de Alba, Desiree Edkins, Matt Eich, Adam Ekberg, Elliott Erwitt, John Faier, Bill Finger, Dean Forbes, Klaus Frahm, Robert Frank, Patricia Galagan, Ingeborg Gerdes, Kevin German, Joseph Glasgow, Carole Glauber, John Gossage, Lauren Grabelle, Michael Hall, Bob Haft, Adam Hartzell, Stewart Harvey, Craig Hickman, Ann Hughes, Rachel Hulin, Carol Isaak, Megan Jacobs, John Jerard, Tom Jimison, Matt Kallio, Denise Keim, George Kelly, Ann Kendellen, Katrina Kepule, Sara Kirschenbaum, Les Krims, Laurie Lambrecht, Robert Langham, Susan Lapides, Jason Larkin, J.K. Lavin, Russell Lee, Isa Leshko, Fritz Liedtke, Nathan Lucas, Helena Lukas, Mary Ann Lynch, Lajos Major, Ann Mansolino, Roberta Margolis, Rania Matar, Lee Materazzi, Shay McAtee, Groana Melendez, Julie Mihaly, Andrew Miksys, Andrea Modica, Daniel Muchiut, Dan Nelken, Adam Novak, David Pace, Louie Palu, Gordon Parks, Colleen Plumb, Craig Pozzi, Douglas Prior, Christopher Rauschenberg, Tony Ray-Jones, Shawn Records, Arne Reinhardt, William Rihel III, Vanessa Renwick, Suzanne Revy, Saul Robbins, Jana Romanova, William Rugen, Pentti Sammallahti, Andi Schreiber, Traer Scott, Lauren Semivan, Steve Smith, Christopher Sohler, Matt Stuart, Paul Sutinen, Cody Swanson, Brandon Thibodeaux, Stewart Weir, Andrés Wertheim, Reiko Yagi and Bijan Yashar.

Kris Sanford has Through the Lens of Desire, vintage found photographs of same identified individuals recontextalized into same identified relationships.


Nan Curtis has What if We Let It in the Nines Gallery space inside Blue Sky.

At Blue Sky Gallery www.blueskygallery.org Map 122 NW 8th 6PM-9 Free



Wolf Haven are photographs made at a Washington State wolf sanctuary by Seattle's Annie Marie Musselman. Because it is a fenced facility the photographer could make photos at a close distance. At Charles Hartman Fine Art www.hartmanfineart.net 134 NW 8th early close 8PM Free



The Jewish Museum has a permanent collection and traveling shows. They will be open until 8 on First Thursday in the previous Contemporary Craft Museum space.



Everett Lofts are recommended as always. It is always evolving and there are many strong spaces. 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 closing ranges from 9PM-10:30ish