June 30 Antigen Flower

Downward Flower is a Summer group show. Artists are Yevgeniya Baras, Katherine Bradford, Maria Calandra, Srijon Chowdhury, Gracie DeVito, Rainen Knecht, Sally Saul, Anna Schachinger, Storm Tharp, Geetha Thurairajah and Guimi You. At the first of two members in Portland of the New Art Dealers Alliance www.newartdealers.org, Fourteen30 Gallery www.fourteen30.com 1501 SW Market Street Map 11AM-1 Free



William Matheson has paintings Antigen, inspired by his family experience. At Nationale www.nationale.us 3360 SE Division Map 3PM-5 Free

June 29 Quantum Art of Invisibility

Yutaka Matsuzawa is a seminal Japanese conceptual artist, little seen outside Japan. YU brings some of his works, including writing and video. In his 20's when Tokyo was leveled by firebombing, about five months before that fateful August, architect Matsuzawa began to envision works themed on invisibility. At YU Contemporary Art www.yucontemporary.org 900 SE 10th. 5PM-7 Free

June 28 Puzzling Music

The Lumber Room has been doing a long term project, A Puzzling Light and Moving, with artist Kate Newby from New Zealand. The project has been guesting performers to respond to and accompany the visual works. This afternoon it is musician Matt Emmons, and it's all afternoon. At The Lumber Room lumberroom.com 419 SW 9th, above Liz Leach Map Noon-6 Free

June 27 Swirly

LA artist Robert Pokorny has Dialogue, swirly geometries, perhaps abstract calligraphy, and even cubist faces. Opening tonight at Ampersand Gallery www.ampersandgallerypdx.com 2916 NE Alberta, Ste B. Map 6PM-9 Free

June 22 High Desert Test Sites

High Desert Test Sites - www.artforum.com/diary/trinie-dalton-at-high-desert-test-sites-72401 is the new home to Dust to Dust by artists Emily & Michael Endo. Formerly Dust to Dust was in Portland.

The group show is Alien Phenomenology, perhaps similar to Long Beach's Spaceness. It's a brief pop up with an online version following.

Artists include Josh Bolin, Marne Lucas, Joe Merrell, Armando Minjarez, Derek Monypeny, Tuan Nyguen, Ralph Pugay, Heidi Schwegler, and Caitlin Rose Sweet. They interpret "alien" in mediums painting, photography, fragrance, sculpture, writing and sound.

Dust to Dust www.dusttodust.space at the High Desert Test Sites Headquarters at the Sky Village Swap Meet 7028 Theater Road, Yucca Valley, CA 9AM-1PM Free

June 20 Xenos

Marcelo Fontana has Return Eternal Return, installation and performance on the theme of xenophobia and human migration. It's at 1122 Gallery 1122gallery.com 1122 SE 88th. 6PM-10 Free

June 9 Söma

First Brick is a gallery in a home. They are having a Söm Ting Feast starting in the afternoon and going into evening. It's sculpture, performance, and more, in the yard. Artists include Autonomuse, Carson Terry, Cry Babe, Ellie Gordon, Garima Thakur, Hannon, JP Huckins, Laura Anne Whitley, Leo Lefevre, Steph Linn & Teal Bluestone, Takahiro Yamamoto and more. More info on their socials, respect the intent. At First Brick www.firstbrick.art @first.brick 4637 N Colonial 3PM-10 Free

June 8 Eagle Fire

Kazakstan is a big country in American's blindspot. Where is this country? Maybe they know it by comedian Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat parody, which has nothing to do with the country. In fact, a Borat song was accidentally played in place of the Kazakh national anthem in a highly embarrassing international situation. It would be like playing the Simpson's theme in place of the Star Spangled Banner.

I was fortunate to consult in Kazakstan for some international agencies. We interviewed many Kazakh officials and everyday people to understand what was going on. So I've kept up an interest in the country.

The traditional Kazakhs were nomadic tribes. Think yurts and horses. Kazaks are traditionally Islamic. So the role of women has a different pattern than the West. One of their customs is training eagles to hunt.

Photographer Oliver Klink has documented the experience of women eagle hunters in Kazakhstan. At Camerawork Gallery www.thecameraworkgallery.org in the Lorenzen Conference Center - Legacy Emanuel Medical Center Campus 301 N. Graham. Talk 4PM, Reception 5PM-6:30 Free



Tess Rubinstein has primary color flow-y schematic paintings in show A Jug of Wine. At Stephanie Chefas Projects www.stephaniechefas.com 305 SE 3rd Ave #202 - the City Sign Building, formerly a low cost artist space Map. 5PM-8 Free



Signal Fire is 10. So they are having a party and fundraiser. C:3 is moving downtown. The fundraiser is from 6PM-9 with a $25 admission and the farewell dance party is 9PM-10 and free. www.signalfirearts.org/events/party/ At C:3 Initiative www.c3initiative.org 7326 N Chicago
Map 6PM-10

June 7 Eastside Art Openings

Eastside is fragmented and lacking in publicity. Here are some.



We refrain from noting college shows, there are many, and many good. This afternoon PCC Cascade on Killingsworth has a faculty show by DB Amorin, Elizabeth Bilyeu, Cristina Carver, Jacqueline Ehlis, Josh Hulst, Una Kim, Renae Kowitz, Ruth Lantz, Michael Lazarus, Joe Macca, Sam Morgan, Tara Murino-Brault, Darcy Neal, Kelli Pennington, Kathi Rick, Sandy Sampson, Kaite Thompson Chase, and Shannon Willis. At the PCC Cascade Paragon Gallery 815 N. Killingsworth 3PM-7 Free



One Grand Gallery has a group show Fuck Cancer of 30 international artists. They have done this benefit before and their openings are lively. At One Grand Gallery www.onegrandgallery.com 1000 E Burnside 6-10 Free



The 811 building is always recommended. Notable is The Ones Shop with Belle Chesler. At 811 E Brurn 6PM-8 early close Free


Elliott Kayser and Paul Briggs have in The Shape of Time and Sarah Chenoweth has Necessities. At Eutectic Gallery www.eutecticgallery.com 1930 NE Oregon

June 6 Westside Art Openings+

G. Lewis Clevenger has colorful abstract paintings, De Minimis/Maximus. At Laura Russo Lee Gallery www.russoleegallery.com 805 NW 21st early close 5PM-8 early close Free



Sean Healey continues to expand his boundaries and shows along with Seattle's new mystic Joseph Park. At Elizabeth Leach Gallery www.elizabethleach.com 417 NW 9th Map 6PM-9 Free



D E May has passed, but left a large body of original works on paper. At PDX Contemporary Art www.pdxcontemporaryart.com 925 NW Flanders Map early close 8PM Free



Jovencio de la Paz has minimal textile works. At Holding Contemporary www.holdingcontemporary.com (in the former Williamson | Knight, now Williamson+Harker) 916 NW Flanders 6PM-8 early close Free



Mark Aghatise and Gioncarlo Valentine have portraits. In the Nine Gallery Gary Boswell has Entangle. At Blue Sky Gallery www.blueskygallery.org Map 122 NW 8th 6PM-9 Free



Willie Little has a new show, accompanied by a group exhibition of artists. At Froelick Gallery www.froelickgallery.com 714 NW Davis early close 8PM Free



For the +1, PNCA continues its MFA thesis show at the Eastside glass building. 2139 N Kerby 6PM-7:30 early close Free



PNCA is recommended to stop in. They have long time cycle shows and pop ups distributed throughout the building. PNCA www.pnca.edu 511 NW Broadway Map 6PM-9 Free



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 6PM-9 Free

June 4 Anniversaries

Portlandorusnow is 15. Its interest in the arts in Portland goes back about 10 years before. We are still having fun! Our intent has always been to note events in advance of their happening, sometimes shortly, to a day, to a few days. We aren't interested in theory, criticism or history; we are interested in our own immediate experience; sometimes the work or the artist's relationship to our experience. We don't want more readers, we want reader to reader relationships. We list work we like and think well of. We list work in genres we are uninterested in, but think is good within its context. We list events to meet other creatives for conversation. We list unusual events that might be below your radar.

We are going to make just about our only political post ever. June 4 is also 30 in relation to the Tiananmen coda to the Chinese Democracy Movement of 1978-1989. Americans process June 4, 1989 Tiananmen in the American Christian absolutist and judgmental framework. I think the crushed aspiration of two generations and the lost discussion of democracy in China is the greater loss. The real source material is democracy wall posters. In that era, and early 1990's, the discussion within China was whether the Northern values of the Revolution or the Southern values of business at at any dishonest cost would prevail.

What would China be today if local and provincial democracy had headed off corruption? On need only look at artist Ai Wei Wei's art works around the Sichuan earthquake. This year is a good time to revisit the film Gate of Heavenly Peace, contemporaneous to the 1989 democracy movement. Readers may disagree, but a slight compromise by the students and the government could have created a better outcome. The government should have given the students the responsibility to organize an advisory shadow young persons' NPC. The topic is of interest to me, I was scheduled to travel to China that exact time to study Tai Chi.

American democracy is in trouble, so we can focus here, rather than afar. We have a broken mediasphere, a broken social mediasphere, education falling behind, a lack of interest, and more. Only we can fix American democracy.

June 2 Grand

Lenor B has paintings Grand Concourse, The Bronx. At Union Knott 2726 ML King Blvd. 5PM-8 Free

June 1 Script

Script is a show by Hannah Newman, Leslie Vigeant, Katherine Spinella, Kathryn Zazenski and Sarah Hummel Jones. At Carnation Contemporary www.carnationcontemporary.com in the Disjecta building 8371 N Interstate. 6PM-9 Free