Blog Archives

Art in the Pearl

8/31/2013

Art in the Pearl
Fine Arts and Craft Festival
Portland, OR
August 31 - Sept. 2

Artists from around the country make their way to Portland in the fall and spring to set up for this festival each year. We got there fairly early this morning (before the 10 am opening), but the crowds started showing up quickly. I took a few random shots of some of the artists and some of their art. Only one artist asked that no photos be taken of her work.

One of my favorite artists, Arunas Oslapas, comes down from Seattle each year to sell his scrap metal quilts (and baskets). I own a piece of his work...something that I bought last year. A few photos that I took from his tent this morning:

I had a conversation with Arunas about Portland's art residency that sends five artists each year to the city dump...gleaning for art materials, etc. He'd be the PERFECT candidate for such a program! Unfortunately, he lives too far away.

By the way, this is the metal piece that I bought last year:

There is one other metal artist whose work always catches my eye...Anthony Hansen:

And, of course, what is an art fair without a few belly dancers parading through the streets !!

Bathtime for Gracie

Taking Gracie (mini labradoodle) over to the Willamette River this afternoon to run on the beach, jump in the water, etc., was great fun as usual,but, as you can see, the BIG BATH when we get home is not one of her favorite activities (during the warm weather of summer, a bath consists of a good hose-down with a little doggie shampoo on the front step):

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Playing Cards Collage Show

8/23/2013

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Liz Cohn, curator and owner of Gallery 6 PDX, is showing the playing card collage collection at her gallery this month. She has collaborated with well over two hundred artists from around the world to create these small, mixed media collages on playing cards (yes, I have a few on display). She's open from noon to 5 pm, Friday through Sunday. More information about this project is here.

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The Joy of Etsy

8/21/2013

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Do you ever check out the "artsy" (and not so artsy) items for sale on etsy? Every now and then I check out a few assemblage and collage artists who regularly sell their work there...I have even purchased a couple things in the past. If you dig deep enough, you'll find some REALLY interesting items...have a look:

Mummified Fox Head...listing here.

Human Toe Nails...listing here.

Mummified two-headed rabbit...listing here.
(I wouldn't mind having this to use in one of my assemblages!)

25 fetal pigs in a bag...listing here.

This local artist, Tristan Francis, always seems to have some great work. He's a master with odd bits of detritus that he seems to find everywhere...his etsy site here.

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New Book

8/20/2013

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I found a great new book (2013) that highlights the work of "paper artists" from around the world. Much of the work could easily be labeled as "paper assemblage." I found the book at one of our local book stores, but, of course, I took the cheap route and immediately checked it out of our local library. It is also available here on Amazon, where you can have a closer look at the contents of the book. I'd like to post more photos here on my blog, but there are always copyright issues, so I tend to be a bit careful.

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Blackberries

8/19/2013

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One of the joys of living in Oregon in August...wild blackberries...everywhere!!

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Big Find

8/18/2013

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Yes, I know this looks a little bizarre (and it is), but I found a big tub of these strange, plastic clown heads at one of my favorite thrift shops the other day. I ended up buying sixteen of them for some future assemblage work (they were cheap) but I like them so much that I may go back and take the whole tub (call me "crazy"). They have an old vintage plastic look and feel to them, even a bit malevolent in their appearance, and are about the size of a good-sized human fist. I think they have great possibilities. I might cut them apart-taking off the backs...I might give them a rusted patina, or I might leave them exactly as they are. Anyway, eat your heart out!

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August 17th, 2013

8/17/2013

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This year's five Glean artists are now showing their work at Disjecta Gallery through Sept. 12, 2013. They spent the last six months of their art residency gleaning for materials at the Metro Transfer Station (the city dump). They've all created some amazing work from "trash" as was evident during the opening reception last night. A few photos from the big event:

It was great fun to connect with these artists last night, chat with them, compare gleaning experiences at the city dump, and see their work. It brought back many memories from my big show last year!

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MAX

8/16/2013

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Portland's MAX commuter train is coming to my neighborhood. Only two blocks from my home, the construction that is going on has been amazing (and disrupting). This new line connects my neighborhood with downtown Portland, and then onto other neighborhoods as well as the airport. It's one VERY pricey project, needless to say, but I suspect that it'll be great for our area in so many ways, and certainly good for our property values. The completion and "first run" should happen in Sept. 2015. While walking my dog this afternoon, I captured a few photos of some of the work in this immediate area...most of it being elevated track. Our neighborhood is scheduled to be virtually closed down this weekend while one of new bridges is hoisted into place over the highway.

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The BIG SHOW Reminder

8/9/2013

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You may want to set aside the date, August 16 (next Friday) for the big Glean Art Show at Disjecta Gallery, highlighting the work of this year's five artists who have been gleaning for materials at the city dump for the past few months. I hope to be there early, and take a few photos before the big crowds arrive.

Opening Reception: Friday, Aug. 16, 6 to 9 pm
Location: Disjecta, 8371 Interstate Av., Portland
Regular Gallery Hours: Noon to 6 pm, Friday, Saturday and Sunday...through September 8.

You can see additional photos and information about this year's Glean Program on their new facebook page here. Photos from all three years of the Glean Program can be found here on the flickr site.

Information from Metro News:

August 2, 2013 3:20 PM
Artists glean funky finds, creative insights from region's trash
Environmental art exhibit at Disjecta Gallery, Aug. 16 to Sept. 8

What does the waste we generate say about us? Though most of us forget about it once it is hauled away from the curb, trash is a surprisingly intact and rich record of our daily lives, our civilization and its values.

For many, sorting through a tangled mess of discards from residents and businesses would be a circle of suffering like Dante's epic journey through Hell. Others vie for the chance to pick through a heap and find unexpected inspiration for accidental art. Works depicting those transformative journeys and discoveries will be on display and for sale at GLEAN, an environmental art exhibit at Disjecta Contemporary Art Center of Portland, 8371 N. Interstate Ave., Portland. The goal of the show, slated to run from Aug. 16 through Sept. 8, is to prompt people to think about their consumption habits, inspire new ways of conserving resources and support the arts and environment.

Residents and businesses in the Portland metropolitan area generate more than 2.1 million tons of waste and recyclables each year – enough to fill the Rose Garden arena 15 times over. Tapping into the creative genius of local artists, GLEAN shows people how to repurpose their "trash."

The project is a public, private, nonprofit partnership between Metro, the regional government that guides the region’s garbage and recycling system; Recology, an employee-owned company that manages resource recovery facilities; and Cracked Pots, a nonprofit environmental arts group that manages the program. In its third year, GLEAN takes its inspiration from Recology San Francisco’s renowned artist in residence program. Select pieces from that program are currently being exhibited at San Francisco International Airport, Terminal 3 through October 2013.

Earlier this year, a jury of arts and environmental professionals selected five local artists to participate in the 2013 show. They are given a stipend and six months of scavenging privileges and access to the region’s discards dropped off at Metro Central Transfer Station in Northwest Portland. This year's GLEAN artists include Kim Lakin, Owen Premore, Eric Rosewall, Christopher Wagner and Vicki Wilson.

The group includes an instructor at area schools, the apprentice of a Japanese master carver, and a former designer with Michael Curry's company that created live-performance oriented characters and productions seen by worldwide audiences. GLEAN artists have been in solo and group shows – locally, nationally and internationally.

Their media and styles range from fiber and textile art to graphic design and architecture, wood carvings and metal sculpture to cast figures in brick, cement, broken auto glass and more. They use two- and three-dimensional forms for works and environments that are interactive, kinetic and auditory.

In the artists' shared blog, Owen Premore explores questions about found objects "and the burden of nostalgia," while Chris Wagner expresses surprise about the number of nails he removes from a pile of old growth Douglas fir boards. Nearly giving up on bright orange construction fencing that sat idle in her studio for weeks, creativity kicks in for Kim Lakin who learns "not to be too quick to discard anything. It takes time for materials to become familiar enough for me to start working with them." Eric Rosewall's views about the gleaning process seem to strike a chord with the others. "Gleaning feeds my scrappy sweet tooth. I look forward to it very much."

Gracie...right after her first bath...now 4 1/2 months old.

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Art in the PearlFine Arts and Craft FestivalPortland, ORAugust 31 - Sept. 2

Bathtime for Gracie

Mummified Fox Head...listing here.

Human Toe Nails...listing here.

Mummified two-headed rabbit...listing here.(I wouldn't mind having this to use in one of my assemblages!)

25 fetal pigs in a bag...listing here.

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Art in the Pearl
Fine Arts and Craft Festival
Portland, OR
August 31 - Sept. 2

Mummified two-headed rabbit...listing here.
(I wouldn't mind having this to use in one of my assemblages!)