Friday was a day of looking at other people’s art…at last. It started early with a visit to the studios of the six senior art majors at Willamette University who are midway in the process of preparing their senior show, opening in April 2016. All six seemed motivated, excited about their work and certain about their path forward with this body of work. Encouragement was easy to give, mostly process oriented. I’ll withhold the few photos I took until next spring when I can compare them for you with the realization of the work I saw the beginnings of on Friday.
So we jumped into the car, grabbed Irene and Jon and headed to Portland to look at some art. First and foremost was a visit to PDX to see the work of DE May…long time friend of all of ours…and the show was wonderful in the way only Dan can make it. Spare and intricate, referential, terrific. Go see it.
One of my new favorite galleries the last couple of years is Upfor Gallery, right next door to PDX and often offering shows that knock me out…this one included. A few years ago I was reading the New York Times one morning when I read an art review of a show at the Corvallis Art Center…whaaat? Yep, Julie Green’s Last supper series which was amazing…as I describe here. This new show…”My New Blue Friends” is soo soo wonderful. It starts with the “wall paper”…all around the entire gallery, sumi drawings of shells on rice paper. She does some everyday, and has been doing this meditation since 2011. They begin tight and dark and loosen as they go
and on the “wallpaper” are placed the lovely blue and white paintings which are tempera adjusted to be used with airbrush…
The effect is good, almost like shards of flow-blue on the sand, a sort of beach-combing effect.
But really the treasure here, for those who draw, love to draw, love drawings…are the wonderful ledger books on the table, filled with Green’s notational drawings. There is a stool thankfully, because I had to look and look…
Oh good lord, be still my heart. Only one remedy…
Meanwhile Jon was getting on Instagram…
So off to 12×16 Gallery in Sellwood. It was the 10th anniversary show featuring the work of most of the 126 artists who have showed with members over the last 10 years. Here’s Jon’s…
here’s Rex Amos…
here’s the wall with the group I was part of…
and mine…
My show was in 2010 and I showed with legendary collage artist Eunice Parsons…
and by the way, Eunice Parsons, who turned 99 last summer, just opened a show of new work at collage artist Luke Dolkas’ frame shop at 2707 SE Belmont…our Monday schedule includes Eunice’s show and Michael Boonstra’s show at Duplex Gallery. So much to see…so little time…:-) And guess who we ran in to…
some people headed inside…
