Of Other Spaces opened at the Bureau for Open Culture at the Columbus College of Art & Design this week and some information has started to trickle in. First, both Whitehot Magazine and Absolute Arts gave the show premium listings. A blog called What Is Modern? written by ‘Kevin’ wrote part one of a review about the show here. Typos and mispellings aside, I think he liked our work in the show. Since I was unable to travel to be there for the opening festivities, including a site-specific installation by Christian Tomaszewski (above), a film by Gordon Matta-Clark and other wonderful pieces, I will suffice to get a birdseye view until I see the forthcoming catalogue (March 9) and installation shots. Given the context of the exhibition, it’s kind of fitting to be slightly alienated from the process of presentation. Mind you, the curator and I worked on the installation of the M_US__EUM piece from composite images of the space and the work, I laid my full trust in him for the proper hang. More soon.

In other news, between statewide high school wrestling championships, WWE, and the Lumberjax I have managed to squeeze in a viewing of many exhibitions in and around town. In the process I made a few visits to the Portland Art Museum to view the two objects I will talk with the public about on March 12 (see below post). In these works I’ve discovered striking similarities that are peculiar and which I will explore some. While at the museum I also very much liked the visually striking work of Gagosian Gallery artist Rachel Whiteread. The work is much smaller in scale than I expected, which made my experience a bit more intimate. I also had the pleasure to see MK Guth’s Ties of Protection and Safekeeping (through March 1) and thought it not only fit perfectly into the installation space in the APEX series, but also activated the space, becoming a lovely maze of 3/4 of a mile worth of goldilocks. It’s by far the most striking work I’ve seen by this artist. I also really liked the three emblematic jackets greeting you on the front wall, something about “girl power” and rock n’ roll.

In my further art travels I must say I visited nearly every commercial gallery in the city but aside from a very clean neo-geo show at Chambers, and a few hauntingly strong pieces in the front gallery at Froelick, I felt like I was in a bit of a ghost town after a few decent months of work here and there. That said, the tip is to travel outside the center. The two targets this month being reGeneration: 50 Photographers of Tomorrow at the Hoffman Gallery at Lewis & Clark (through March 15) and Archer Gallery @ Clark College for Considered Space (through March 14). The first is a travelling exhibition organized by Musée de l’Elysée, Lausanne, Switzerland and includes amazing work by standout Shigeru Takato (above) and many other international photogs. The show suffers from a bit of cram and jam, and there are a few works on view that are damaged or warped some, though far and wide, this is an amazing slice of what’s out there in the world of contemporary photography, a museum exhibition in an academic space really.

The show at Clark in Vancouver is curatorially the strongest show this month by far and surpasses the others by doing exactly what its title suggests, considers space. A few of the works on view have been recently seen in solo exhibitions by these artists (Adam Sorensen at PDX and Mark R. Smith at Elizabeth Leach) but everything here blends well and its nice to see them all over again in a new context. The works that resonate most with me are Smith’s pennants and applique painting and Ben Buswell’s (above) fantastic castings, he is surely an artist to watch closely. Lise Graham’s work simultaneously combines and captures the spirit of Baldessari and Stella. The show also includes new work by Jesse Hayward, Grant Hottle and Cara Tomlinson. Of the three only Hayward takes the initiative to literally reshape the format by handling an awkward space, using the canvas itself to ‘upholster’ stretcher bars and assemble a heap of scattered work.  While childlike and experimental in process, the work is a bit lost in translation, unlike his more on target recent solo gig at the now defunct Jace Gace. Hayward’s work hasn’t blended well into predominantely 2D-based group shows, as it’s more akin to its sculptural trappings. He’s a one man show, better dangling solo from a high wire.

Another year, another couple thousand films! It’s hard making predictions of what you think another voting body would choose based on past behavior, your own personal favorites, etc. I try and balance these a bit, thinking that talent, like cream, rises. While I’ve been shaky on nominations in years past I remember naming longshots who have deservedly won several times. This time around as the nominations for the coveted award have just been announced I make my predictions of a few of those who you may not expect to walk to the stage, but gave incredible performances. Granted, after seeing Slumdog Millionaire I added it to a few categories below, so some basic changes were made this last month. After all was said and done I only correctly chose six of the eighteen categories below (I’ll stick to my night job, but keep the movies coming). For the first time, you can participate in the official Live Oscar Challenge online. Even YouTube has its own page for the ceremonies!

Best Picture:
Frost/Nixon; Slumdog Millionaire

• I’ve seen better pictures, but I think this will take it. I’d rather be handing it to Milk which is more topical, more worthy in this time of change, and the ‘people’s favorite’ would certainly be Benjamin Button here.

Actor In A Leading Role:
Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon); Sean Penn!

• Every tiny move his face made in this film was pure acting. Sean Penn as Harvey Milk is a very close second though I still haven’t seen The Wrestler (so I may change my vote here in the next few weeks). Hey, the web is malleable. Mickey Rourke made a startling performance in The Wrestler, unforgettable actually, and though I think it was incredibly worthy I’m sticking to my guns.

Actress In A Leading Role:
Angelina Jolie; Kate Winslet 

• Sounds like an ify choice, eh? This descendant of Jon Voight, mother of many who says this is her last film was amazing to watch on screen for the first time, and in our face for 2+ hours. Her contemporary sculpted face (tattoos and all) were transformed into a woman from yesteryear in this true story of strife and mistaken identity. Of course Meryl Streep blew our toes completely off in Doubt as the stern sister and should get this, but she already has a mantleful, right? Kate Winslet won the Golden Globe, and I haven’t seen this film, but am told it’s good. And of course, Anne Hathaway does a turn against her glamourous and lightweight roles as a messed up sister - who knows….

Actor In A Supporting Role:
* Heath Ledger (Dark Knight)

• Yes, Ledger was superb in this silly role, downright evil incarnate. However, I do really think Michael Shannon could take it as the disturbed son in Revolutionary Road. It was, by far, the best role on screen this past year I’ve seen - though only too briefly on screen. Of course you know I’m a huge fan of Philip Seymour Hoffman, but his role as the controversial priest was lo-fi compared to other work he’s done. Josh Brolin was an uncanny Dan White lookalike, but the part was too removed for this award, not in the same class with the other gents - but he’ll be back.

Actress In A Supporting Role:
Viola Davis; Penélope Cruz

• This one is hard because I think it was a complete tie between Taranji P. Henson and Davis - both impassioned, both almost complete unknowns - they each gave incredible blockbuster, real performances which I’ve written about here. Henson was simply on screen for a greater period of time is all, but I think the “less is more” factor will kick in here. If Amy Adams were to win I think it would simply be Hollywood favoritism as her role was too safe, too soft - she’s a lightweight here as she’s proven better. Penélope Cruz is wonderful, but I can’t yet rate her performance here, and Tomei is the only actress here who has taken home one of these statues (but she’s quite notable in this picture!).

Animated Film:
Kung Fu Panda; Wall-E

• Just kuz. I didn’t see any of these three nominated though they all look very, well, cute. Doh!

Art Direction:
Changeling; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

• I think Benjamin Button was way overly computer-generated-o-centric and Revolutionary Road didn’t put me into the period the same way this one did. The Dark Knight was amazing, but, it is “supposed to be” - it’s Batman!

Directing:
Ron Howard (Frost/Nixon); Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)

• Of course I am rooting for my homeboy Gus Van Sant in this category as Milk, as far as I am concerned, has been the film of his career thusfar.

Documentary Feature:
* Man on Wire

• A VERY close split-second is Encounters at the End of the World. Both are amazing films.

Foreign Language Film:
Waltz with Bashir; Departures

• Though I haven’t seen it, The Class looks powerful too.

Cinematography:
* Slumdog Millionaire

• Button is close second. Again, Changeling the scenes are simply beautiful, though in this category I think they generally award based on long, lavish shots that set tone and define the place and Slumdog was visually captivating, Benjamin Button also did that expertly.

Costume Design:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; The Duchess

• But I want to say Revolutionary Road for this one. But that fierce academy of experts do love the Victorian, over-the-top design such as seen in The Duchess. Spin the bottle.

Makeup:
The Dark Knight; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

• It was pretty great. I didn’t like the makeup in Benjamin Button at all, and I am sure Hellboy was amazing, but it is otherwise not mentioned at all in the nominations, so it seems like an add-in for these purposes.

Film Editing:
* Slumdog Millionaire

• Frost/Nixon (second);The Dark Knight (third); Milk (fourth)

Sound Editing:
* The Dark Knight

• Slumdog Millionaire (second)

Visual Effects:
The Dark Knight; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

• Iron Man (second). The Academy will probably award this to Benjamin Button per $$$ spent though.

Writing/Adapted Screenplay:
Doubt; Slumdog Millionaire

• Six thumbs up. Benjamin Button is a GREAT story though - that was its strong suit as a film.

Writing/Original Screenplay:
* Milk

[Originally blogged on 01/22/09]

A friend from back east wrote about the awards with a stunning similarity to some of my own feelings about the actual ceremonies:

“I thought it was pretty dull but I liked the format better than in recent years.  Less joke telling, fewer production numbers, short acceptance speeches but no music cutting people off, no ongoing clips of the films nominated for best picture, not having last year’s winners announce this year’s winners….I liked the 5 prior winners saying things about each nominee but it was a lot of talking. Oh, I also really liked that they didn’t have the voiceover saying, “this is so and so’s third nomination and second win” as the winner walks up to the stage. I liked the set and Hugh Jackman did a good job. But it was boring. Nothing happened.  It certainly went smoothly, but who wants to see that?  Sean Penn was the only who made any kind of political statement at all.  I’m really glad he won.”

I especially liked bringing back award winners to present individually to nominees, very classy and honoring, in their words. The only way my opinion differs is I thought Hugh Jackman was just OK, he is suave but not deep and though he can “dance and sing” he doesn’t do either really superbly. I also liked what Sean Penn said about Mickey Rourke, but still think Anthony Langella gave the greatest performance as Nixon, I could never imagine ever feeling for the guy, and his part humanized a man who screwed up the highest ranking in American politics.   I also thought, though an living legend screen icon, that Sophia Loren looked like she was taken out of a box of foam peanuts after 2 years. Other than that, the big dance/song number was just a big old bomb. When Kate Winslet told Meryl Streep to ’suck it up’ I thought that was funny and slightly off. I missed the first few awards and the opening numbers so I can only comment from about an hour in, but as a presentation it was better than some, worse than many.

Opens Saturday @ Milepost 5.

INFO

(above) Excerpt from Kate Fenker’s Strange Attractor

INFO

Indeed. In going through a slew of boxes I unearthed two of these beauties, probably the last few that exist of these Cary Leibowitz original multiples from 1999. The lauded artist who was featured in  Creative Time’s gig and stole NY’s prestigious Armory Show a few years back is always wry and to the point. They are signed and numbered (yellow #32 w/pink print; purple #33 w/pink print). They are the very last of an edition of 36 and are $75/ea, comes folded in a clear tote bag. Here’s a piece Holland Cotter did for the NY Times back in Y2K. With the regional rain and sleet this chic poncho may be the perfect gift (maybe for yourself?). If you are interested in either of these please let me know soon.

Cary Leibowitz
Ye Olde Candyass Muggery
February 18, 2009 – March 28, 2009
Reception for the Artist: Wednesday, February 18, 6:00–8:00 pm

Alexander Gray Associates is pleased to present an exhibition of new work by Cary Leibowitz. The exhibition, Ye Olde Candyass Muggery, consists of over 25 new multiples, taking the form of coffee mugs, wine glasses, espresso cups and highballs. Leibowitz’ mass-produced multiples have been widely collected and anticipated since his first New York exhibition twenty years ago, when he began exhibiting under the moniker Candyass.

Where previous installations have taken a carnival-like atmosphere, Leibowitz’ 2009 installation is more restrained in its design. The exhibition consists of mugs and other drinking vessels—objects that are both personal and social; these objects are elevated to works of art in their sculptural installation presented in the gallery. For Leibowitz, high is low, low is high; art is personal, personal is art.

Leibowitz has emblazoned these manufactured objects with highly stylized typography ranging from Sampler Stitchery to Art Deco. The “texts” commemorate and morph popular culture, gay iconography and Americana: “George Washington Redecorates Mount Vernon;” “Liza Minelli Lands on the Moon;” “The Golden Girls Signing the Declaration of Independence;” “Bette Midler Crossing the Delaware;” “Oh to Have the Confidence of Ferris Beuller and the Hips of Johnny Depp;” “Abraham Lincoln’s Friend Sleeps Over”.

Cary Leibowitz is an obsessive collector, who believes firmly that “quantity is quality.” With Ye Olde Candyass Muggery, Leibowitz encourages consumption of his objects; for them to be used as functional, dysfunctional, and non-functional objet d’art. In the spirit of accessibility and activism, prices range from $15–$100.

Leibowitz’ work was included in the landmark exhibitions Too Jewish? Challenging Traditional Identities at the Jewish Museum New York; In a Different Light at the University Art Museum, University of California, Berkeley and Bad Girls, New Museum for Contemporary Art, New York. Since 1989, his work has also been seen in exhibitions at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; Kunstverein für die Rhineland und Westfalen, Düsseldorf; Cleveland Center for Contemporary Art; ICA Philadelphia; Bonner Kunstverein, Bonn; Frankfurter Kunstverein, Frankfurt; Kunstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin; National Gallery of Australia, Melbourne; the Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, Ridgefield, CT; List Visual Art Center, MIT, Cambridge; the Guggenheim Museum, New York; and the Whitney Museum, New York. In 2008, Printed Matter organized a survey exhibition of Leibowitz’ multiples; his work is currently included in the Warhol Museum’s exhibition, The End: Analyzing Art in Troubled Times and Independent Curators International’s Slightly Unbalanced, on view at the Museum London, Ontario. Leibowitz lives and works in New York City.

John Ruggieri, a curator back east, was recently piecing together an amazing group show about the far-flung positive effects of big bro type surveillance and asked me to be included. Of course, my video Infinitus was just the poker-faced type work that he felt would be fitting. The show was proposed for Apexart and though it rated in the top tier out of nearly 400 proposals, was ultimately not chosen for the prize. I’m sure it will surface given the artists he’s so definitively selected. In the meantime, it was selected to be part of a conference at Brandeis University called Provoking the Social Imaginary: Culture Combat. That said, the grande scheme of associating daily with the web can be much the opposite (or, the passive eye). Many hide behind a cloak of anonymity for the most part, ruling a personal domain. Processing weekly analytics distinguishes a general idea of who’s honing in on your public self and in the blogosphere as it is deemed such, we have some that champion the overall process. In walks Portland Arts Watch and one must appreciate a voice that breaks out the brass tacks, though the jury is out on the Frodo reference. Check It Out!

2012

Terence McKenna used the I Ching to develop “Timewave Zero” which aligns with the Mayan calendar’s “end of days”. In November these theory’s come to the silver screen as a major motion picture for release. Over the last several months I’ve become fascinated by the tales woven by both science and prophets. Some claim a cataclysmic axis shift in tectonic plates and/or polar meltdown, while others envision a ‘jihad‘ of sorts. In other words it is the conjunction of the Winter Solstice Sun with the crossing point of the Galactic Equator (the equator of the Milky Way) and the Ecliptic (in the path of the Sun). For more you can check out the wiki, watch the History Channel’s piece running on YouTube or for another take, download Ronald Weinland’s entire book called God’s Final Witness for free. These eloquent words of President Obama’s inauguration speech were so very powerful and re-rang in my ears today.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

CHURCH|STATE - Where’s The Line?

Which brings up a whole other film. I just returned from the theater and seeing the hist/hysterically relevant Religilous (w/Bill Maher). Maher shakes it up, and as in all good documentaries, asks as many difficult questions as possible. He notes that there are nearly five times non-religious people than there are gays or jews in this country and how much of a silent majority we are. He interviews priests, ministers, rabbis, and many others from various denominations, and the results are revealing - and still veiled in the abyss of privacy. OK, so I’m more a distant cousin to a pagan and at times I talk to the wind, the moon and the water…but I don’t walk on any of them. I clearly get his point, and the film is phenomenal - I wish it were a hugely wider release as many more people would benefit from being exposed to the basic prnciples of questioning the foundations of their beliefs. It would seem the rational thing to do, even when contemporary religious doctrine (and its sister, rhetoric) may seem a little less so. Most stones are overturned when he talks with an “x-gay” man, visits and gets thrown out of spots in Salt Lake City and the Vatican. Though not explored in the film are any Asian-based religions, satanists, wiccans, the Hare Krishnas or the Jehovah’s Witnesses - but the intimate chats with televangelists and clips from those speaking in tongues alone are worth the price of the ticket. Grandma Molly always called me ‘Doubting Thomas‘ when I was lil’. After forty it still fits righteously.

INFO |  KGW Spot

Carle Vanloo, Les Arts suppliants demandant au Destin d’épargner la vie de madame de Pompadour
(The Arts Begging Fate to Spare the Life of Madame de Pompadour), 1764
(Courtesy Frick Art & Historical Center, Pittsburgh)

Despite popular misconception, I love frills. Not on me, or even in my home, but to be, for just a moment, or an hour, bedazzled by color and the gaiety of the French artists of the 18th Century (Boucher, Chardin, Fragonard). So, walking into the Portland Art Museum’s latest exhibition La volupté du goût: French Paintings in the Age of Madame de Pompadour is a bit like walking with battered feet on clouds. In that I mean, its the sort of exhibition suited for these times of hardship, unknown and change. It’s certainly opulent and full of cherubic figures and the luscious warm glow of light, but it speaks in large part like a cultural bandage. And it also retains this magic relevance to the struggle we face when the tide is high, as it spilleth over. As a people, we are hurting in general, economically and in all that spirals from there. The paintings and interpretive material here are like a midday lift of the spirits. Many of the works like the show stopper by Vanloo above, delve deeply into the passion surrounding the people’s art vs. the gods that have the power to take it all away. These ‘gods’ were a balance of the mystical and the commissioning royals.

But some of the art here speaks to the times with a faux surface. Skin that is painted in various shades of porcelain, reflecting modern day airbrushing techniques in advertising, the wealthy in day clothes. There are umpteen layers of cloaking in many of the canvases on view. You just have to look at the gestural fleur-de-lis caressing the edges of the work in gilded frames to get half of the story. Works like Boucher’s creamy-dreamy Les Confidences Pastorales alone offers a complete bask in the afternoon sun with three partly clad mistresses in bright silks who seem to have nothing better to do than writhe in the open air among a soft herd of sheep. This sort of siesta would do the typical American a lot of good, the art of thoughtful contemplation, or a simple breath.

Hubert Robert, La Lingère (Laundress and Child), 1761
Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, MA

The arts were a major form of dialogue between aristocrats of the era. As a result, many of the masterworks shown here, from the FRAME consortium, were originally commissioned by the bourgeoisie. As you would imagine, many of the scenes are delicate in theme, many with radiant young women and some softer takes on formal sittings, a historical signature of wealth. Though my favorite two works in the exhibition fell outside either category. The first is a smaller, rather humourous oil by Hubert Robert from the Clark Art Insitute in Williamstown, MA entitled La Lingère (Laundress and Child). Painted in 1762 its a testament of the earliest brushwork stylings to come by modernist artists like Cézanne who wouldn’t be born for nearly 70 years. Domestic scene aside, it’s funny to see a maid in a hoop-skirt boddess alongside a wee one weeing, mocking a nearby fountain. My absolute favorite work here is Simon-Mathurin Lantara’s true flight into the sublime, L’Esprit de Dieu planant sur les eaux (The Spirit of God Moving over the Waters). The piece is set off to the side unto itself, a bit dark, exerting an extremely abstract approach to its subject matter, or lack there of, for the era. Often depicting scenes of the sea, the artist here grabs hold of the spirit world in the form of wings of sorts, somewhat translucent in mid air. Don’t walk by this one, especially if like me, you are for exhibitions that swim upstream against the current which doesn’t bate you along the way.

This exhibition was curated jointly by Penelope Hunter-Stiebel and by Philippe Le Leyzour, chief curator at the Musee des Beaux-Arts. At the preview, PAM’s Chief Curator, Bruce Guenther, spoke eloquently about the exhibition and Madame Pompadour herself, by unveiling the exhibition’s thematic, illustrative and emotional composition. Even the press release was elegantly wrapped in a tiny Tiffany & Co-colored box that appeared at first like a tiny box of truffles, yet the USB inside would be better re-used as a keychain, even though this exhibition may induce a craving for seconds.

Colorfield Variations is the latest DVD from the LINE/12K imprint which is run by Taylor Deupree and Richard Chartier, who curated this compilation. You may remember Chartier’s small paintings from invisible.other which I curated for NAAU back in ‘07, and Deupree’s photograph graced the cover of the catalogue (below) for Newspace Center for Photography’s 4th Annual Juried Exhibition which I organized last year. One of the tracks on this very exciting collection of video work is by Steve Roden who was also included in the above mentioned exhibition, and another called amp_swell (sneak peek) by Sue Costabile and Beequeen originally appeared as part of my triMIX: Installation Soundtracks Deconstructed.

Colorfield Variations is a collection of audio/visual works reinterpreting the Color Field movement by an international array of critically acclaimed sound and new media artists. Color Field painting, an abstract style that emerged as a new direction in American painting in the 1950s following Abstract Expressionism, is characterized by canvases painted primarily with stripes, washes and fields of solid color. An alternate but less frequently encountered term for this style is chromatic abstraction. As the first critically acclaimed art movement to originate in the United States’s capital, the Washington Color School was key to the larger Color Field movement. As a reaction to the emotional energy and gestural surfaces of Abstract Expressionists, the Color Field artists broke away from the individual mark in favor of pure color itself becoming the main content of the work. By breaking painting down to its formal and fundamental elements, the Color Field artists created pure, simplified, large-format, color-dominated fields on often monumental scale utilizing the full psychological power of color.

Kenneth Noland: Drought, 1962

Artists such as Clyfford Still, Mark Rothko, Barnett Newman, Morris Louis, Kenneth Noland, Helen Frankenthaler, Sam Gilliam, Larry Poons, Gene Davis, Jules Olitski, and others eliminated recognizable imagery from their canvas and presented abstraction as an end in itself with each work being a cohesive image. The Color Field movement can be seen as a precursor to the themes and aesthetics of the subsequent Minimalist movement.  [excerpted from press materials]

Today’s visit to the mailbox was a most exciting moment, opening a small package to other treasures inside. And aside from my awaiting Blindspot Issue 39 (hey, only three times annually - it’s exciting, and I love the smell of fresh ink) was my very first baby…a new Lensbaby™! I love the packaging, it’s like opening an adult toy, for photographers that is. Now, this isn’t any ordinary lens, and it completely fits my Olympus perfectly. That aside, one of the things I love about this unique lens is that you can take what you see and immediately compose exactly the way in which you want to actualize it, prior to any Photoshop post manipulation. Sort of a “truth in advertising” way to re-work the world around you, arranging perspective to fit the way you see it. This will be a great tool while I start experimenting on a new series that has been postponed for a variety of reasons, in fact it may help me realize something more quickly. It has a unique focusing system, and there are a variety of optic attachments forthcoming that I cannot wait to try out. Another great thing is that they are headquartered right here in Portland. It’s been a long while since I’ve felt like an actual photo nerd, but this is one of those days - and it feels absolutely fantastic! In time I will post some preliminary results so you can see what I can do with this nifty gadget.

My double-diptych piece titled ‘Signs’ (2006) was featured by Regina Hackett in The Seattle Post Intelligencer’s Art to Go yesterday! The piece is one of the very first in my ongoing Double|Exposure series. It seems that she has almost virtually curated an exhibition of likely work noting other signs here, here and here, here and here. The piece, by the way, remains available as a unique, archival photographic work at NAAU, museum-framed and ready to be taken from the streets to a new home….

Published @ and/OAR
Check out my colleagues’ choices

PINK ELEPHANT: What a great way to bring this fourth annual event to its finale! So many bright new faces this year, so many folks we know well. Twas a success overall! For the past six or so weeks, snow and sleet in between, many of the works in this impromptu exhibition were hung from the walls with care. Many participating this year were new to this event, and it is a continued testament to the burgeoning community. One of the best parts of something like this is, in fact, the connections made between people when they realize who each other is. And the halls were full with incredible work in all media.

Photos @ PDX Art, Life & Satire

Of course no event involving 60 artists goes without a hitch. And this one was truly “organic”. When the wine well ran dry some seemed a bit peaked. However, it was soon thereafter that a keg and our gracious (and very funny) MC, Alicia Rose arrived and the whole thing got jump-started. Some with kids had to duck out early for bedtime, some arrived late, some artists even had designates to pick up pieces in their absence, one showed up with a piece and hardware in hand, for which we were elated to round the number of participants to exactly 60. Something rang in that number, I’m sure it will surface at a later date.

Becca Bernstein’s Facebook Photos

The exchange was exciting, and each artist drew a number corresponding to a work on the wall (surprisingly, no one drew their own name!). Things began in a swirl of movement, music and like an offbeat game show. In the flow of the evening the rules got slightly bent. A few participants traded pieces on sight. Another artist left a piece they received in the swap behind, and the usual mishigas of confusion rang out in this sea of collective creative spontaneity.

Brad Carlile’s Blog

At the end of the night it was amazing to see the previously decked halls now bare and only covered in hanging hardware. There were a small handful of artists hanging who couldn’t make it, and others who were there just wanting to join in the festivities or supporting others who were in the crowd. It’s been a great run for this event, but the elephant has walked its last tread for now. Who knows, something may come up next year, but it would be a different animal altogether. This one went from a tame 10 person party in my living room to a “wild” capacity crowd of nearly 200 in and out last night.

2GQ had this to say.

I would like to thank our host, Milepost 5 and Gavin Shettler, for providing the refreshments and the entertainment, including our DJ, MC and technical help. And I welcome any of you who were involved this or in past years to leave a comment about your experience, something funny that you want to share, or anything about the work you received in the swap. Lastly, I just want to say that this event had a very organic development and that it wasn’t an invitational per se, we originally invited a capacity of about 150 artists (figuring on guests and etc) so the eventual mix was a genuine blend of all walks and disciplines, this is one of the variable aspects that makes our community unique. If you have a blog, Facebook page, etc that shows us what you saw please do share. Thanks all!

Photos by Richard Schemmerer

Sara Cella’s Blog Wrap

The 4th and final Pink Elephant at Milepost 5 included special guest MC, photographer/accordionist Alicia Rose (aka Miss Murgatroid). 60 artists represented by almost every top notch gallery in town alongside new comers and emerging artists participated. This event has grown from my living room to 50+ artists last year hosted by NAAU, and this year is even bigger for the finale. For this event participating artists swapped work among themselves blindly when our MC calls out names and numbers. This event has introduced artists to each other since 2006 and has become a fun way to collect work by a colleague - a way of giving where you get something in return, stepping outside the commercial realm. The work was on view, intermittently between storms and such, since mid December.