Ford Gallery celebrates our beloved Ford Building this holiday season, featuring the many talented artists and makers who call the Ford Building their home! Get original works, artist prints, and handmade goods from Ford Building residents. Find unique and locally-made holiday gifts for friends and family.
Join us Saturday, December 7th, from 6-9 PM for an opening celebration and mixer!
Featuring Works By: Alexandria Levin Alicia Schultz Amy Ponteri Arletha Ryan Jan Rothermel Kenneth Sellen Leah Samour Midge Williams Nicki Beiderman Ryan McAbery Sara McCormick Thérèse Murdza
Chasing Jessie Applegate, a new solo show at Ford Gallery, is a visual art exhibition of work created by Portland artist Kirista Trask. Through the abstract exploration of place the artist seeks to reconcile her genealogy as a seventh generation Oregonian in relationship to her families long struggle with inter generational trauma. Chasing Jessie Applegate visually speaks to how trauma does not dissipate in its effect but rather can trickle down from generation to generation. Chasing Jessie Applegate will also allow the artist to share the stories of the women in her family visually as often words are out of reach. Generating a visible representation of pain that is often unspoken or invisible. To give pain a place to rest and to allow stories of hope and resilience to stand alone in its place. Chasing Jessie Applegate features twelve paintings that each represent the untold story of a women in her genealogical line. These twelve paintings span eight generations of women, going all the way back to the Oregon Trail.
Opening Reception Saturday, October 26th 6-9 PM
Coming up this Saturday at the Ford Gallery! Kirista Trask discusses her current solo show, Chasing Jessie Applegate, and the process she went through creating a body of work that is so intimate and personal yet so important. During the talk you will learn a little more about each of the women in her family and how trauma directly affected their lives. Kirista will be breaking down how each plate relates to the symbols in each of the paintings, as well as spending a good amount of time talking about how important it is, especially for female artists, to tackle difficult and somewhat painful subjects in their art.
Artist Talk Saturday, November 16th 3 PM
About the Artist Kirista Trask translates subtle moments and landscapes into swirling abstraction, blending saturated, opaque colors with translucent washes to evoke moment as an emotional experience. Her work is created using a variety of materials, including acrylic, ink, charcoal, pencil, oil pastel, chalk and coffee, in order to react to the spirit of the location at the moment. These abstract works exist somewhere between presence and memory, giving the viewer a moment for pause. Her best work is done plein air style in stunning locations all over the world and especially in the Pacific Northwest. As a seventh generation Oregonian Kirista finds a deep connection to place and incorporates that into her work.
Kirista Trask was awarded a project grant from Regional Arts Cultural Council which provided the funds for this project.
Just in time for the autumnal equinox, Ford Gallery is excited to present “From the Forest, From the Furrows, From the Field”, a group show inspired by folk horror, a sub-genre of horror in which rural, isolated communities assume their folklore and superstitions to be true, often revealing the continued practice of sinister, ancient pagan beliefs. In some folk horror tales, creatures said to lurk in the woods are very real, hexes and enchantments have genuine effects, and the old gods do indeed grant bounties and bring punishments, but often the community’s rituals reflect only the failings of tradition, and evil in the human heart.
Opening Reception: Saturday, September 28th 6 – 9 PM
Participating Artists Include: AJ Hawkins Alicia Justus Alison Grayson Angela Myers Arún Joseph Ragan Caren Rockwood Dusty Ray Elizabeth Massa-MacLeod Elodie Kahler Erika Rier Esmeralda Rupp-Spangle Heidi Elise Wirz Holly Cappello Lisa Laser Liv Rainey-Smith Lorren Ashley Lowrey Maria Mangus Mavis Leahy Melissa Monroe Mrrranda L. Tarrow Natalie Wood Pip Simon Ramon Martin Rebecca Artemisa Sam Hutt Tera Stenzel Trisha Shozuya Troy Hileman Woodland Shrine xochi_pilli
Curated by Mrrranda L. Tarrow
Live music by May Dirt 8 PM
“An experience like crawling on your belly through moist fertile soil with a bone rattle clutched in one hand and a book of faerie tales in the other.” https://www.facebook.com/pg/MayDirt23/
Custom faire-style cutouts, as designed by over a dozen local artists.
F.A.C.E. will exhibit roughly 15 large-scale pieces, each designed by a different local artist. Each piece features a roughly face-shaped hole somewhere on the canvas, where you and your pals can join the composition and selfie yourself into oblivion.
CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS Justine Verigin Matt Hopkins Amanda Baker Keith Henderson Beth Austin YouCantSitWithUs Maddison Bond Hannah Bearden Cynthia Reinhold Logan Welliver Jamie Middleton Chaya Bogorad YaPouring Kate Straube
Curated By Anya Bogorad
All Ages, though 18+ recommended.
Come for the novelty, stay for the music, “gift shop” (small items table), and of course Little Red’s Bakeshop cookies! We’ll open our door at 6:00pm, and then kick alla y’all out so the artists can chillax and high five at 9:00pm.
Entry for opening night will be $5 at the door – CASH PREFERRED.
Just in time for the autumnal equinox, Ford Gallery is excited to present “From the Forest, From the Furrows, From the Field”, a group show inspired by folk horror, a subgenre of horror in which rural, isolated communities assume their folklore and superstitions to be true, often revealing the continued practice of sinister, ancient pagan beliefs. In some folk horror tales, creatures said to lurk in the woods are very real, hexes and enchantments have genuine effects, and the old gods do indeed grant bounties and bring punishments, but often the community’s rituals reflect only the failings of tradition, and evil in the human heart.
Artists may submit up to three pieces in any medium; we must ask that no single work be larger than 36″ in any dimension. Space for 3D work is limited – let us know if you require a podium or special display requirements. Work must have been completed within the the last three years, and have not already been shown at the Ford Gallery. There is no entry fee, but the Ford Gallery takes a 40% commission on work sold.
If you would like your art to be considered for our promotional materials, please send images of finished work by Sun, Aug 18. Please confirm your participation by Sat, Sept 15. Work is due at the Ford Gallery (2505 SE 11th Ave, Portland) by Sat, Sept 21.
Intrigued, but unsure if your art would fit? For a better sense of the folk horror aesthetic, check out these films and books: The Wicker Man, Midsommar, Blood on Satan’s Claw, Children of the Corn, The VVitch, November, Valerie and Her Week of Wonders, “The Great God Pan” by Arthur Machen, “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, “The Ritual” by Adam Nevill (and its 2017 film), “The Loney” by Andrew Michael Hurley, “The Owl Service” by Alan Garner
Submissions Due: Sunday, September 15th
Opening Reception: Saturday, September 28th 6 – 9 PM
The Recycled Rain Project is a PNW based invitational art show creating original works using rainwater to raise awareness of water issues.
Since its first show in May 2012, The Recycled Rain Project has been dedicated to its mission to increase awareness of local artists and to engage and educate the community on water issues.
Each spring a group of Portland artists come together to create original works with collected rainwater. This all leads up to the big event, which takes place the first Saturday in June.
A portion of the sale of all works from RR2019 will be donated to Columbia Riverkeeper.
Over the last seven years The Recycled Rain Project has supported over 100 local artists and have donated over $3,500 to non-profits that focus on a variety of water issues.
Featuring Works By: Theresa Andreas-O’Leary Roberta Aylward Jane Levy Campbell Clare Carpenter Kindra Crick Nate Ethington Jenn Feeney Marilyn Joyce Karl Kaiser Jody Katopothis Thérèse Murdza Jesse Narens Kelly Neidig Amy Ponteri Candace Primack Maryann Puls Quin Sweetman Sara Sjol Nanette Wallace Laura Weigle Jon Wippich Karen Wippich Zeratha Monique Young
Ahuva S. Zaslavsky Fritz Koch Jemila Ann Hart Jenn Feeney
OPENING
Saturday, April 27th 6-9 PM
Under
Pressure: One of One is a group of Portland based printmakers that
has been working together for over eight years. In 2019, we founded
the Under Pressure: One of One collective in order to foster a
supportive community and space for our printmaking process. Our
mission is to create, encourage, collaborate and exhibit together.
In
the monotype process there are limitless possibilities. Works are
created by applying ink to a smooth plexi plate, manipulating the ink
using tools and our signature techniques, and then running the plate
and paper through a press which transfers the image to the paper
using pressure.
We
are passionate about our work and in sharing our techniques and
methods with each other. We see monotypes as a bridge between
printmaking and painting, and we love the playful quality of this
printmaking method.
Ahuva
S.Zaslavsky (1975-) was born in Tel Aviv, Israel and moved to
Portland, Oregon in 2010. Ahuva is a Printmaker and Painter. She
graduated from The University of the Negev, Israel with a B.A. in
Behavioral Sciences. Her art practice began when she moved to
Portland at the CE Program at PNCA and at Crow’s Shadow Institute of
the Arts.
Coming
from a diverse cultural background and having pursued studies in
Psychology, Sociology and Literature, Ahuva is constantly seeking to
understand the relationship between human behavior, the individual’s
motivation to be and create, and their interaction with the world,
society and culture. She is dealing with identity questions of the
subject in a group and as an individual.
Ahuva’s
current theme is movement and rhythm of the individual in private and
public spaces, the expression within those psychological and mental
spaces, and the ways to express these in two dimensional form.
Fritz
Koch creates monotypes that celebrate and reflect the spirituality of
landscape, particularly that of Central and Eastern Oregon. His work
is a meditation on textural landforms, geologic juxtapositions, and
atmospheric perspective. The work is presented as a medium for the
observer to vicariously commune with nature, and to find comfort in
the familiarity of real or imagined spaces.
Koch
was born in Detroit, Michigan and received his BFA from Michigan
State University, and now makes his home in Portland, Oregon.
Koch
is a member of Flight 64, a non-profit, cooperative print studio in
Portland, OR, and is a returning printmaker at Crow’s Shadow
Institute of the Arts, in Pendleton, OR. He has exhibited at the
Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA), Flight 64, Bite Studio,
Crow’s Shadow and others. He also co-curated and installed
Reflections on the Columbia River Plateau, a traveling exhibit of
monotypes produced at Crow’s Shadow, coordinated through Pacific
Northwest College of Art.
Jemila
is often drawn to landscapes in the prints that she creates. She
uses landscapes to capture and investigate states of mind, nuances of
her own emotional life. While the landscapes that she chooses to
depict are often beautiful, they hint at human impact and the seen
and unforeseen consequences of our intentions and our delusions on
the environment and on each other. These subtle environmental themes
question the inequitable distribution of the natural world for the
sake of progress, question the squandering of our abundance and
question the drive to expand, colonize and use the earth’s
resources to depletion. There is much to be learn from paying
attention to the landscapes around us, she feels, they hold the
history of our humanity and tell stories about our relationships; our
relationships to ourselves, to others and our relationship with the
planet.
Jemila
was born in Michigan, but has lived in many places including
Washington State, Yemen, Niger and Alaska. She currently lives with
her partner Jeff and their two aged cats in NE Portland. She has a
great appreciation for the perspective that comes from traveling,
seeing new places and glorious new things.
Jemila
received her BS in Biology and Anthropology from Lewis and Clark
College and recently completed her Masters in Social Work from
Portland State University. Jemila currently works as a community
based social worker in Public Housing communities in Clackamas
County, is a member of Flight 64, a non-profit collective Portland
print studio and returns regularly to workshops at the Crow’s
Shadow Institute of the Arts in Pendleton, Oregon to expand and
deepen her skills in monotype printmaking.
Jenn
Feeney’s prints are monotypes which are one of a kind prints, also
known as the painterly print. They are created by applying ink to a
smooth plexi plate, and then transferring the image to paper by means
of pressure through a press. Jenn enjoys the chemistry of the inks
and solvent and the effects created by using tools to remove and add
ink, layering color over color, texture over texture. While she can
anticipate what will happen with the print, she is surprised and
thrilled each time the print is revealed. Her works have been
described as organic, underwater scenes or other worldly, microscopic
views.
Jenn’s
childhood was spent around a commercial print shop, so being a
printmaker was inevitable… there’s ink in her blood! By chance,
when she joined the working world, she ended up working in print –
first as corrugated and then in business print and promotions, which
is still true to this day.
In
addition to printmaking, Jenn also paints in both acrylic and oil on
canvas or wood. She is involved in the Portland art community and
helps organize and participates in group shows and fundraising events
regularly. She is an honorary member of Bite Studio in SE Portland
and a returning printmaker at Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts
in Pendleton, OR.
“The curation of local artists for this exhibition was really fun! The array of styles, processes and design separate each artist from one another in so many ways, but all in the name of art.
The majority of these artists you can see street side or within a gallery setting across Portland and beyond.
This exhibition has a wide selection of artwork styles which will consist of but not be limited to illustration, abstract, stencil, print making, screen printing, mixed media etc… all focusing on each artists specialty craft and medium of choice.” -Mad One, Curator
The world around us, twisted, shifted and transformed through the minds of four artists. Join us for an exhibition of surrealist works by these talented local painters!
Please join us for a night of poetry, art, food and drink as Ellen Petruzzella and Lindsay Martin show their work in the exhibition: The Habitual and The Novel: Magic, at the Ford Gallery on Saturday, January 26 from 6 pm to 9 pm. Poetry Reading begins at 7 p.m. Please find more details below.
Opening Reception Saturday January 26th, 6 – 9 PM Poetry Reading at 7 PM
Gather. Retain. Modulate. Materialize. Share. The Habitual and The Novel: Magic showcases Ellen Petruzzella and Lindsay Martin’s thesis bodies of work created at Oregon College of Art and Craft. Both revel in sensory experience, image, and poetic memoir. Their practices focus on transforming the everyday into the extraordinary with material and perception. This work exists in partnership with the fated and coincidental alignment of material and time, of body and spirit.
Ellen Petruzzella focuses on building relationships and understanding through material and sensory encounters. Lindsay Martin uses painting to create a poem via imagery, searching for a new visual language from place and experience. She grapples with place, pulling it apart and putting back together to form new potentials, the casual and the wonderful, in the present. Inspired by Virginia Woolf’s To The Lighthouse, this show seeks to share stories via poetry, object and image to create something new and thus, creating something magical.
Artist Statements
Ellen Petruzzella My interdisciplinary work explores intimacy and knowledge, provoking curiosity regarding the unity of mind, body, and environment. I explore exchanges of understanding and trust through perception, corporal comprehension, and intuition. Investigations of the senses and habitual patterns allow for a vivid experience of the present and a connection of people and place through discovery and attention. I design sensory experiences, which promote slowness, require physical presence, explore preferences and aversions, and question what is biological instinct and what is cultural construct. Through conscious experience of physical self, we access the unconscious space between the known and the felt.
Lindsay Martin I want to map out the world through painting by turning. The turn is not transformation, yet. By turning, one is slowly changing a situation, viewing a slightly altered perspective. A transformation happens after many turns; when I arrive at a location, my place transforms from home to beach. My work focuses on the wonderful subtle movement, the leap before home to car, car to gas station, gas station to highway, exit 5, rest stop, diner, beach. Place is both general and detailed, it is permanent and temporary; place is a fluid illusion. Painting emerges as material algomation of the body’s translations of memory. I am curious about comparing the psychological perspective of interior, exterior imagery and the symbolism of architecture. These challenges are met with the language of painting and ideas of expansion in painting through material. Paintings are poetic anecdotes, an escape window, a doorway to the past, a barrier between interior and exterior.
