Before The Pearl was The Pearl, it was a forgotten industrial district and home to many burgeoning Portland artists whose work would help transform that entire section of the city. Richard Melloy is one of those artists. Now calling Foster-Powell his home, Melloy continues to build on his decades-long career as a painter and commercial illustrator.

Join us on August 27 at 6 pm at Ford Gallery for Richard Melloy’s “Present In Time” an exhibit of new works by the artist as well as a collection of his most popular prints.

“Melloy is more than an accomplished painter—he is an inspiration for creative longevity,” PDX Magazine wrote of Melloy. “[He’s] bullheaded enough not to quit and smart enough to adapt throughout a long career.”

See the full article HERE.

And another article on last year’s “The Way I See It” exhibit HERE.

We will hold an artist tour at 7 p.m., and Melloy will join us that evening downstairs at the Mechanical event space for PDX Magazine’s Last Saturday Salon

The show will run from August 27 – September 17.

Jason Brown has dedicated so much of himself to supporting the Portland art scene recently as a gallerist/arts advocate at GoodFoot, Peoples Art of Portland, Po Boy Art, and elsewhere, that newcomers to Portland might not recognize this veteran’s work. To help remedy this, Ford Gallery has collected select works of Brown’s for this retrospective to celebrate the artist who has inspired so many others over the years.

Join us on Saturday, July 16, 2016 at 6 pm for an opening celebration. The show runs through August 13.

Jason Brown’s Artist Statement:

“Painting is my vessel of communication. Art becomes a social and personal dialectic for me aimed at resolving inner and public conflict while simultaneously celebrating humanity.

“Through irony, humor, bold and subtle imagery, I convey my vision to others. I place my characters in settings where the rooftops of society have been cut off and their idiosyncrasies become their vulnerabilities. By utilizing perspective, I place my characters into a realm that seems comfortable and inviting, but contains certain disjointed qualities. My characters explode out of their setting while remaining stoic, as though they are unaffected by their environment — a petty thief that steals the tip of a waitress left on the bar by a previous patron; the meat market patrons with their robust, crazed egos manipulating the masses with their decedent carnage.

“Some have suggested that my work has a masculine perspective, but I certainly do not represent or embody the masculine viewpoint. Ultimately, I paint individuals transfixed by their struggle, at times framing the daily lives of “Martyred Saints”, “Super humans” that have routines and transgressions just as anyone else. (The musician who forgets he is mortal for a brief second and the lightning bolt of god touches his forehead, knighting this saint a forbearer of humanity – the husband who goes into a strip bar for directions, and is coincidentally spotted by his wife.)

“I am intrigued by the situational moments that could be explained, but the individual finds himself trapped by the circumstances. Through observation and perspective I make an earnest attempt at painting the honesty of humanity.”

Ford Gallery presents Artcest, a collaborative group show with works by Ali Schlicting, Emily Bates, Christopher Creath, Jennifer Griffo, and Matt Schlosky. The show is curated by Ali Schlicting.

Opening celebration Saturday, March 26, 6-11 pm — 6-8 pm in the Gallery, 8-11 pm in Mechanical, suite B27

Show runs through April 23rd.

Christopher Creath

Ali Schlicting

Emily Bates

Matt Schlosky

Jennifer Griffo

This month, Ford Gallery is proud to exhibit works by artist Sam Klein. Klein’s pointillist work draws from his uniquely-curated appreciation of pop culture. The “points” in each of these pieces are Phillips head screws of varying size and color. The works are magnificent when viewed in person. Klein’s other paintings viewable in the slideshow below, are not hung in the gallery but are on site and can be viewed by appointment. Stop by before March 19.

Ford Gallery 2505 SE 11th Ave. For sales, contact Ross Blanchard at 503-449-3305 or [email protected]

Saber Rom unleashes new works at the Ford Gallery in January with an opening party at the gallery on January 16 at 6 pm that continues downstairs at PDX Magazine’s Mechanical venue in Suite B27 after 8 pm.

Yes, we’re off our last Saturday schedule again for art openings, but it’s Saber’s birthday, so what better reason to move up an opening. Come ready for a real celebration!

Saber’s latest work is a collection of paintings on oriented strand board (OSB) and many of the works feature wildlife. By depicting wildlife on this ubiquitous and inexpensive construction material, the artist asks the viewer to consider the delicate balance between the human need for shelter and nature’s need for suitable habitat.

From the artist:

“This current work is an attempt to explain, to poke fun, to shout out ‘order in the court!’ As our most asleep-at-the-wheel president left office on the eve of our next great depression, housing markets were imploding, banks teetered on collapse.

“Flash forward. We voted for Hope and then on was the next building/buying boom. In my neighborhood as well as yours, where one old rundown house once stood, four shot up in its place at six feet apart. These shotgun shack town homes promised ‘yours: new, dry, warm’. Enter Oriented Strand Board (OSB): lumber’s leavings pressed with glue and soaked in formaldehyde. This OSB board was something my eyes traced everyday across this same cityscape. We’ve cut down so many trees that we can’t build out of plywood anymore. I try to notice the evictions: the crows, squirrels, raccoons, hummingbirds must press on in search of that same dream we got sold: ‘your dry, warm home’.”

Show Dates: Jan 16 – Feb 19.

Ford Gallery | 2505 SE 11th Ave

For sales or more info, contact Ross Blanchard — [email protected], 503-449-3305