Shows-Archive

Pacific Northwest Area Sculptors Explore Space at Sculpture Gallery

This month, our Making Space sculpture gallery show displayed the talent and commitment of both Pacific Northwest Sculptors and Northwest Stone Sculptors Association members. ArtReach Gallery is a huge space and we filled it with excellent examples of our work. We drew a steady stream of visitors. I heard many positive remarks about the quality of sculptures in the sculpture show from International Sculpture Conference participants. We presented ourselves well.

ArtReach Gallery Sculpture Show Sculptures - October 2019

Collaborating For A Sculpture Gallery Show

The effort required to assemble 39 pieces from 25 sculptors was epic. We had five or six sculptures between 5’ and 8’ tall. There were multiple stone sculptures nearly equaling the weight of their creators. My only regret is that the show only lasted four days.

The lack of sales was disappointing, but the boost in visibility and a few new memberships may have long term benefits for the organization. This was our first collaborative venture with NWSSA. I hope we will produce another show in the Seattle area. Sheldon Hurst, the curator at ArtReach has also suggested we display a few sculptures at ArtReach on an ongoing basis.

ArtReach Gallery Sculpture Show - October 2019

Special thanks to Bob Dale for identifying the space and making introductions. Working with Sheldon Hurst was as pleasant an experience as I’ve had in a long time. Additional thanks to Dave Gonzo and Andy Kennedy for moving pedestals to and from storage. A special thanks also go to Sue Quast for taking the lead on hospitality for our reception. And, no activity is complete without a thank you to George who helped with coordination and assisted in judging the entries. Shelly and Jessica worked kept us visible on social media. Thank you to all the participants who put a lot into getting work to and from the gallery for such a short event. And, finally, there are a number of NWSSA members who deserve a nod, including Cyra Jane and Carl Nelson whom I worked with directly.

Thanks to Marty Eichinger for co-hosting a reception for conference attendees and PNWS members. That was a great networking opportunity.

I’m sure I’ve overlooked a few others who also deserve to be thanked. My apologies.

To learn more about Pacific Northwest Sculptors events, contact us today!

Sculpture Show Opens at Portland’s Multnomah Art Center

Nearly a year ago, at a member meeting in SE Portland, board president Chas Martin suggested we do a sculpture show based on collaborations between member pairs. Needless to say, the concept was met with much enthusiasm. First, each member could choose their own collaborator, or one would be chosen for them. Each participant would display one of their own pieces along with the collaborative piece. It was encouraged that some form of documentation of the pairs’ creative process is shared. An attractive and accessible gallery space located at the Multnomah Art Center in Multnomah Village was selected for the exhibition.

Unmatched Pairs: The Sculpture Show

Unmatched Pairs Sculpture Show - Sept 2019 - 3

Unmatched Pairs Sculpture Show - Sept 2019 - 2

There was much anticipation among the members as each pair committed their time, materials, and talent to their collaborations. The opening for this sculpture show was held on Friday, September 6, and it was clear the collaborators had made the most of the idea. It showed in the reaction of the visitors. A happy and noisy, inquisitive crowd had turned out. I had to turn my hearing aids down.

To learn more about Pacific Northwest Sculptors events, contact us today!

Collaboration to Host Joint Stone Sculpture Exhibition

Members of Pacific NW Sculptors, (PNWS) and the NW Stone Sculptors Assn., (NWSSA), will soon receive a call for an exhibition to coincide with the International Sculpture Conference. The venue is the ArtReach Gallery, located across the Portland Art Museum which is the home base for the conference. The space is large and elegant. Signage will be visible from the steps of the museum buildings and conference attendees will be aware of the exhibition.

We feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to show our work a stone’s throw from the conference itself.

Thank you to the following stone sculpture event collaborators:

Dr. Sheldon Hurst, director of the ArtReach Gallery, for offering this wonderful space.

Also, to Bob Dale for making the initial inquiry and following up by arranging meetups.

Carl Nelson, president of NWSSA, for coordinating with members of his organization and going out of his way to help ours as well.

Thanks to Show Chair, Chas Martin for being at the forefront, doing the heavy lifting and no small amount of the thinking. Meeting with the above people has been a productive pleasure.

Members of both organizations are encouraged to apply. Here is a chance to have your work seen by a select audience of sculptors, collectors, gallery directors and museum curators.

Update: The call has now been released and summarized in this newsletter. See the link at the end of the article to the entry form itself. The deadline is August 17th and the call is open to members of Pacific NW Sculptors and the NW Stone Sculptors Association. Best of luck to everyone who applies and thanks again to Dr. Sheldon Hurst for the opportunity.

To learn more about Pacific Northwest Sculptors events, or contact us today!

Art Collaborations – Sculptors Pair Up for Unmatched Pairs Sculpture Show

Unmatched Pairs Event - Multnomah Arts Center - Exhibit photo - 3

Unmatched Pairs Event - Multnomah Arts Center - Exhibit photo - 2

Ten of our members responded to the call for art collaborations for our September show at the Multnomah Art Center. The concept is simple: each will display one piece plus one in collaboration with their partner. The theme, “Unmatched Pairs” seems entirely appropriate when you consider the styles and skills of those who paired up.

Preliminary sketches are starting to surface as the pairs consider what and how they will interact. A few examples give clues as to what kind of fireworks this show may produce.

The show runs September 6th – 30th with a reception on Friday, September 6 from 7-9pm. The Multnomah Art Center is at 7688 SW Capitol Highway, Portland. It’s in the heart of Multnomah Village.

To learn about upcoming events or Pacific Northwest Sculptors, contact us today!

The Belly – An interactive art installation of art in public places

Art Installation by Aim Axon

The senses, how enticing, visceral, our primal instincts… unnourished. The Belly was created to awaken our healthy and innate urges within ourselves, within nature itself. A 20 minute sensory experience crafted to open doors, unlocking the tight control that represses and denies the very essence of who we are and the Earth we live on.

Alisa Looney experiencing The Belly - an art installation by Aim Axion. — Alisa Looney experiencing The Belly

Into the chaotic jungle, through angles of bamboo, near the mind altering glows, enter The Belly. Feet undressed, pass through the veil, greeted by one glowing light. The ground soft, inviting a seat ~ lay ~ crawl ~ stretch. Look around, Earth is hiding in the darkness. Trees, flowers, scents of rosemary, lavender, and lemon. The sky has an underground feeling, wet and mountainous. Come closer to the light, see your reflection. Put your skin in the Earth and Water…touch your body…the elements so wonderful, so giving, have you forgotten?

It wasn’t who she thought she knew, but who they used to be
She whispered to the wind at night, preserving bits of memory…
Excerpt from the poem written by Jessica Stroia

Vibrating sound surrounds, undulating in emotional spectrum: fear, anger, repression, hunger, sexuality, ecstasy, sensuality, gentleness, unknowing, meditation, renewal. All here, seeping and pouring through our souls like the streams and rushes of Water.

Photo of The Belly - an art installation by Aim Axion.

As experiencers came out of The Belly with mud on their faces and a curious look in their eye, many greeted me with warm hugs. Some expressed they had feelings of being in the womb, being deep within and tending to the core. Being in a mystical and sacred place, similar to a sweat lodge. Being close to Earth’s weaving roots…

This journey has been so fruitful and fulfilling. Thank you all who interacted and took a moment to feel.

Musical appearances by:

• Nature – Spirit, Fire, Air, Water, Earth, the Crow and native birds

• Amber Metz (Aim Axon) – Composition and recording, female vocals, planetary patterns, bamboo, tingsha bells, chimes, xylophone, Tibetan singing bowls, wood drumming, rainstick, gong, whistles, effects

• Dave Gonzo – Dejembe drumming, bamboo, Rick Gregg’s bells

• Matt Weiers – Clarinet, flute, xylophone

• Chayo Wilson – Tibetan singing bowl, bells, xylophone

• Andy Kennedy – Male throat singing

Listen in a quiet and dark space at » www.aimaxon.bandcamp.com

Special thanks to:

The elements for nourishing our very existence, allowing us to feel the senses and experience this stay on Earth.

Andy Kennedy for stoking the fire to this conscious experiment, for being an intriguing collaborator and a whimsically supporting hand. Andy, thank you for creating the engaging jungle atmosphere outside The Belly room, which encouraged the audience to touch – play – wonder – let go.

Also within the jungle, Craig Dorety for lending his hallucination chamber and Joseph Cartino for his indigenous dangling decor.

Chayo Wilson for her spiritual guidance and all around kindness and support.

Matt Weiers for sharing audio knowledge and lending his recording equipment and handsomely crafted singing bowls.

Dave Gonzo for harnessing the essential and primal animalistic forces.

Jessica Stroia for her surreal poetry, elegant flower reef and veil decor.

Terri Elioff for her excellent seamstress skills that made the ground oh so comfortable.

Jennifer Corio and Art at the Cave gallery for making the use of this space possible.

And of course, to the Pacific NW Sculptors who donated materials and for their artistic encouragement.

Photo of Pacific Northwest Sculptors member Aim Axion inside The Belly - an art installation. — Amber Metz (Aim Axon)

The Cave in Vancouver, Washington hosts show by Top Sculptors from Oregon and Washington

The International Sculpture Center, (the publishers of Sculpture Magazine), some 4 years ago suggested that there be an International Sculpture Day. Not surprisingly sculptors and sculpture organizations around the country thought this was a good idea.

This is our third year of participation. It is a thing we look forward to all year. Much effort goes into preparations and not enough can be said about the volunteers who put it together.

This year the event was held at The Cave gallery in Vancouver WA. The gallery mounted a juried show of member’s works for the month of April 2018 with an opening on Friday, April 6th. International Sculpture Day was celebrated on Saturday the 21st. On that day three artists gave talks, demonstrations of welding and ceramic construction were outside and the vacant storefront next door was transformed into a space for immersive and interactive installations. Janet Julian provided acoustic music on a vintage Gibson guitar.

Demonstrations were provided by Dave Gonzo, (welding), and Chayo Wilson, (ceramics). Also featured in that area were additional works by those two artists which included a rather remarkable spider fire pit by Dave. Note the glass eyes glowing from the fire within.

Immersive Works were set up in the vacant storefront next door. Just to the left of the doorframe a 3D printer provided by Proto Pasta of Vancouver was busy squirting out tiny gnomes. The floor, walls and ceiling were festooned with assorted segments of bamboo. Some pieces were meant to be rearranged as one saw fit. Curious items were here and there. Further up a passage was a box fixed to the wall. In it were a number of LEDs strobing in unison. A knob on the side of the box could control the frequency. One inserts one’s head into the box and then manipulates the knob to create the most desirable hallucinations. Not anything like flying monkeys but rather interesting moiré type patterns of dots. Those subject to seizures were clearly warned away. Flying monkeys have never hurt anyone by the way.

The Belly was just on the other side of the corridor. That was small darkened space lit by a salt lamp, the floor covered with pillows and a soundscape coming from hidden speakers. Artist Talks were introduced by Jennifer Corio in the main gallery. She talked about International Sculpture Day and our participation in it for the past 3 years. George Heath the current president of PNWS introduced the organization and talked of its purposes and goals. Three artists then spoke for about 15 minutes each. Sue Westfall Quast described how her art developed and intersected with life over time. Craig Dorety, a light sculptor, spoke about how the peculiarities of LED lights could be utilized creatively and further how such lighting can interact with the mind. The strobing chamber mentioned in Immersive Works paragraph was one of Craig’s pieces. Chas Martin spoke of creating a piece so as to control the space around it and using that space to elicit a response from the viewer. He also described how his current work developed from line into sculpture.

To Tomorrow and Back – A public art installation in Shanghai

A public art installation in Shanghai

I’ve done the trip into tomorrow 4 times now. And by the trip into tomorrow, I mean a flight across the International Date Line to Asia. This trip was for a public art installation – to install a show for artist Jim Campbell from San Francisco. In fact, all my other trips to Asia were to set up shows for Jim. If you haven’t seen his work, it is definitely worth checking out. I went to Shanghai to install 5, large and highly technical pieces at the Chronus Art Center, a prominent art space sponsoring contemporary technology art. While I could talk endlessly about Jim’s work, what I really want to describe is Shanghai itself. Shanghai is nestled just inland from the Yellow Sea on the eastern coast of China. As nestled as any city of 24.15 Million people can be: Shanghai has SUBURBS of up to 10 million people. I don’t think I can overemphasize the sheer volume of humanity… and yet it never felt overcrowded. The subway system is extensive, modern, efficient, and even clean. I rode it several times during rush hour, and while there were large crowds, the crowds flowed smoothly almost like water. And even with the dense crowds, I never felt the crunch like I have in NYC on a busy day….or what I imagine some subway lines are like in Tokyo. Even the streets (mostly…well at least the modern ones) are wide. Almost everything seemed modern….like preserving the old is not a high priority.

Although, there are some things that get preserved. During my time there I was able to visit 3 beautiful temples, each in essence, a public art installation: The Shanghai City God Temple, The Jade Buddha Temple, and the Jing’an Temple (recently rebuilt due to fire, but originally dating back to 250AD). In addition to the temples, I visited Yu Garden and the adjacent Yuyuan Tourist Mart for some shopping. Another wild shopping experience was the TianZhiFang: an old neighborhood turned into a tourist shopping area with narrow alleyways and abundant food choices. Here you can have your caricature sculpted while eating meat on a stick.

Sometimes things come up during a public art installation of technology based art. Like a piece malfunctions or new parts must be sourced. So, when traveling in foreign countries I am always on the lookout for places where I might source these parts. Shanghai has a centralized place for sourcing electronics: the SEG Electronics Marketplace. This is a 10 story building filled with small booths where vendors sell a large variety of specialized electronics related products. It was so satisfying to find products that I had heretofore only been able to research online before buying. Now I know there is a place in the world where one can.

Newport Visual Arts Center Opening Draws Crowd

Friday, Sept. 8, was a big day in Newport for members of Pacific Northwest Sculptors. That afternoon, the Newport Visual Arts Center, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, welcomed the pubic to “Variety of Visions: Work from the Pacific Northwest Sculptors.”

Sculptures in a wide range of media by 27 PNWS members were on display at the NVAC, a project of the Oregon Coast Council for the Arts.

PNWS President George Heath, whose schedule kept him from attending the opening, said of the show, “It looks amazing and very professional. We can be proud.” He volunteered high praise for PNWS Shows Coordinator Dave Gonzo. “What I did witness was what it took for Dave and his crew just to make the arrangements. The negotiations were challenging and there were some last-minute issues that seemed impossible to overcome, but Dave just took it head-on and made it happen,” said Heath. “It was a marvel to see.”

Newport Community Supports Visual Arts

Gonzo praised those who helped him make the show a reality. “With much hard work from all of the show committee and other members, it couldn’t have been done without them,” he said. “I would like to thank the show committee for stepping up in making the exhibition a reality. Chas Martin for the show title and taking submissions, Joe Cartino for creating the spreadsheets, Jessica Stroia and Sue Quast for handling the marketing, promotion, and social media along with Alisa Looney.”

Gonzo also thanked Craig Dorety and Andy Kennedy for their logistic support. In addition, Kennedy also wrote promotional copy, and Jill Townsend found hotel rooms at a discount for PNWS members. Gonzo expressed special appreciation for the contributions from Newport Visual Arts Center Director Tom Webb. “Working with Tom was a pleasure, and I learned much about putting on big exhibitions. With communication, understanding, and patience, we pulled off a great show.”

To learn more about Pacific Northwest Sculptors events, contact us today!