best of eugene

(oh god this tattoo is awful, surely its photoshopped, but let's hope for the model's sake the tribal tramp stamp is faux as well. because in amerindian that shit reads "musty hooker.")

well, well, well...

fenario gallery with the win. each yeah, our local "alternative" weekly paper opens ballots for the "best of eugene" awards. though the results are heavily fixed by the primarily extreme-lib readership of the rags, its still a good indicator of what people like in eugene. it is fenario's pleasure to share that we won best art gallery this year. in the write up EW wrote:

"Wow. Fenario in an upset! By the way, y’all, it’s prounounced Fen-AIR-ee-oh. Or so the proprietors told us back before the gallery at the corner of Broadway and Willamette became the place for hip multiculti art, spoken word and the occasional DJ. Sometimes appreciating the art at Fenario calls for special brownies rather than wine … not that we’ve got a problem with that. Pop in to get something framed or land at the gallery for one of the benefits it sponsors — and stay for the art. Runner-up DIVA usually features local artists but hits it outta the park with the Teenie Harris show this fall, and besides, there’s usually a movie or experiemental noise band to liven up any unlively art." 

there were mixed feelings amongst the fenarions about the "special brownies" comment. some felt that it was a dig, and that it was meant to make us feel like lazy stoners that barely deserve the win, but i'm in another school. i think the writers at the weekly just think making snarky little comments like this make them sound cool. you know, "hey kids, i'm down with the pot! i'm hip, i'm with it, tucka tucka tucka tucka..." oh well, let them have their fun. 

the best of eugene awards are given out at a sort of oddly choreographed, low production value extravaganza, this year hosted at the mcdonald theater with a halloween theme. costumes were encouraged, but i skipped out. i got caught somewhere between history teacher and disco minx and had to run out the door. in retrospect is was a very foxy, if a little confusing, get up. we were honored to receive the award, but no one was too keen to be the one who got up onstage to accept the plaque. in fact, when our name was called we were all milling about in the bar. i refused to set down my drink to exit the bar, so for a few painful moments i squinted up at the screen showing the stage, willing someone to take one for the team and get up there. fortunately at the last minute brent and mikl made it to the stage and awkwardly claimed our prize. 

afterwards we went to a sad bar with an empty dance floor and drank our joys away.... JUST KIDDING! ... except that i'm not.

November Fenario Art Show

shanna trumbly, the rabbit and the shooting stars, acrylic on canvas

This Novermber at Fenario Gallery we'll be having a joint show with local artist Shanna Trumbly and a Portland-based photographer named Rainen Janes. Shanna and Rainen have been friends for years, but this is their first time showing together, and I'm excited to find that I think their work, despite their very different mediums work together very well and have an interesting give and take. Shanna has been active in the art community in Eugene for years. She has a popular booth at the Saturday Market, and her shop at the Country Fair this year had lines pouring out into the paths. While her art had been mainly focused on craft and mercantile, Shanna picked up a paint brush about a year ago and found she had a virtuosic natural ability with the medium. Producing several whimsical, dreamy scenes often depicting animals and local flora over the past year, her more recent works hinge on a new technique in which Shanna takes a photograph which she has printed on canvas and then paints bright, juxtaposing images over the photo. Her benign animal scenes have taken on a distinctly darker flavor, and though there is still a fairy tale like narrative element, they are more like the Grimm Brothers' original stories than Disney classics. 

Rainen Janes' captivating nature photography (similarly printed on canvas) will make for an interesting artistic olio when hung with Shanna's acrylics. A gifted photographer with a strong sense of form and color, Rainen's series for the exhibit will focus mainly of photographs of horses. With interesting angles and the inclusion of unexpected depictions of the theme in far flung locations hand picked from his travels, the exhibit will be an interesting twist on a nature photography show.

Upcoming show with The Bridge

its that time of year again, kids. one of our favorite bands is slowly making their way out to the left coast to get willamette valley booties shaking. they're playing two nights at the gallery here's the press release i wrote, generously edited by kevin over at hyena records who's taken a bit of his own time to help hone my press release writing skills:

The Bridge is a Baltimore based band delivering a classic Americana sound fused with elements of New Orleans funk and jazz, delta blues and bluegrass. With their accomplished musicianship, unique instrumentation and intelligent yet accessible songwriting the band has been amassing a devoted following across the U.S. through their dedication to high quality performance. On November 14th and 15th, Fenario Gallery will be hosting a two-night engagement, one stop on the West Coast leg of the band's album release tour. Their new record, entitled "Blind Man's Hill," is an evolution on the band's well-developed, multi-layered sound. The album seamlessly flows between musical styles and tempos with a natural cohesiveness and grace, and has the lightheartedly nostalgic feeling of an homage to the kind of classic American music that remains relevant for its skill and thoughtfulness rather than its glitz or synthesized presentation. "Blind Man's Hill" paints a picture of an America that is composed of rough hands, honeysuckle, whiskey, beautiful women and hard work. The delectable recipe of Kenny Liner's mandolin and beat-boxing, Dave Markowitz' bass guitar, Patrick Rainey's sax, and Mike Gambone's kinetic drums make for a perfect backdrop for Chris Jacob's powerful, singular vocals and gritty guitar riffs. While their studio recordings are undeniably well crafted, the bands real magic comes out in their energetic live performances. Both engagements at Fenario Gallery will start at 9:00 PM, and tickets will be $10.

i have a tendency to be overly verbose, which isn't a very good quality for publicity. concise is the name of the game in the press world. i appreciate trying to build this skill set because i've always had a deeply held admiration for writers who can be impressively descriptive in a short hand manner; the least amount of words representing the largest of human ideas. 

anydoodle, the shows are sure to be great fun. we always have a blast when the bridge comes to the gallery, and with their killer brand spankin' new album they're sure to have the verve and excitement to put on an amazing show. 

take a ten minute journey with me

fuco ueda, sprouting 2, acrylic on cloth no wood

last night i was meditating on how beautiful Yellena's show is. she arrived yesterday with the whole show, new works on paper as well as gorgeous acrylic on board pieces. as we were unpacking the boxes, i again had a feeling of being artistically overwhelmed. how does so much beauty come from one small, lovely woman? as we laid out the pieces on the floor i was overjoyed to see the kind of show i had been dreaming about mounting since art school. Yellena has cleverly framed her pieces in white shadowboxes. on the white walls of the gallery it has a crisp, clean aesthetic that just sings. the shadowboxes give the show the feeling of an aquarium, each little scene has its own habitat, its own environ, and the small scale invites the viewer into the details, as if approaching carefully curated microhabitats. 

i think having the "stasis" show, with its quiet subliminal beauty, directly following the veritable cirque du soliel of lopez's show will show fenario's versatility. i think both shows are in the direction that we want to go: contemporary, versatile, inherently aesthetically interesting, and youthful. they represent the kind of talent that i want to highlight with the space. people with a signature style, but with an ability to adapt and evolve to challenges and changing times.  i think that people who were present at the last first friday are going to be blown away by the transformation of the space. 

for those who were wondering, the lopez installation will remain for at least this month. let's just say we're attached. (read: i had an anxiety attack contemplating the process of whitewashing the beautiful piece of art myself and several others had done so much to make happen.) 

last night while thinking about art, i was participating in an exsercise that i often undertake: mentally curating a dream show (possibly a self-indulgent act for someone who's already been so lucky in real life, but what can i say, i'm a hedonist). sometimes i think of shows that i would put together just for beauty's sake: no particular concept or theme, just things that i find beautiful. below i've put a list of pieces that i would hang in my show "a few of my favorite things". i'm not normally in the habit of posting images from artists who i haven't spoken with directly to get permission, but i'm hoping that the fact that they're in my dream show will give me some karmic respite. if any one (artists or readers) has any objections feel free to let me know. 

fuco ueda, bad summer, acrylic and modeling paste on cloth on wood

laurie hogin land of desire - prozac planet 2007 oil on canvas 36"x48"

doremus scudder, rock formation, oregon coast silver gelatin print

(we have a stunning set of scudder prints at the gallery that i would love to find a home for)

audrey kawasaki, minami no uta

josh keyes, dawn

walton ford, falling bough watercolor, gouache, ink and pencil on paper

tara donovan, colony, pencils

nicola verlato, enduring freedom, oil on canvas

anne hardy, drift, daisec mounted c-type print

jen lobo, jealousy

audrey kawasaki, if only you were here, acrylic on wood 

re-post: the lovely yellena

Yellena James, "Vessel", print of drawing done with pens, ink and markers on paper, 6"x6" (print available on her etsy shop)

i've been gushing for quite some time about yellena james. she's a talented aritst and designer who lives on the oregon coast (currently... she misses the city, i can empathize). orignially from sarajevo, yellena has traveled the world honing her beautiful, dreamlike style of illustration and racked up a laundry list of fans. i've got pages and pages worth of praise for her art, but as I mentioned earlier, the heat has turned my brain into mush. for today i'll let the interview and the images speak for themselves. she's agreed to a show at fenario in october, so i'll have plenty more to say in the coming weeks. yellena sat down and answered some of my questions after a recent trip to hang a show at giant robot in san francisco.

CG: tell me a little about yourself, and how you got started making art.

YJ: i've done art as long as i can remember. i hear this from a lot of artists in interviews, but it's true. i always loved to draw and i have always been fascinated with pens and markers. my sister is also an artist and we used to make things together growing up. during the civil war in sarajevo, i enrolled in an art high school against my parents wishes. where i am from, as most places i'm sure, artists tend to starve. but we all at some point make the decision that doing what you love is most important.

CG: where do you draw your inspiration from? what gets your imagination running?

YJ: oh, this is always the hardest question for me because it is very hard to pinpoint inspiration. i think artists just have that in them. if you love what you're doing you are always inspired to do it no matter what. you get inspired by all things. many of my recent works were inspired by small elements or ideas found in my previous works which begged to be explored furthur. it's a nice feeling to finish a piece and step away with the direction in mind for a new piece.

CG: you have a very distinct, recognizable style of design and illustration. how has your aesthetic developed over time?

YJ: thanks for saying that. a lot of work and time have gone into creating and developing my style. i still feel like there is so much more room to grow. i've had a lot of traditional training, and many great teachers along the way. i had one teacher in sarajevo who made us do line drawings for months until we perfected them. i was so happy when we finally started doing some shading in our studies. i think i started doing my best work when i stopped trying to impress other artists, teachers, critics, etc. and started making art that i enjoy.

yellena james, "bliss" pen and ink on paper, 6"x7.5"

CG: do you doodle when you talk on the phone?

YJ: no, i usually pace around the room when i talk on the phone. when i'm drawing, i'm completely focused on what i'm doing. i almost always have music playing. i'm completely addicted to pandora.com.

CG: do you have a favorite medium?

YJ: pens and markers are still my favorite, although i do love paint. i have literally hundreds of pens in my studio and i am very particular about paper too.

CG: it seems that a lot of your pieces are on a small scale. what draws you to working on small pieces? do you ever work on a larger scale?

YJ: i work in a small scale because my work is so detailed and it takes me forever to finish little pieces. i also like the intimacy of smaller pieces. they invite viewers for a closer inspection, a second look.

CG: you recently moved to the oregon coast. as a native oregonian, i must say, you've picked a truly beautiful, scenic part of the world to call home. how has your change of scenery inspired you? do you have good tide-pooling near your home?

YJ: it's true, oregon is very beautiful. the tide-pooling is top-notch i'm sure. the coast is a great place to work in peace, though i'm definitely missing the city energy these days. we'll probably be living in portland by the end of the summer. there are a lot of creative people there and always something fresh going on. we live next to the ocean right now and i guess that has had some influence on my work. recently, my artwork has been described as resembling precambrian ocean life. i liked this, because during the precambrian era, the seas were just these big pools of potential, and life was just forming - seemingly at random but also by design. all these little elements were taking form and coming alive on their own. this is similar to how many of my art pieces come together. lots of little bits and lines, forming curves, then shapes... sort of randomly, but also by design.

CG: what fellow artists and designers do you admire? who do you have your eye on?

YJ: oh, let's see. i'm a big fan of julie mehretu and matthew ritchie... i also really like apak, sam weber, jeff soto, takashi murakami. there are so many more... i think now is a really exciting time in art. one thing about being close to portland, and also selling on etsy and the giant robot, is that i've been introduced to so many amazing DIY-minded artists. there are just a lot of people right now who are doing things on their own.

CG: what albums do you take with you when you go on a road trip?

YJ: for road trips, i like to bring compilations: interpol, black keys, beck, okkervil river, b.r.m.c., my morning jacket, muse, ours, the shins... that kind of stuff.

CG: if i loaned you my private jet where would you go?

YJ: i have been wanting to visit sarajevo and the adriatic coast lately. it would be nice to see my family there, and show my husband where i was born. then i would probably ask you to loan me your jet again for a trip to japan. then italy, then france, australia, ireland, brazil.... your jet will probably need an oil change when i'm done.

yellena james, "magic" print of drawing done in pen and ink, 8.5"x11" (prints available on her etsy shop)

california roll

yellena james

there's really no time to rest on one's laurels in this business. as much as i'd like to have the time to sit and revel in the success of the lopez show, i have to give my full attention to preparations for our next show, which hangs in two weeks (ahhh!)

next at bat we have yellena james, who i've been writing about for months now.  i got an email from the artist hesitantly naming the show "stasis". i love the title so much with the work i've seen thus far i'm going to run with it. i have my graphic designer working on a flier (i know, WAY late, it was a opportunity for me to learn to keep my sight on the horizon and never get too caught up in the present, so as to forget the future). i'll get my press out soon, though unfortunately, with this short of notice it would be unfair to ask any press junket to work on a feature story with so little time, maybe we'll get some press retroactively when writers get the chance to see yellena's work and fall in love with her gentle, personable self. 

i'm very excited to see what comes for the show. yellena usually works on a precious scale, but for this show she's produced some larger works, and we're making some large scale prints of her highly detailed work. i am stoked to see how they fill the space. 

i talked with a woman the other day who referred to the gallery as "male-centric". the thought had honestly never crossed my mind, but when i thought back on the past few months i could acknowledge a slightly more masculine energy to the place. we focus on bold art, by male or female artists, but the divergence from a typical decorative presentation makes for a strong presence, which i guess this person read as male. all my co-workers are male... not sure if that really makes it a "masculine" gallery. a couple of people made comments about graffiti being a male art, which made me want to crawl out of my skin. there are plenty of talented, revered women in the graffiti art scene. its about annonymity, about making a name for yourself that transcends the person you are in the day to day. many female writers go unrecognized (as female) because they refuse to make a fuss over whether people think they're a guy or not, as long as their work is being respected. if you're interested in the feminine presence in graffiti art there's an amazing book that i first saw at the whitney museum in nyc called graffiti women: street art from five continents by nicholas ganz that is not to be missed. (i love you reminisce! you are a fucking ninja goddess). 

yellena's show is my "girly" show. not that i think that art ought to be gendered, or that the show will be inherently feminine because the artist is a woman. i call it my "girly" show because the vibe of the art lends itself well to a classy, sensual presentation that may just have a slightly female energy to it. i loved the lopez opening. i had so much fun, and i'm a tomboy who loves beats, breakdancing and whiskey en mass. but i'm relishing the opportunity to have a new kind of opening. i'm hoping to have a wine tasting, maybe some live jazz and i'm planning on bedecking this space with flowers (and possibly balloon art, check in with me next week, i know it sounds wacky but it could be really conceptual). i have a skirt that i could never wear anywhere but yellena's opening. my mom found it at an estate sale. i'm not sure where it came from, it may have dropped out of heaven. its a high waisted skirt made of PAPER (kid you not) and hand painted with taxonomical drawings of exotic butterfly species, not to mention the clumps of vintage rhinestones. it must have been a stage costume or something. with a little perfume , some stockings and pin-curls by my friend dawn, i'll have a real girl night... then i'll wake up the next morning with a rats nest on my head, a potential hangover and want my jeans and grubby hooded sweatshirt back.

opticwaste

i love silhouette. it suits my less is more aesthetic.

while traipsing around etsy the other day i stumbled on opticwaste's store. i was initially drawn in by an image called Clara.

opticwaste, Clara, tea stained silhouette print in a re-purposed vintage frame with no glass. available at her etsy store. 

Clara has all the elements of something i MUST have. it's eerie and yet whimsical and slightly silly. i appreciate the store's design aesthetic, as well as their sense of re-use. i like the re-purposed vintage frames, and the shadow-box, no glass technique they've chosen for the pieces. its nice to see a piece in which every step of the presentation has been given careful consideration. 

i love bats, LOVE bats. when i was in Baltimore recently i had the distinct pleasure of seeing some huge fruit bats in an Australian river bed exhibit. my companion was not a fan, but i find their unique structure and morbid, superstitious presence in human mythology to be appealing. plus, if you can get past the veiny wings and legendary association with Dracula, they're really very cute. and SMART, i love an animal that is adaptive and intelligent (i also enjoy world music, insalata caprese and lively conversation, if you feel like you fit the description ;) 

i also really appreciate the sweet nothings that opticwaste include with their descriptions. under Clara, the artist wrote "cousin Clara had a moment to reflect that storing her hoop skirts in the attic was perhaps not the best idea." i adore an artist with a sense of humor. 

opticwaste produced several of these humorously deranged silhouettes for their series. in the profile write-up for the store the artist talks about how she had collected silhouettes for years before deciding to make some of her own. some of the imagery is original, and some of it is pulled from public domain sources, which lends it a great old/new quality. 

opticwaste, uncle George, tea-stained silhouette print, framed shadowbox style in a re-purposed antique frame with no glass. available at her etsy shop.

opticwaste, Emma, tea stained silhouette framed shadow-box style in a re-purposed antique frame with no glass. available on her etsy shop. 

opticwaste's work reminds me of Kara Walker, though the association is almost purely style based. Kara is an artist who i've been following for years. she does wild, gut-wrenching installations using a sort of antebellum style silhouette technique in which she creates large scale vignettes on gallery walls. her installations are instantly visually attractive in their execution, but upon closer inspection, the lacy, intricate scenes depict graphic scenes of violence and sexual degradation. moments of humor in certain passages illicit uncomfortable chuckles, only serving to highlight the dense relationship between the content of the scenes and the inherent beauty of their technique. i strongly recommend taking any chance you may come across to see the work of Kara Walker up close and in person, pictures just can't do the experience justice. 

* a good friend of mine gently recommended yesterday that i consider being more aware of my grammar on this blog. good advice, surely, but my lack of capitalization was a stylistic choice. in the spirit of compromise, i've agreed to try to check for grammar, and to capitalize names and place names, but i will not be capitalizing "i".... personally i still feel like a lower case i