Launch of Plywood Project

This month marks the launch of the Emerson Plywood Project!

Here's how it works:

Each month, we supply two spray paint or graffiti artists each with a large piece of plywood.  They paint and do their thing all over the plywood.  We hang it on the outside of the building for a month.

We're excited to be providing the neighborhood with fresh murals to enjoy each month!  The pieces hang on the south side of the building, facing Emerson Street.  They're at eye level for pedestrians to touch and witness for close encounters with art.


Throughout the month of May, we have two spectacular pieces by Dylan Toomey and Jocelyn Jillett. 


Dylan's piece, "Steez":

And Jocelyn's piece:

This piece has a lot of details that you need to see in person.  Like cupcake sprinkles:

Sarah Goodchild Robb Installation, through April 23rd

 

During the month of April, we have on display an installation by Sarah Goodchild Robb!  As you can see, it's a papier mache, red and green, newspapery affair.  In three dimensions, with textures and shapes all over the place.  Come see it!  The night's shadows complement it the best.

 

 

Jess Hirsch & Elizabeth Jaeger Installation

February 25 - March 21
Last week we held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to unveil an installation by Jess Hirsch and Elizabeth Jaeger.  Their installation is a lovely accumulation of driftwood, sand, glass, shells, and other beach imagery.  It evokes the coast, the meeting of land and water, the two artists' mutual near-drowning experience of being pulled into the tide, which is always stronger than one guesses.

This installation will exist until March 21st, so please stop by and see it if you can!  It looks best at night, with all its mysterious shadows.

 

  

cutting the ribbon:

 

Luke Forsyth Installation!

Showing this month in Emerson Space Case is a spectacle envisioned by Luke Forsyth, local artist and optimistic enthusiast.

This installation is a re-creation of a scene from a Curious George story where that mischievous little monkey gets a job as a window washer, but quickly gets himself into trouble by sneaking into a room and painting it to look like a jungle, complete with jungle animals. Chairs are transformed into leopards, a ladder and a broom become a giraffe, and a rocking horse is suddenly a zebra.

Five of us worked together to bring Luke's vision to life, and here it is! The kids love it. The adults aren't sure. It looks especially cool at night.

 

  

 

 

  

  

  

  

*Post Script*  Here's a blurb from Luke's blog about something that happened the day he un-installed the set-up:

'Yes, unfortunately, I had to take down the Curious George show at the Emerson space case. As I showed up a young couple was walking with their kids past the space and the wife praised the show saying "hey kids its the Curious George guy. Are you the Curious George guy" and went on to tell me that it had been one of the more exciting shows for the kids that had been in the space. when the older kid understood what was going on he asked, " but mommy why do they have to go? where are they going? why can't they stay here?" I wondered the same thing and felt very complemented.'

Homeschool Installation Throughout January

Happy 2010!  With the new year comes refreshing possibility, and a new art show at the Space Case, of a whole new kind.

Recently, I was lucky enough to find out about Homeschool, a Portland art collective whose motto is "Affordable Art for Everyone."  They installed a group show at Emerson Space Case for the month of January, which is quite a thrill as the first ever group show in the space!  Jess Hirsch and Jacqueline Mention are the headers-up of the group, and they did a fantastic feat setting up and coordinating the whole thing.  I don't have a complete list of artists involved, but here are the artists I'm sure of:

John Kelting
Sarah Goodchild-Robb
Elisabeth Mention
Kristen Flemington
Andrea Loeffler
Ashley Sloan
Elizabeth Jaeger
Shawn Creeden

This is the most atmospheric installation we've done at the space so far.  They set it up to appear like rooms in someone's house, with discarded orange peels and high heeled shoes strewn about amidst furniture and leftover New Years party hats.

We held a small New Year's Eve gathering to unveil the installation, and had grand illusions of a campfire gathering, but the weather proved to be uncompromising.  A cozy beverage at a nearby bar was a fine substitution.  I promise future campfires for all!



Below are some snaps of the set-up process, and the final product!

 

Jess hammers

Jacqueline readies things for hanging

Beautiful by night...

 

"Squares" Photo Show at Emerson Space Case

 

  

Jennifer Jansons' Holga medium-format photographs (above) transport you into a softer world.  The Holga camera has a plastic lens with soft focus around the edges.

John Ryan Brubaker completed a project called Polaroid 366, in which he took a Polaroid photo every day for a year.  And not just any year - a year in which there was an extra day.  On display at the space are some selections from his year of  photos.

Brubaker is currently showing work at Albina Community Bank in Portland, as part of a show called The People Behind the Paper, a photo documentary project about the vendors of Street Roots newspaper.  He will also be embarking soon on a journey to Thailand!  I can hardly wait to see the resulting photos.

 

 

Amy Baker's "Mending" now showing

This month we have Amy Baker's spectacular large scale hand-embroidered artwork, in a show called "Mending." This show is a collection of portraits of people from Amy's life (including a self-portrait), all hand-stitched onto cotton, with thousands of threads filling spaces with color.

Amy is a graduate of the Oregon College of Art & Craft, with a major in Fibers.

This dazzling show will be up through October 26th.