Project Space II

Exhibit 4

2009-10-01T10:18:00.001-07:00

Wonderful pictures by Barbara Rowland.

Susan Trueblood Stuart with recent paintings.

Installation by Ann Kresge and Mike Nord.

Events at Project Space II

2009-09-03T10:56:00.000-07:00

Jazz and New Music
Nord/Powers Duo
Friday, August 14 at 7:00 pm
Mike Nord (guitar & electronics) and Mark Powers (drumset & percussion) will be performing at PS II. Nord (professor and Director of Willamette University’s Music Technology Lab) and Powers (instructor at Weathers Music) will improvise a collection of jazz and New Music duets.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/artistsinaction/sets/72157621837998881/

Please click on this link to see great photos taken by Phil Krug at PS II.

Project Space II Exhibit 3

2009-08-13T15:19:00.000-07:00

Bins Lab 3 : Value Added

Instructions for depositing an object...

Deposit window ...

See the artist statement for this show under our blog entry for the opening reception...many objects were deposited that evening.

An example of an object with 'value added' ... or not? or a lot? what do you think?

Michael Boonstra
excerpts from the project proposal ... I would like to use the existing architectural features of the building to create a series of site-specific installation works that use existing natural light as the primary medium. The pieces themselves are essentially drawings, but rather than physical marks such as graphite or ink, each mark is a pinhole camera that absorbs all the colors, shapes, and movement of the environment outside of the building and multiplies it hundreds of times. The panels themselves are constructed out of thin perforated (drawn on) plywood, solid wood framing, and a translucent material, (either duralar or digital projection screen). The design of the drawing will consist of gently contouring lines taken from the curves of the Willamette River as it winds through the Willamette Valley. In many ways the river is the most prominent natural feature of the area. It has always been an integral part of the region, and it is also constantly in motion just as the installation will be.

Also, see the photo of Michael's installation under the blog entry for the opening reception, that will give you an overview of one of the rooms . Two of the images below are of additional works.

Kay Worthington

Cynthia Herron

excerpts from project proposal ... upstairs in the PS II space one sees four large arched windows facing east. They are reminiscent of the three large recessed arches upstairs in Dr. Barnes’ museum in greater Philadelphia, where he commissioned Matisse to paint a flowing mural, “Dance”. I aim to use these windows, these associations, recycled materials and bold simple colors to commemorate one of our local natural scenes: Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge south of Salem. Although I don’t usually create art solely from recycled materials, I will be challenging myself to complete this landscape using only layers of colored plastic bags and painter’s tape. Light will shine through the transparent plastic and echo the effect of stained glass in Gothic cathedrals. In all of my landscapes I seek to bring people, nature and art together. This will be an extension of that, with the additional awareness of the importance of reusing our resources and protecting our local wild areas.

Windows detail

Bonnie Hull

Fragments, Work on Paper

Some deposited objects with 'value added' ...

Photos of Project Space II LINK

2009-08-12T16:50:00.000-07:00

Phil Krug and Joel Zak have taken some photos at PS II, and here are links to the postings. Lots of good photos! Thanks Phil and Joel!!!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/artistsinaction/sets/72157621837998881/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/artistsinaction/sets/72157621962904798/

Exhibit 3 Opening Reception

2009-08-12T16:34:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the opening reception for Project Space II's Exhibit 3, with BinLabs, Michael Boonstra, Kay Worthington, Bonnie Hull, and Cynthia Herron. Studio artists are still working in the space, and there is again much more to see!

The dance performance at the opening reception (also First Wednesday) by DanceAbility included cello, as seen by the first picture and the one below.

Our main show -

Artists Sean Regan, Rachel Hibbard and Cara Tomlinson collaborate to create a video and sculptural installation inside SAA's Project Space II. Banking on Project Space II’s location, a former bank in the Capitol Center Building in Salem, the exhibit examines our relationship to objects, posing questions about labor and the idea of added value. Guests are invited to bring an object to “deposit” with the artists during the first week of the exhibit, and are able to “withdraw” this object at the end of the exhibit with value added.

Here we can see deposit slips. Lots of folks deposited an object at the opening, as well as for days after.

Rachel looking over some of the deposits. There are already many interesting returns, I invite you to come down and look. I'll try to post some as well.

Michael Boonstra's exhibit below. There was a lot of interest in how this works.

All of the photos in this posting were taken by Phil Krug. Thank you Phil!!!!

Exhibit 2

2009-07-23T16:10:00.000-07:00

Andries Fourie has a wonderful show in the open area downstairs.

Andries gave an interesting talk as part of the opening reception on July 16 from 5:00-5:30 on
Themes in Contemporary South African Art. While the talk was about other South African artists, here is Andries's Artist Statement:

ANDRIES FOURIE: ARTIST STATEMENT
My work concerns itself chiefly with the issues of memory, identity, cultural hybridity, guilt and the legacy of colonialism in post-Apartheid South Africa. I examine these themes through the lens of my own experience, and the history of my own family.
As an Afrikaner (a white South African of Dutch descent) I view the present through the lens of a complicated past. Even after three hundred years in Africa Afrikaners are still torn between seeing themselves as European colonists or indigenous Africans. This sense of displacement and confusion is a direct result of apartheid’s mythology of ethnic and cultural purity. Apartheid left South Africans with little more than fiction for history and a fractured shell for a collective identity. South Africa’s various ethnic groups are currently involved in the process of weaving together their many different cultural strands to create a new national identity. I want to make work that contributes to this egalitarian and open-ended process that is so essential to national healing and reconciliation.
The fluid cultural mix that results from an encounter between different cultures and traditions is far more interesting to me than any romanticized notion of cultural purity which aims to fix a culture in an unchanging state of suspended animation. Culture is a vibrant, shifting and changing force that defies our impulse to freeze it in time like an artifact in a museum. I am fascinated by the hybrid, the subaltern, the improvised. I suppose that I am partly drawn to these examples of cultural blending because they expressly contravene the rigid, patriarchal prohibition against “mixing” cultures that was so important to the apartheid-era society I was raised in.
In this specific installation/body of work, I look at Afrikaner identity from two perspectives. On the one hand I examine the theme of complicity and guilt by responding to Joseph Conrad’s novel “Heart of Darkness”. I have relocated the themes of the novel (which addresses rapacious colonial exploitation in the Congo in the late 1800s) to a contemporary South African setting, and use it to critique my own people’s continuing treatment of black South Africans.
On the other hand I also include work that examines the positive aspects of traditional Afrikaner/Boer culture. I will specifically be looking at those themes, tenets and examples I encountered while visiting the diasporic Boer community in Patagonia, Argentina. This community, which was founded by Boer exiles in 1902 in the aftermath of the Anglo-Boer war, and has been effectively severed from Afrikaans culture in South Africa for over a hundred years. Their language, customs and traditions represent a rare and valuable time-capsule that preserves pre-apartheid Afrikaans traditions that have been spared the Germanicization and “purification” that played such a large part in the implementation of Afrikaner nationalism between 1948 and 1994. My maternal grandfather and paternal grandmother were both born in Patagonia, but returned to South Africa in 1938.
It is likely that the viewer might experience a sense of confusion when confronted with these two very different views of Afrikaner identity. Any reasonably self-reflective Afrikaner feels this confusion every day. Only when we’ve reconciled these two conflicting aspects of our culture, our history and our sense of self will we be ready to participate fully in reconciliation and the creation of a new, shared South African national identity.

More on Exhibit 2

2009-07-23T16:00:00.001-07:00

Mary Lou Zeek has an exhibit of made post cards. There are also other artists who sent in theirs which you can handle (gently please)! There are a lot of them, here is just one.
There is even a mailbox in this exhibit!

Yes, another picture of Bonnie, but she just so happened to be in the chair when I was photographing Mary Lou Zeek's art work table ... come in and make a post card! It will be sent for you! All the materials are here, after you gain new ideas viewing the exhibit.

Jason Munana's installation in the center side room is lovely to look at from various angles. I wish I could include more pics as these two images are kind of the same, but that means you'll need to stop by to really engage with the work!

Corrine Loomis Dietz. Lots of texture, interesting composition and medium to explore!

Georgia Watson has a large number of works in one room, ink and graphite.

Marilyn Krug has a studio area, as well as a wall for exhibit space.

Detail of Marilyn's show ...

This is the upstairs, largely filled with studio work and spaces. On the left is Heidi Preuss Grew working on layout of various works for an upcoming show. To the far left is Marilyn Krug's space. Corrine Loomis Dietz has two paintings on the wall, to the right of the photo. Come in and talk with working professional artists ...

As you can see, we are so very busy (big grin) ... come on in and chat with us!!!

PS II has become a great gathering place for discussion, ideas, and laughter ...

Artist Talk with Royal Nebeker

2009-07-15T16:50:00.001-07:00

Thank you, Barbara Rowland, for this great photo!

Lots of great ideas and discussion was had with Royal...

“A Tale of Two Cities” 21st Century Art: The View from Salem and Berlin

held July 10 at 7 pm

SAA welcomed Royal for a discussion and lecture highlighting the current trends in the art world, artist visions and the role art plays in society. The lecture included a discussion of current trends in the art world which make notions of provincialism and the confines of regional categorization obsolete.

Royal also talked about his own work and the criteria used in the jurying of artists for

Project Space II.

More on Exhibit 1

2009-07-07T16:33:00.001-07:00

Come in and engage with drawings by Bonnie Hull. All drawings are of PSII, so see if you can identify the imagery. Pick up the clipboard and add some drawings of your own!

Here's Bonnie changing some work in the artists collaborative studio (Corrine Loomis Dietz, Bonnie Hull, Paula Portinga Booth, and Laura Mack) and a close up of some of Corrie's images.

Alexandra Opie. Spend some time with this exhibit!

Katie Etzel has printed work and light boxes to view.

Salem Art Association's Project Space II Exhibit 1

2009-07-07T15:40:00.000-07:00

Here are some images of Project Space II's first exhibit.

It has been interesting how the historical building has a hand in defining methods of displaying art.

Paula Portinga Booth's show is in a former bank office. A very interesting engagement of space...

Megan Ford's exhibit has had some interesting interaction!

Royal Nebeker Juror of PS II

2009-07-07T15:00:00.000-07:00

Royal Nebeker
Juror’s Statement
Project Space II

When I was asked to jury the exhibitions for Projects Space II, I was interested for a couple of reasons. First, I am acutely aware of the concept of place. I find it compelling to observe how artists are sensitive to their environment, the place they choose to live and work, or in some cases choose not to respond to it at all. I have always seen a fallacy in art by address and have thus preferred quality as a criteria rather than any arbitrary geographic limitation.
Secondly, I am excited by recent and growing trends away for the urban dominated art scene. I, like most artists, have never wanted the designation ‘provincial’. In times past, merely the decision not to live in one of the large population centers of the world has relegated one to a regional category. Things have changed. Clearly, technological progress and the information revolution have begun to put an end to any validity for such distinctions. Yet I am aware of the very real lingering prejudices and reluctance for change.
Salem is a particularly interesting case study because of its proximity to Portland’s historic dominance of Oregon culture. While my knowledge of Salem’s rich contribution to the visual arts made me optimistic, I was not prepared for the sheer quantity of high quality proposals received for Project Space II. I was certainly resigned in keeping with philosophical integrity, to choose a spare exhibition offering. I have never felt the mere existence of an exhibition space necessitated filling it. Without quality, art ceases to be art. Therefore it should be obvious from the large amount of work I deemed important enough to be shown this season, that even my positive expectation was exceeded.
The inclusion and rejection of Portland artists should send a signal that there is nothing regional or provincial about Project Space II. I was gratified to see artists addressing the theme of place and equally happy to find work speaking to concerns of a national or international nature. The number one criteria I used to make my decisions was the vision of the artist. I asked, “Does this artist bring significant contribution to the viewers experience?” I wanted work that was informed by personal vision worthy of the artist’s leadership role in society and I found it in spades.
Take time with these exhibits. You will be rewarded. There is treasure here.

Royal Nebeker
June 2009

Emily Grosvenor's "Desperately Seeking Salem" features Project Space II

2009-07-07T14:39:00.000-07:00

A recent transplant to Salem, Emily Grosvenor produces a column Desperately Seeking Salem for Salem Monthly and engages her audience with humorous takes on Salem life in her blog by the same name.

Recently she stopped by Project Space II to check out what was happening.

PS II's Four Exhibit Rotation Schedule

2009-06-19T10:37:00.000-07:00

Project Space II will feature the following four exhibitions. Stop by to the space to veiw current work, as it will be constantly rotating - and don't forget to join us for the opening receptions, held during Downtown Salem's First Wednesdays in July, August and September, as well as Thursday July 16.

June 23 - July 11
Reception Wednesday, July 1, 5 to 8 pm
Exhibit includes an installation by artist Brian Knowles and work by artists Jessica Burke, Paula Booth, Katie Etzel, Megan Ford, and Alexandra Opie. Artists Paula Booth, Jessica Burke, Corrine Loomis Dietz, Heidi Preuss Grew, Bonnie Hull, and Laura Mack will occupy studio space.

July 14 - August 1
Reception Thursday, July 16, 5 to 8 pm
Exhibit features sculpture and installation by artist Andries Fourie and work by artists Corrine Loomis Dietz, Marylin Krug , Georgia Watson, Jason Williams, and Mary Lou Zeek. Artists Paula Booth, Corrine Loomis Dietz, Heidi Preuss Grew, Bonnie Hull, Marylin Krug , and Laura Mack will occupy studio space.

August 4 - August 22
Reception Wednesday August 5, 5 to 8 pm
Exhibit featuring an installation by Bin Labs with artists Rachel Hibbard, Sean Regan and Cara Tomlinson and additional work by artists Michael Boonstra, Cynthia Herron, Bonnie Hull, and Kay Worthington. Artists Paula Booth, Corrine Loomis Dietz, Heidi Preuss Grew, Bonnie Hull, and Laura Mack will occupy studio space.

Art about Place
August 25 - September 12
Reception Wednesday, September 2, 5 to 8 pm
Exhibit features sculpture and installation with Caledonia Bergeron, Tyler Hargrove, Andrew Hunt, and Renee Mason and additional work by artists Dan Callaghan, Ann Kresge and Mike Nord, Barbara Rowland, Susan Trueblood Stuart, a group show with Elaina Jamieson, Paul LaJeunesse and Jodie Raborn, and a collaborative project with Steve Anchell among other artists. Artist Bonnie Hull will occupy studio space.

SAA's Project Space II Gets a Home!

2009-06-11T16:21:00.000-07:00

The Salem Art Association has found a home for Project Space II, the experimental, evolving venue for contemporary art exhibits, lectures, and events.

Thanks to a generous grant by the Oregon Arts Comission, PSII will enliven downtown Salem from June 23 through September 12. SAA thanks Roger Yost for donating the use of the Capitol Center Building space at 388 State Street to Project Space II.

Project Space II is located at 388 State St. and all events and exhibits are free and open to the public. Take a look at this year’s space.

Thanks to Rachel Bucci for the photos!