Visual Arts: Page 43

The Split-Headedness Paradigm

Painter Kaila Farrell-Smith explores her Klamath roots at Ditch Projects

Visual Arts

Kaila Farrell-Smith wants to decolonize her mind, and yours. She wants to repair the damage of the brutal concept from her father’s childhood: “Kill the Indian. Save the Man.” The Portland-based painter is exploring “split-headedness,” which she says “comes from being raised within an indigenous/tribal paradigm as well as having education in linear, Western concepts and society,” through her oil portraits and landscapes. Continue reading →

Collaging the Contradictions

Local artist Violet Ray to speak at JSMA about his jarring Vietnam-era photo collages

Visual Arts

The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art is delving deeper into the belly of ’60s and ’70s counterculture art with Advertising the Contradictions, an exhibit that explores the collision of art, culture and politics through the eyes of local artist Violet Ray. While not part of the official West of Center: Art and the Counterculture Experiment in America exhibit that opened Feb 8., the JSMA added the local artist’s work because of its role in Vietnam anti-war protests — his photo collages were reprinted on fliers and widely distributed. Continue reading →

The Beat Don’t Stop

ELAN’s Beats & Brushstrokes silent auction of vinyl art is the biggest yet

Visual Arts

Most people listen to vinyl; some go as far as to frame their favorite record sleeves and display them proudly on their walls while others use them as a blank canvas. On Feb. 23 you can see and purchase repurposed record art at the 4th annual Beats & Brushstrokes silent auction hosted by the UO Emerging Leaders in the Arts Network (ELAN). But make sure to get there early; last year’s event quickly reached capacity, and there was a line out the door. Continue reading →

The Pop Surrealism of Mark Rogers

Eugene artist opens The New Ending, a dark and delightfully twisted show at Jameson’s

Visual Arts

Oil painter Mark Rogers has been taking a lot of vitamins lately, and he doesn’t know how he feels about it. His ambivalence towards vitamins, and medicine in general, is illustrated in his latest painting, “Take Your Medicine.” The oil panel features, in the words of the artist, “This old guy with these fucked-up bat wings giving medicine to these prairie dogs … I was thinking he was kind of like an angel but a bad angel.” The effect is at once unsettling and comical.  Continue reading →

It’s All Relative

Painter Sarah Refvem uses large-scale paintings to examine family dynamics

Visual Arts

There’s no better time to reflect on family dynamics than after the holidays, for many a time of family harmony and family madness, and that’s exactly what artist Sarah Refvem is doing with her First Friday ArtWalk solo exhibit Familiar Dynamics at the Woodpecker’s Muse on Jan. 4. Refvem’s last show explored group dynamics through painting photographs of school classes or swim meets — her impressionist and expressionist style rendering the subjects just vague enough to be relatable to a wider audience. Continue reading →

A Gallery in the Clouds

Eugene-based online gallery brings buyers and artists together

Visual Arts

There is a gallery in Eugene with more than 66,000 paintings from over 900 artists. That’s twice as many artworks than are currently on display in the Louvre Museum. You’re not going to find Daily Paintworks on any art walk, however, because it’s in the cloud; it’s online. “The internet is transforming art — the art industry — just the way it has with music and publishing,” David Marine, co-founder of Daily Paintworks, says. Continue reading →

Fashioning An Industry

Local designers want to bring garment production back home

Fashion

EUGENE, Ore., April 2015: The fifth annual Eugene Fashion Week is only days away and the Eugene Garment House is a beehive of activity. Frenzied designers dart around the open space on the third floor of the Woolworth Building overlooking Willamette Street, colorful swatches of fabric tucked under their arms and pincushions wrapped around their wrists. Apprentices hurriedly reorganize racks of fluttering paper patterns and sample garments while production sewers put the finishing touches on a pair of couture overalls and a hemp wedding gown. Continue reading →

Not Just a Pretty Face

Modeling for fun and business

Fashion

“I definitely eat,” aspiring model and Eugenean Ayuni Kelton says with a smirk. “I do try to eat clean but I’m not going to deny myself a cheeseburger.”  With one look at Kelton you know she is unusually beautiful. But there’s more to her than long legs, a thin shape, gorgeous hair and stunning complexion. She may be beautiful but she’s got substance, she’s got spunk and she’s ready to kick ass. She effortlessly proves all of the typical assumptions about fashion models false. Continue reading →