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2021’s Top 5 Episodes of Art Unbound

Art Unbound has been the Portland Art Museum and Northwest Film Center’s official podcast since March 2019. Originally launched as The Portland Art Museum Podcast, Art Unbound not only celebrates creative community members of Portland and its surrounding areas, but also those from around the world. 2021 has been a huge year for the podcast,…  Read more

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Daily Art Moment: Adolf Dehn

Image description: Christmas Eve, Adolph Dehn, lithograph on cream wove paper, image: 8 5/8 x 11 1/4 inches; sheet: 12 1/2 x 18 1/8 inches. A lithograph in tones of charcoal gray on cream paper shows a decorated Christmas tree in an interior setting before a large window with a snowy outdoor scene. The tree is centered in front of the large picture window and has branches covered with ornaments, garlands, and lights and topped with a bright star. Near the tree’s trunk, branches are sparse but become full and bushy as they radiate outward. Below the tree are a few toys: a truck, a doll, a toy gun and a spinning top, among others. At lower left two small, dark cats play with fallen ornaments. At lower right, another cat naps in a carved chair. Behind the tree is a large window, divided in thirds, revealing a snowy, countryside scene under a dark, star filled sky. A tiny crescent moon appears in the sky at upper left. At center left, a large bare tree displays spiky branches, while at right smaller evergreen trees cluster near distant homes amid snow covered hills. The window scene is framed on either side by filmy sheer curtains and a wide window ledge runs beneath it holding two flower filled vases and left and a potted fern at right.
Adolf Dehn (American, 1895-1968), Christmas Eve, 1931, lithograph on cream wove paper, image: 8 5/8 in x 11 1/4 in; sheet: 12 1/2 in x 18 1/8 in, The Vivian and Gordon Gilkey Graphic Arts Collection. Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, 1997.228.386

Are you ready for the holidays? In this lithograph, American artist Adolf Dehn (1895–1968) offers us a view of Christmas Eve in 1931. There are only a few small presents beneath the tree–perhaps a reference to the Great Depression that was seizing the country–but the little fir is covered with lights and ornaments. Two busy…  Read more

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Write Around PAM: Anne Truitt

Image description: Anne Pruitt. Bonne. Acrylic on wood. 81 1/4 x 18 x 18 inches. A vertical sculpture consisting of a tall, rectangular column on top of a slightly smaller, square base. The top eighth of the sculpture is bright, winter white. The middle section, about five eighths of the work, is a deep, navy blue. The lower section is medium blue. The colors are cleanly differentiated, creating distinct segments. About one foot above the ground, midway through the medium blue section, a thin lip distinguishes the base. The paint has been applied evenly and smoothly.
Anne Truitt (American, 1921-2004), Bonne, 1963, acrylic on wood, 81 1/4 in x 18 in x 18 in, The Clement Greenberg Collection; Museum Purchase: Funds provided by Tom and Gretchen Holce. Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, 2001.1.148

As we officially welcome winter with the solstice this week, we invite you to spend some time with Bonne by Anne Truitt. This sculpture carries the energy and colors of this season—the smooth blue of an ice-covered pond, the deep blues of a winter storm, the white blanket of freshly fallen snow. We encourage you…  Read more

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Podcast—Awkward Questions for Kara Cooney

Banner image depicting the Art Unbound logo, a photo of Kara Cooney - a woman with light skin and dark brown hair wearing a sleeveless black shirt. She has her arms folded.

On October 8, 2021, Dr. Kara Cooney presented a virtual lecture for the Portland Art Museum audience titled When Women Ruled the World. We anticipated that Dr. Cooney’s lecture and the exhibition Queen Nefertari’s Egypt would raise a lot of difficult questions. On this episode, Jeannie Kenmotsu is joined by Sara Krajewski and Stephanie Parrish…  Read more

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Write Around PAM: Frank Okada

Image description: 1. Consanguineous, Frank Okada, oil on canvas, 72 x 72 inches. A square abstract painting featuring bold colors on a largely deep yellow ground. The lower left corner holds an arc of undulating stripes that dip slightly in their center. The stripes alternate from vivid red to orange then back to red again. A rectangular shape composed of trapezoidal shapes and stripes juts downward into the center space from the top center. The rectangle sits at an angle slanted to the left. It begins with a brilliant blue at the middle top of the painting followed by a thin stripe of deep red, then a dark olive-green trapezoid. A golden yellow that matches the background color follows, forming another trapezoid. It is followed by a cream trapezoid separated by narrow golden yellow stripe from a pale gray trapezoid shape. The textured golden yellow ground is bisected horizontally two thirds of the way down from the top. The upper portion of the painting is the largest segment with the bottom third containing the red and orange arc and three more golden yellow segments. The segments differ slightly in hue. The lightest is at left next to the red/orange arc. The remaining two segments continue to the right with a thin, sharp uneven streak of cream interrupting the yellow ground from the lower right edge. Brushstrokes are clearly visible with the edges of the shapes being slightly ragged and uneven.
Frank Okada (American, 1931-2000), Consanguineous, 1969, oil on canvas, 72 in x 72 in, Museum Purchase: Caroline Ladd Pratt Fund. Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, 71.4

As we enter winter, the days shorten, and at least here in the Pacific Northwest, the cloud cover grows. Soaking up moments of light and sun feels even more important for our mental health. We’re appreciating this painting by Frank Okada, on view in the Hoffman Lobby. The work evokes such a strong feeling of…  Read more

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Write Around PAM: Dyani White Hawk

Dyani White Hawk (American and Sičangu Lakota, born 1976), Wówahokuŋkiya | Lead, from suite Takes Care of Them, 2019, screenprint and metallic foil, image: 44 in x 21 1/4 in; sheet: 55 3/8 in x 32 in, Museum Purchase: Funds provided by the Graphic Arts Council and the Native American Art Council. Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, 2020.5.1a

Dyani White Hawk’s suite Takes Care of Them was inspired by the Lakota practice of four veterans being asked to stand and face each of the four cardinal directions during the wabléniča ceremony, a ritual welcoming adoptees and formerly fostered individuals back into the tribal community. In many Native cultures, veterans are revered as modern-day…  Read more

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Daily Art Moment: Édouard Vuillard

Image description: Vuillard, Interior, Mother and Sister of the Artist, 1893, oil on canvas. This painting is crowded with busy patterns and two women looking out towards the viewer. The young woman on the left wears a hunter green, yellow and white plaid dress and is leaning against the wall while bending forward at the waist as if to stay in the painting. The wall behind her is patterned of many colored splotches including white, crimson, yellow and dark green. Despite competing patterns the young woman almost blends into the wall, save for her pale face and hands. An older woman is seated on a chair in the middle of the space. She is wearing an all black dress and her pale face and hands offer contrast. The rug beneath them is a tan color and appears to have a subtle pattern to it. At the back of the room, in the corner, is a warm brown wooden dresser with drawers and on the far right of the scene, next to the seated woman is a round table covered with a brown, yellow, orange and cream patterned tablecloth. On top of the table sits a large wine bottle, an empty white plate and a crumpled white napkin.
Édouard Vuillard (French, 1868–1940), Interior, Mother and Sister of the Artist, 1893. Oil on canvas; 463 x 56.5 cm. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, Gift of Mrs. Saidie A. May, 141.1934.

Artist Édouard Vuillard found inspiration from the people closest at hand, as seen in our current special exhibition, Private Lives: Home and Family in the Art of the Nabis, 1889–1900. Vuillard’s mother, Madame Marie Vuillard, was a constant in her son’s life and in his art. More than 500 paintings in which she is depicted,…  Read more

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Daily Art Moment: Trude Parkinson

Image description: Emerging Zodiac, 2021, oxidized silver leaf and Renaissance wax on paper, 17 ⅜ x 42 in. Horizontal rectangular composition of 7 abstract human silhouettes in motion rendered in rusty brown, verdigris, purple, yellow against a blank background of 2 brownish patina paper with wrinkles and frayed or burnt edges. From left to right, the figures appear captured in motion, arms or legs outstretched and cloaked in a large garment that at times appears as wings.

Emerging Zodiac is an exceptional example of Parkinson’s work and her dedicated interest in the human body in relation to the greater cosmos. The model of the dancing figure is artist Eiko Otake, a movement-based, interdisciplinary artist who has performed several times @picapdx. Inspired by Otake’s movements, Parkinson has documented these performances. Emerging Zodiac is…  Read more

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Write Around PAM: Pierre Bonnard

Image description: Family Scene. Pierre Bonnard. 1892. Color lithograph on paper. Image: 21.7 x 26. 7cm; Sheet: 27.9 x 39.6 cm. This lithograph features a tightly cropped view of three members of the artist’s family: his father, his sister, and between the two, the infant grandson. Against a flat tan background, the older man on the left appears in partial profile with just one ear and part of one eyeglass lens visible. His curling white and beige hair, which grows at the side of his bald head, trails out of the frame. His thick white beard adds texture to the print, in contrast to the flat black and tan clothing that is barely visible in the lower left-hand corner. The baby is the main focus of the piece. His round, hairless head has upward slanting almond-shaped eyes, a pug nose, and a mouth opened in a small “O.” Both chubby hands are curled in fists and his white swaddling gown encircles his head from the level of the eyes and continues flowing downward and off to the right side. The baby’s mother grips him with her left hand. Only her outstretched arm and part of her head are shown along the right side of the piece with the rest of her body disappearing out of the frame. Her head, filling the upper right corner of the print, shows both eyes, her nose, and a lock of hair rendered in heavy black paint.
Pierre Bonnard, Family Scene, 1892. Color lithograph on paper. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Acquired through the Lillie P. Bliss Bequest (by exchange), 570.1951. Digital image c The Museum of Modern Art / Licensed by SCALA / Art Resource. NY. 2021 Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris.

As the current Private Lives exhibition makes clear, the Nabis artists loved depicting children. Not only were they part of the artists’ intimate family circles, but children also offered an example of how to view the world with a fresh perspective. Drawing inspiration from Pierre Bonnard’s Family Scene, we invite you to write from the…  Read more

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Write Around PAM: Marie Watt

Image description: Companion Species: Ferocious Mother and Canis Familiaris. Marie Watt. 2017. Reclaimed wool blankets, embroidery floss, and thread. 108 in x 217 in. A long rectangular work composed of numerous other horizontally oriented rectangles. Each rectangle contains a word embroidered in red thread on various shades of cream to pale tan cloth in assorted stitches and styles. Some of the largest words are Ancestor, Myth, Love, Voice, Fighter, Custodian, Gratitude. Smaller words include Seeker, Care, Watcher, Legacy, Healer, Advocate, Interpreter, Wild, and Catalyst. Interspersed among the words are rectangles made of striped blankets in red, green, yellow, and black.
Marie Watt (American and Seneca, born 1967), Companion Species: Ferocious Mother and Canis Familiaris, 2017, reclaimed wool blankets, embroidery floss, and thread, 108 in x 217 in, Museum Purchase: Funds provided by The Ford Family Foundation and Dr. Loren Lipson. Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, 2017.106.1

Seneca artist Marie Watt created Companion Species: Ferocious Mother and Canis Familiaris with the help of over 200 people who participated in two sewing circles. These collective efforts generated a powerful piece filled with energy and hope. The holiday season can be a time of collective joy and togetherness; it can also be a painful…  Read more