RACC Blog

Jesse Taylor’s “Deconstruction Reconstruction: Office” opens July 7th at the Portland Building

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PORTLAND, ORE – On the surface Jesse Taylor’s Deconstruction Reconstruction: Office project has a simple premise—deconstruct the contents of a typical office space and rebuild/rework the pieces into a formal, abstract sculptural installation. But the artist’s ultimate intent is a bit more involved. Taylor also sees the labor associated with the deconstruction process as “work of joy” and manages to infuse this into his creation: “The act of deconstruction is, in itself, hard work, but it is labor that contradicts all normal purposes of work, to produce products or services related to our economic system. I approach the deconstruction act with the same kind of energy and intention that I would put into the production of a sculpture.” While the individual elements in Taylor’s abstractions remain recognizable as the building blocks of office furniture and fixtures the re-contextualization and new juxtapositions infuse the bits and pieces with fresh perspective, one based each object’s real, unappreciated, shape, form and texture. The end product here is infused not with the essence of something bound for consumption, like so much of the designed world that surrounds us, but rather bestacnedrug.com becomes something born out of mischief and joy.

About the Artist:  Jesse Taylor just completed his thesis year in the BFA program at Oregon College of Arts and Crafts where he studied under noted installation artists Emily Nachison and Bill Will. While his practice is firmly rooted in sculpture and installation, it often crosses over multiple mediums and draws on his earlier study of computers and visual arts at Portland Community College.

About the Installation Space:  Each year the Portland Building Installation Space series reserves several exhibition opportunities for advanced students in fine art.  The format and presentation requirements for the “student” installations are identical to those for established professional artists, the Regional Arts & Culture Council created this separate eligibility category to help introduce emerging talents to the world of public art. 

Viewing Hours & Location: The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in down-town Portland and is open 8 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday.

For more information on the Portland Building Installation Space, including images, proposals, and statements for all projects dating back to 1994, go to www.racc.org/installationspace.

The Right Brain Initiative wins major funding from The Oregon Community Foundation

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PORTLAND, ORE – The Right Brain Initiative has received a $210,000 grant from The Oregon Community Foundation (OCF). The Studio to School grants are a new arts education project made possible by the $150 million Fred W. Fields gift to OCF in 2012. The grants were awarded to just 18 non-profit programs across the state.

“We are a foundation that values education – and the arts are a critical component of a complete education. We need solutions for making quality arts education opportunities available for all Oregon’s youth and we believe that our Studio to School partners are part of those solutions,” said OCF President and CEO Max Williams.

The funds will support Right Brain’s rapidly expanding partnership with the Hillsboro School District (HSD) for the next three years. During the upcoming 2014-15 school year, Right Brain will work with 12 HSD schools. Two of them—Eastwood Elementary and Evergreen Middle School—will join through funds from OCF. Right Brain will work with school staff to design dynamic and integrated arts programming for classrooms, with special support provided to art and music teachers.

“We are so pleased to partner with Right Brain to make arts integration a fundamental part of our schools’ work,” said Steve Larson, assistant superintendent, Hillsboro School District. “Right Brain reminds teachers of the reason they became teachers: to inspire children and to engage them in the wonder and discovery of learning.”

The funds will support the creation of a districtwide professional learning community for Right Brain partner principals in the HSD. These principals will share arts integration best practices, and receive coaching from staff at Quatama Elementary, a model Right Brain school. The grant safemdonline.com also affords Right Brain the opportunity to pilot the program model at its first middle school, Evergreen.

Right Brain has been awarded several other multi-year grants this fiscal year. The Collins Foundation and Schnitzer CARE Foundation awarded $150,000 and $30,000 grants to be spent over the next three years. The Meyer Memorial Trust, and James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation each provided two-year grants of $150,000 and $100,000 respectively.

Private funds currently make up just under 50% of the program’s $900,000 budget. Annual public funders consist of the City of Portland, Clackamas and Multnomah Counties, the Oregon Arts Commission, and the six participating school districts. Find a full list of program donors and partners at www.TheRightBrainInitiative.org/funding.

The Right Brain Initiative is a sustainable partnership of public schools, local government, foundations, businesses and the cultural community, which launched its programming in Portland area classrooms in January 2009, and now serves nearly 14,000 students in 49 schools. The program’s vision is to transform learning for all children through the arts, creativity, innovation and whole-brain thinking. The Right Brain Initiative is a project of the Regional Arts & Culture Council, with Young Audiences of Oregon & SW Washington serving as Implementation Partner. Read more online at www.TheRightBrainInitiative.org.

The Regional Arts & Culture Council is the local arts agency for Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties, providing grants for artists, schools and nonprofit organizations; conducting workplace giving for arts and culture (“Work for Art”) and other advocacy efforts; presenting workshops and other forms of technical assistance; providing printed and web-based resources for artists; and integrating art into public spaces. Online at www.racc.org.

RACC invests in ten nonprofit organizations to expand arts access in Portland

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PORTLAND, ORE – The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) has awarded $25,695 in special grants to ten Portland-based nonprofit organizations, using funding from the city’s voter-approved Arts Education and Access Fund (AEAF). The grants are designed to expand Portland residents’ access by investing in organizations that are serving underserved artists, communities of color, immigrants, refugees, Disabled and LGTBQ communities.
“Arts and culture are for everyone, but some people in our community haven’t had equal access in the past because of cultural barriers, financial constraints, geographic considerations, and a number of other reasons,” said Eloise Damrosch, executive director of RACC. “We at RACC have been working to dismantle these barriers with programs like Arts for All; translating our materials into other languages; building new relationships with culturally specific communities; and meeting regularly with residents and organizations in East Portland. Now, with help from the Arts Education and Access Fund, we are honored to support the collective efforts of ten organizations who are specifically working to help more Portlanders participate in the arts.”
The Arts Education and Access Fund generated enough revenue in 2013 for RACC to provide $150,072 in general operating support for 44 Portland-based arts organizations (see our 1/29/14 press release) plus these grants as described in the AEAF tax code: for “nonprofit organizations that are making arts and culture experiences available to more Portland residents, with particular emphasis on programs directed to communities who are underserved by local arts providers.”
RACC issued a Request for Proposals in February of 2014. Twenty-three eligible proposals were received, with requests totaling $116,598. A special panel reviewed and ranked all proposals – its members were Alan Alexander, local musician and RACC board member; Jedidiah Chavez, Ethos Music Center; Kathy Coleman, Disability Art and Culture Project; Eloise Damrosch, RACC executive director; Eric Hormel, Perkins & Company shareholder and RACC board member; Jennifer Kalez, Office of Commissioner Nick Fish; and Cynthia Knapp, RACC director of operations.  
Ultimately the panel recommended three proposals for full funding and seven proposals for partial funding. The RACC board of directors approved the panel’s recommendations on May 28, 2014.
The funded proposals are:
  • Cascade AIDS Project (CAP), $2,000 to present Concientízate, a day long festival in Portland to raise awareness of HIV prevention while celebrating Latino art, music and culture.
  • Center for Intercultural Organizing, $3,000 to host a workshop series and performance developed by CIO’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ) group, Resilient Communities.
  • Fusionarte, $1,495 to present FUSE ME/collect-relate-integrate, a multi-disciplinary one day showcase featuring Latina artists celebrating individuality, the idea of freedom and their becoming identities; challenging clichés and cultural conventions.
  • Know Your City, $3,500 to host De-Gentrifying Portland, an 8-session video production workshop held at Portland Community Media; 10 young people from communities of color will learn production skills and work in pairs to create 5 final videos.
  • Latino Network, $2,750 to present a series of summer workshops for gang-affected youth, the highest risk youth in the Latino community and their siblings, Summer Academia; culminating in an end of summer event for the youth and their parents. 
  • Native American Youth and Family Center (NAYA), $3,800 to present a community event that highlights and promotes the arts and culture of the Native American community at the 2014 Neerchokikoo Honoring Powwow.
  • PassinArt: A Theatre Company/Juneteenth Oregon, $2,000 to present the 2014 Portland Juneteenth celebration—a celebration commemorating the true ending of slavery in America; June 19, 1865—designed for the entire family.
  • ROSE Community Development, $2,350 to engage diverse cultural communities through an interactive place-based project called Lents Grown-Our Stories (LG-OS) by utilizing photography, video, and storytelling to strengthen neighborhood connections and celebrate the vibrant culture of outer southeast Portland.
  • Visegrad Group PDX, $1,000 to host the first International Children’s Day in Portland to honor and celebrate the diverse cultures that exist, co-exist, and thrive in Portland and surrounding areas “through the children’s eyes” with the goal of celebrating children from around the World, all ethnic, cultural, religious and language backgrounds and from any heritage who live in Portland.
  • Zenger Farm/Lents International Farmers Market, $3,800 to present free weekly live music performances, occasional dance performances, and three bilingual poetry readings during the Lents International Farmers Market’s (LIFM) 2014 season.
For more information about the Arts Education and Access Fund visit www.racc.org/aeaf. To learn more about RACC’s equity initiatives visit www.racc.org/equity. Information on the events listed above will be made available at www.racc.org/calendar as they are scheduled.

“Public Displays of Affection,” a temporary installation opens June 2nd at the Portland Building

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Portland, Ore – Public Displays of Affection, a participant-driven installation by artists Erica Thomas and Emily Fitzgerald, explores the shifting terrain of relationship building through the lens of the family portrait.

The definition of the family unit is in flux. Opposite-sex, married couples with children now make up less than half of U.S. households, marking the first time this group has dropped below 50% since data on families was first collected in 1940. Nuclear families are no longer the most common family structure, both nationwide and in Portland.

Thomas and Fitzgerald will explore these changing dynamics with their project by transforming the Portland Building Installation Space into a photo studio. There, they will offer people who use and work in the building professional, studio quality portraits of them with their “chosen families.” Participants will be encouraged to think beyond traditional definitions and deeply investigate who they are closest to and what “family” means to them. This could include friends, domestic partners, co-workers, childcare providers, neighbors, ex-spouses, grandparents, godchildren, or any other important relationship they might choose to identify—even choosing to be photographed as an individual is an option. Public Displays of Affection seeks to promote interesting conversations and highlight the relationships between the participants and their chosen families.

About the Artists: Erica Thomas is an artist, filmmaker, writer, and project manager. Her art practice uses installation, performance, and interventions to explore how we construct our lives and values. Her projects examine the ways in which we structure our lives using relationship-building, dialogue, curiosity, and experimentation. Her work attempts to lead participants into authentic, shared experiences for further understanding of ourselves and each other.

Emily Fitzgerald has been a portrait and documentary photographer for the past 11 years, in the fall of 2012 she worked as a field producer for a Magnum Photo Agency project. She has extensive experience photographing people of diverse backgrounds; her documentary work explores relationships, intimacy, and the complex dynamics of family. You can view her work at: www.efitzgerald.com.

Viewing Hours & Location: The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in down-town Portland and is open 8 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday. To schedule a family photo session for Public Displays of Affections contact Emily and Erica at portlandportraitproject@gmail.com From June 2nd to June 27th the artists will be on-site Wednesdays and Thursdays from 3:00-5:00 pm.

For more information on the Portland Building Installation Space series, including images, proposals, and statements for all the installations since 1994, go to www.racc.org/installationspace.

The Right Brain Initiative releases Brain Food, a creative activity deck for kids

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A unique collaboration between non-profit and design industries raises funds for the arts in schools

PORTLAND, ORE — The Right Brain Initiative has released Brain Food, an exploratory activity deck designed for use at home and school by children ages 4 and up. The fifty activities reflect the integrated and creative learning that Right Brain brings to classrooms in the Portland metro area. Right Brain is an arts education partnership of the Regional Arts & Culture Council.

100% of profits from Brain Food sales directly fund Right Brain’s school programming. The decks are currently available for purchase online at BuyOlympia.com, and in person at 11 New Seasons locations, Powell’s Books, and more. Over 1,000 decks have also been donated to teachers at Portland area public schools.

“We are thrilled to provide a product that parents can use to inspire creative exploration and dynamic thinking at home,” said Marna Stalcup, The Right Brain Initiative Program Manager. “The ongoing revenue generated by Brain Food is a creative approach to supporting the day-to-day operations of our program. It’s the ultimate example of commerce for good.”

Brain Food is the result of a unique, three-year collaboration between Right Brain and the Design for Good Committee of AIGA Portland, the professional association for design. Ten local designers were tapped to provide custom illustrations for the deck, and a successful Kickstarter campaign paid for the costs of printing 2,500 decks.

“As designers, we have powerful skills to communicate, activate, engage, and motivate the community around social issues,” said Melissa Delzio, Past Chair of the AIGA Portland Design for Good committee and project lead for Brain Food. “AIGA Portland was honored to partner with The Right Brain Initiative to co-create Brain Food, from idea to final product. The project represents a true example of Design for Good in action. Designers have moved beyond ideation to make a real impact on the community.”

A release event for Brain Food will take place on Wednesday, May 7 at 6pm at Poa Café, a child-friendly space located at 4025 N Williams Avenue in Portland. The event will feature Los Angeles-based children’s author and illustrator Dallas Clayton. Clayton, best known as creator of An Awesome Book!, will present a talk about children and creativity. This event is free and open to the public, and is best for ages 8 and up.

Click here for a complete and continually updated list of Brain Food retail locations.

The Right Brain Initiative is a public-private partnership established by the Regional Arts & Culture Council to bring high quality arts education to all children in Portland area public schools. Launched in January of 2009 with 20 school partners, Right Brain now serves 20 percent of the 110,000 K-8 students in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties. This school year a total of 14,000 students in 49 schools from six districts are being served. Other partnering districts are Corbett School District, Hillsboro School District, North Clackamas Schools, Oregon Trail School District and Portland Public Schools. The organization is made up of a sustainable partnership of public schools, local government, foundations, businesses and the cultural community, which launched its effort to bring the arts to every child in the Portland area in January 2009. The program’s vision is to transform learning for all children through the arts, creativity, innovation and whole-brain thinking. The Right Brain Initiative is a project of the Regional Arts & Culture Council, with Young Audiences of Oregon & SW Washington serving as Implementation Partner. Read more online at www.TheRightBrainInitiative.org.

The Right Brain Initiative receives third grant from the National Endowment for the Arts

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$25,000 grant supports integrated arts programming in public schools

Portland, Ore – National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Acting Chairman Joan Shigekawa announced today that The Right Brain Initiative, an arts education partnership of the Regional Arts & Culture Council, is one of 886 nonprofit organizations nationwide selected for an NEA Art Works grant. This is Right Brain’s third NEA award, following grants received in both 2011 and 2013.

Art Works grants support the creation of art that meets the highest standards of excellence, public engagement with diverse and excellent art, lifelong learning in the arts, and enhancement of the livability of communities through the arts. The NEA received 1,515 eligible applications under the Art Works category, requesting more than $76 million in funding. Of those applications, 886 are recommended for grants, for a total of $25.8 million.

Right Brain is recommended for a $25,000 grant to improve classroom arts instruction throughout K-8 schools in the Portland metro area. Each school year, Right Brain provides professional development to hundreds of teachers, principals, and teaching artists, providing them with tools to embed theater, music, dance, visual, literary, and media arts into the curriculum. This professional training now helps educators use the arts to meet the expectations of the new Common Core State Standards.

NEA Acting Chairman Shigekawa said, “These NEA-supported projects will not only have a positive impact on local economies, but will also provide opportunities for people of all ages to participate in the arts, help our communities to become more vibrant, and support our nation’s artists as they contribute to our cultural landscape.”

“We are thrilled to have the consistent support of the National Endowment for the Arts,” said Marna Stalcup, The Right Brain Initiative Program Manager. “It is very meaningful to us to keep federal funding in our cadre of public and private funders. It means city, state and national entities are all linking arms to bring the arts to children in our region.”

For a complete listing of projects recommended for Art Works grant support, please visit the NEA website at www.arts.gov.

The Right Brain Initiative is a public-private partnership established by the Regional Arts & Culture Council to bring high quality arts education to all children in Portland area public schools. Launched in January of 2009 with 20 school partners, Right Brain now serves 20 percent of the 110,000 K-8 students in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties. This school year a total of 14,000 students in 49 schools from six districts are being served. Other partnering districts are Corbett School District, Hillsboro School District, North Clackamas Schools, Oregon Trail School District and Portland Public Schools. The organization is made up of a sustainable partnership of public schools, local government, foundations, businesses and the cultural community, which launched its effort to bring the arts to every child in the Portland area in January 2009. The program’s vision is to transform learning for all children through the arts, creativity, innovation and whole-brain thinking. The Right Brain Initiative is a project of the Regional Arts & Culture Council, with Young Audiences of Oregon & SW Washington serving as Implementation Partner. Read more online at www.TheRightBrainInitiative.org.

The Regional Arts & Culture Council is the local arts agency for Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties, providing grants for artists, schools and nonprofit organizations; conducting workplace giving for arts and culture (“Work for Art”) and other advocacy efforts; presenting workshops and other forms of technical assistance; providing printed and web-based resources for artists; and integrating art into public spaces. Online at www.racc.org.

“In Truth,” an installation at the Portland Building by artist Wendy Given, opens April 28th

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Portland, Ore – Continuing her work centered on the production of uncanny and unnerving contemporary photography and sculpture, artist Wendy Given will present an installation at the Portland Building that employs three interactive sculptures designed to usher the viewer towards a face-to-face encounter with themselves. The three works, a “true mirror,” a wishing well mounted at inaccessible height, and a modern representation of a “scrying stone” (akin to a crystal ball for fortune telling), will work together to shuttle the viewer through a set of conceptual reexaminations and offer a chance to reconsider personal aspirations and wishes.

Guided by natural philosophy, history, folklore, myth and magic, Given’s work conjures the notion of interconnectedness and pushes viewers to expand their understanding of how they are seen in the world and consider where they might be headed next.

“Mirrors and wishes have been repeatedly represented and studied throughout the histories of art and literature. Both have elusive, mysterious, and magical traits…I want the work to occupy a place or feeling of familiarity with the viewer, it can be unsettling and at the same time comforting, a humorous position and intense recognition or premonition.”

About the Artist: Wendy Given received her BFA at The Atlanta College of Art; her MFA from Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, she now lives and works here in Portland. She has shown her work locally and nationally and has completed multiple artist residencies on the West Coast, including a 2013 Signal Fire Alpenglow residency in the Mt. Hood Wilderness, and a Caldera Residency in Sisters, Oregon in 2010. To explore her work further visit www.wendygiven.com.

Viewing Hours & Location: The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in downtown Portland and is open 8 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday.

For more information on the Portland Building Installation Space series, including images, proposals, and statements for all the installations since 1994, go to www.racc.org/installationspace.

RACC music forum on April 6 to address the state of music in Portland

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Portland, Ore – On April 6, the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) will host a community forum for musicians, bookers, managers, writers, label owners, and all the folks who make music happen in Portland. “Happening! A homegrown local music forum” is an exploratory conversation about how music works around here, and how artists and supporters continue to shape it for themselves. This forum is presented as part of RACC’s 2014 workshop series.
“The idea for this event came from several discussions with musicians who want to connect more, talk about successes and challenges, and smarter ways to work together with all aspects of the music community,” said Becky Miller, RACC’s outreach coordinator and a professional musician herself. “This event will get people in the same room to have these conversations, and we’re optimistic about the impact they can make on the industry.”  
The event will feature a live DJ, time to meet and greet one another, and a panel of seasoned musicians and industry people, including Anna Jensen, Director of Underground Ops at Doug Fir Lounge;  Rebecca Gates,Musician and Artist; Jared Mees, Musician and Label Manager at Tender Loving Empire; Mic Crenshaw, Musician and Co-Manager at KBOO; Ryan White, Music Writer. ​ ​The panel with be moderated byDavid Gluck, Musician, and Artist Services Manager at Rumblefish.
After the panel, participants will break out into smaller groups to discuss a wide array of topics, so all attendees will get the chance to ask questions and be part of a discussion on their interests in music.  
Entry to the forum is available on a sliding scale ($5-$25), and includes a free drink + snacks for the first 50 attendees who register online. For more information and tickets, visit www.racc.org/workshops, or contact Becky Miller at 503-823-5428, or bmiller@racc.org.
Who: The Regional Arts & Culture Council and local musicians
What: Happening! A homegrown local music forum
When: Sunday, April 6, 2014 from 4:00-7:00pm
Where: Dig a Pony, 736 SE Grand, Portland