RACC Blog

Benz and Chang highlight the Hawthorne Bridge with an installation at the Portland Building, September 19 – October 14

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PORTLAND, ORE – Beginning September 19th the artists known as Benz and Chang will present a site-specific art installation in the Portland Building lobby. The project, titled The Bridge, 1910, is a visual homage to the work crews that built the Hawthorne Bridge, Portland’s oldest existing river crossing.

PDX_BldgBenz-image-2_Sept-Octcropped

Inspired by a historical photo (above) Benz discovered in the City of Portland Archives, the installation recreates a bridge work crew scene through a series of four large paper screens hung in the exhibition space. Each individual screen has been crafted into a hand-cut silhouette which offers a different layer of visual information. When viewed together—looking through all four at once—the silhouettes complete the scene and mythologize our idea of building of a bridge. By adjusting position in front of or alongside the silhouettes, viewers can alter their angle of view and manipulate the degree of abstraction or representation they take in.

“To dream of a bridge may signify making a connection, crossing a transition, or overcoming an obstacle. When we were contemplating the project, I came across this photo from the City of Portland Archives and was struck by the poses and faces. I wanted to bring these figures and bridge building into a more dream-like, archetypal representation. Here are the agents of change and here is their means of transport over this obstacle.”   — Benz

Benz and Chang's

Benz and Chang’s “The Bridge” installation at the Portland Building.

About the Artists: Benz and Chang live and work in Portland and have shown in both Oregon and Colorado. Benz has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Colorado in Boulder. Benz and Chang use popular subject matter from early 20th Century photography to explore the topics of spirituality, shifting identity, and transformative experiences. Chang is a fictional creative partner to Benz. You can visit their website at http://www.benzandchang.com

Viewing Hours & Location: The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in down-town Portland and is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday – Friday. The Bridge, 1910 opens September 19 and runs through October 14, 2016.

Meet the Artists: Join us for a chance to meet the artists and discuss the installation in person on Thursday, September 22 at 4 p.m..

The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) manages the 13’ x 8’ installation space in the lobby of the Portland Building and presents installation based art there year round. For more information, including images, proposals, and statements for projects dating back to 1994, go to www.racc.org/installationspace.

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The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) provides grants for artists, nonprofit organizations and schools in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties; manages an internationally acclaimed public art program; raises money and awareness for the arts through Work for Art; convenes forums, networking events and other community gatherings; provides workshops and other forms of technical assistance for artists; and oversees a program to integrate arts and culture into the standard curriculum in public schools through The Right Brain Initiative. RACC values a diversity of artistic and cultural experiences and is working to build a community in which everyone can participate in culture, creativity and the arts. For more information visit racc.org.

Coming to the Portland Building Installation Space: “The Bridge, 1910,” an installation by Benz and Chang, September 19 – October 14.

Written by

The artists known as Benz and Chang will present a site-specific installation in the Portland Building lobby starting September 19th. The project, titled The Bridge, 1910, is a visual homage to the work crews that built the Hawthorne Bridge, Portland’s oldest existing river crossing.

Inspired by a historical photo Benz discovered in the City of Portland Archives, the installation recreates a bridge work crew scene through a series of four large paper screens hung in the exhibition space. Each individual screen contains a hand-cut silhouette which offers a layer of visual information. Viewed together, the silhouettes complete and frame the scene into a recognizable archetypal representation of the building of a bridge. By adjusting position in front of or alongside the silhouettes, viewers can alter their angle of view and manipulate the degree of abstraction or representation they take in.

The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in downtown Portland. The exhibition is free and open to the public from 8 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday. For more information on the Portland Building Installation Space series, including images, proposals, and statements for all projects dating back to 1994, visit http://racc.org/installationspace.

Celebrating four years of “Forest For the Trees” mural fest

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Over 60 murals in 4 years.  Forest For the Trees returns to Portland with 7 new public art works.

North, South, East and West, for the last four years “Forest For the Trees” has been responsible for bringing domestic and international artists to Portland for the purpose of creating public art.  For this year’s installment, murals are being created by local artist Adam Friedman at the Maker House on North  Bryant Street (at right); Whole9 and Peach Momoko from Japan at Cider Riot on NE Couch; Local artist Jesse Hazelip at Hanoi Kitchen on NE Glisan; Colorado artist Molly Bounds, Alex Gardner (below) from California and Max McMaster from California at Disjecta on North Interstate; locals David Rice and Zach Yarington at The Redd on SE 7th Avenue; Japanese artist Yoshi47 (below) and New York artist Nina Chanel Abney (below) at ADX on SE 11th Avenue; and local painter and sculptor J. Shea at the Portland International Airport Terminal A.

The non-profit festival started in 2013 with the idea of bringing artists from around the world to Portland in order to create public art that would enhance and educate the local community. Forest For the Trees is organized by artist Gage Hamilton, Hellion Gallery owner Matt Wagner and event producer Tia Vanich. The mural festival’s name comes from the phrase “can’t see the forest for the trees,” which signifies the inability to understand the greater picture when you are too focused solely on what is in front of you. Forest For The Trees hopes to pull Portland’s residents away from their daily routines and provide them a moment of appreciation for the creativity that surrounds us in the Pacific Northwest and beyond.  RACC’s partnership with the festival has allowed the project to grow and continue to add to the city’s public art collection.

“Since the 2014 event, RACC has recognized the importance of this program bringing new art to the city’s landscape and supports FFTTNW with funding from the Public Art Murals Program,” says RACC public art manager Peggy Kendellen. “This year marks the first time that all of the murals created as part of the event have become part of the City of Portland’s public art collection. The considerable effort on the part of the curators continues to bring striking murals to the city’s evolving public art landscape while providing great opportunities for local artists, local business owners and neighborhoods to be part of this contemporary art landscape.”

This year’s mural festival brought artists from France, Japan and cities throughout the United States to Portland, where they created murals in neighborhoods across the city. In addition to the murals the festival hosted live performances, short film festival, and public art installations.  In the past the central city area was the focus of the festival. With return of this year’s festival, new outer areas of the city were added. Adam Friedman painted a wall at the Maker House on 1505 North Bryant Street in North Portland.

“I’m obsessed with mountains,” Adam explains. “I think a mountain is the ultimate symbol of the sublimity and power of nature. One of my favorite things about living in Portland is seeing Mt Hood on a clear day.”  His vibrantly colored depiction of Mt Hood faces the Max lines on North Interstate Avenue.

“Some days it looks close enough to reach out and touch,” Adam says. “Hood is such an icon of Portland, and Oregon in general. But as with anything, we can desensitized to something we see every day. By showing Hood in a new light the mural is meant to serve as an homage to our local beauty and a reminder of how lucky we are to live here.”

A new partnership this year is with Disjecta in North Portland.  Disjecta is a contemporary art center that  receives general operating support from RACC.  Besides hosting two of the Forest For the Trees live performances, the art center is the home to 3 new murals for this year’s festival. Artists Molly Bounds, Alex Gardner and Max McMaster have created something really special for the Kenton Neighborhood.

“There are people who do and people that wish they could do,” says Bounds, referring to the overall theme of the wall.  The pastel figurative mural is meant to inspire people to create.

Mural by Molly Bounds and Alex Gardner at Disjecta, N. Interstate.

Mural by Molly Bounds and Alex Gardner at Disjecta, N. Interstate.

On NE Glisan, artist Jesse Hazelip created a piece that reflects a cultural element to the neighborhood.  The piece features a pack of wolves and the phrase in Vietnamese that translates to “unity is strength.”  The artist states, “It’s about the oppressed coming together. I use the wolf as a metaphor for prisoners.  Humans are pack animals like the wolf.  When we are separated from our pack it takes a toll emotionally.”

Another first this year is a mural and sculpture installation from J. Shea at Portland International Airport.  The installation is inspired by the artist’s fascination of all things flight. J. Shea has created a whimsical flowing installation that features some of his favorite floating characters.  The installation is a mixture of a mural and a collection of mobile-like suspended sculptures.  The work opens the viewer up to a colorful world of flying vessels and drifting creatures that sift through the air while always keeping in mind a perfect balance of scale, shape and recycled details.

In the future, The Forest For the Trees mural festival will continue to explore contemporary public art.  This year’s expansion into live performance, short film films and multimedia installation signifies a continued effort to bring new and exciting creative projects to the city of Portland.  The curiosity of the organizers will foster these explorations into new media and innovative artists to add to our city’s community.

For more information and images of all completed murals, visit www.forestforthetreesnw.com.

Mural by Japanese artist Yoshi47 at ADX on SE 11th.

Mural by Japanese artist Yoshi47 at ADX on SE 11th.

Mural by New York artist Nina Chanel Abney at ADX on SE 11th.

Mural by New York artist Nina Chanel Abney at ADX on SE 11th.

Bukola Koiki presents “JJC (Journey Just Come)” in the Portland Building Installation Space, August 15 – September 9

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PORTLAND, ORE – Beginning August 15th artist Bukola Koiki will present JJC (Journey Just Come) in the Portland Building Installation Space located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in downtown Portland. This four week long exhibition, held in lobby of the Portland Building, is free and open to the public from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday – Friday.

JJC (Journey Just Come) was conceived by Koiki to explore the immigrant experience through pidgin—the simplified form of communication that develops between groups of people that do not have a language in common. As a Nigerian-American immigrant, she is particularly interested in using Pidgin English to explore how this shorthand form of communication affects the experience of immigrants living between cultures.

In Nigeria, a country of over 500 languages, basic communication can be truly daunting at times and pidgin is used to navigate everything from markets to parking lots. To help illustrate how pidgin communication functions Koiki has created a set of brightly colored flags with printed Pidgin English sayings (extracted from the local language in Lagos, Nigeria) that will cover the walls of the Installation Space. The title of the work, JJC (Journey Just Come), is slang that refers to naive newcomers or recent arrivals. The artist’s intent is to inspire conversations about what it means to experience a new culture through an unfamiliar language and to illustrate how the process of making linguistic transitions can both build, and block, mutual understanding.

“The overall effect of this installation will be a kind of magnetic disorientation as one might feel with the visual stimulation of a new city, something that immigrants like myself can definitely understand. As a way of engaging the audience I will be creating a game card that will list translations of the unfamiliar phrases and invite the viewer to match them to the right flag. Visitors can also leave me pidgin phrases and translations of their own.”

—Bukola Koiki

About the Artist: Bukola Koiki was born in Lagos, Nigeria and now lives and works in Portland. She came to study art in the United States as a teen through a series of events involving a secondary school classmate and the American Visa Lottery Program. Koiki received her MFA in Applied Craft + Design from Oregon College of Art and Craft and Pacific Northwest College of Art in May of 2015. Her multimedia work explores cultural hybridity and dislocation through the lens of memory, language, and ritual. She has exhibited her work in Oregon, New Jersey, and Tennessee and recently completed artist residencies at c3:initaive + Pulp & Deckle and Rainmaker Artist Residency in Portland.

Viewing Hours & Location: The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in down-town Portland and is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday – Friday. JJC (Journey Just Come) opens August 15 and runs through September 9, 2016. www.bukolakoiki.com

Meet the Artist: Join us for a chance to meet the artist and discuss her installation on Thursday, August 25th at 4 p.m. in the Portland Building.

The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) manages a 13’ x 8’ installation space in the lobby of the Portland Building. For more information, including images, proposals, and statements for all projects dating back to 1994, go to www.racc.org/installationspace.

Oregon Public Broadcast Think Outloud podcast (8/24/16)

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The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) provides grants for artists, nonprofit organizations and schools in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties; manages an internationally acclaimed public art program; raises money and awareness for the arts through Work for Art; convenes forums, networking events and other community gatherings; provides workshops and other forms of technical assistance for artists; and oversees a program to integrate arts and culture into the standard curriculum in public schools through The Right Brain Initiative. RACC values a diversity of artistic and cultural experiences and is working to build a community in which everyone can participate in culture, creativity and the arts. For more information visit racc.org.

Yelena Roslaya brings “Visual Sound” to the Portland Building, July 5 – August 5

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PORTLAND, ORE – Multimedia artist Yelena Roslaya works to represent sound visually. “The idea of visually displaying sound is inspired by my experience with hearing-motion synesthesia, which occurs when one sense triggers another…personally it happens whenever I see implied motion or energy. I want to share this experience with viewers through my installation at the Portland Building and hear their response.”

Roslaya’s first step in this process was the recording of everyday sounds that occur in the Portland Building—people opening doors, conversing with each other, or simply walking down a hallway. Using FL Studio software, those recordings were then translated into graphic wave images which will be displayed in front of a set of three-dimensional forms, or “sound wave sculptures,” inspired by the wave shapes. These large scale ceramic sculptures draw on the Udu drum forms Roslaya has explored in previous work. Even the colors of the glazes on the sculptures will be determined by the corresponding sound’s “color noise” spectrum—violet noise, white noise, red noise, etc. To complete the full experience for the visitor, each of the sculptures will also include a mp3 device that will playback its original source material.

About the artist: Yelena Roslaya is a graduate student at Oregon College of Arts Craft in Portland where she is the Studio Assistant for both the Ceramics and Drawing/Painting Departments. Her work is inspired by the way humans perceive and process sound. Roslaya lives in Battle Ground, Washington, and has shown at multiple venues in both Oregon and Washington.

About the Installation Space:  Each year the Portland Building Installation Space series reserves several exhibition opportunities for students engaged in creative study at the university level. 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 downtown Portland and is open 8 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday. Visual Sound opens July 5 and runs through August 5, 2016.

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.

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The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) provides grants for artists, nonprofit organizations and schools in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties; manages an internationally acclaimed public art program; raises money and awareness for the arts through Work for Art; convenes forums, networking events and other community gatherings; provides workshops and other forms of technical assistance for artists; and oversees a program to integrate arts and culture into the standard curriculum in public schools through The Right Brain Initiative. RACC values a diversity of artistic and cultural experiences and is working to build a community in which everyone can participate in culture, creativity and the arts. For more information visit racc.org.

Reception on June 21 celebrates 30 years of The Visual Chronicle of Portland

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Tuesday, June 21
6:45 – 8:00 p.m.
at the Regional Arts & Culture Council
411 NW Park Avenue, Suite 101
RSVP Salvador Mayoral at smayoral@racc.org

A special collection: As many already know, The Visual Chronicle of Portland is a collection of original works on paper that portray artists’ perceptions of what makes Portland unique. The collection strives to reflect a diversity of populations, artistic disciplines and points of view. It can be viewed as a timepiece that provides a visual and conceptual narrative of greater Portland and is meant to reveal our city’s distinctive and diverse personality. Owned and funded by the City of Portland, the collection has grown to 330 works by nearly 200 different artists since its inception in 1985. RACC displays works from the Chronicle in a variety of public spaces in City of Portland and Multnomah County buildings.

A special purchase: To honor the 30th anniversary of the Visual Chronicle the 2015 selection panel studied the list of artists in the collection to try and identify important artists working in Portland today who might be missing. To work within the program’s modest purchase budget, the panel narrowed their initial list of 36 candidates down to four outstanding artists they felt needed to be included—Avantika Bawa, Calvin Ross Carl, Garrick Imatani and Ralph Pugay. RACC is now pleased to be able to present the works by these four artists that were purchased in 2015 in a special exhibition in our office at 411 NW Park Avenue.  A reception for the exhibition and the anniversary will be held on Tuesday, June 21 at 6:45 pm. (The reception follows an info session for the next Visual Chronicle purchase, for more information https://racc.org/2016/06/15/racc-seeks-submissions-for-the-visual-chronicle-of-portland-2/ )

Avantika Bawa

Coliseum 1  2015, graphite on paper, 24” x 36” (pictured)

Avantika Bawa

Coliseum 1,  2015, graphite on paper, 21 1/4” x 36 1/4”

Avantika completed two drawings in her graphic style that were informed visually and conceptually by Portland’s Veterans Memorial Coliseum, a premier jewel of International Style architecture in the city. “Given the light [the Coliseum] has recently received, I am very interested in doing a series of drawings based on this remarkable building.”

Calvin Ross Carl

The Copper Ribbons on Michael’s Grave, 2015, acrylic on paper, 20” x 26” (pictured)

Calvin Ross Carl

Finally You Can Complete Me (Safe Honest Repair), 2015, acrylic on paper, 20” x 26”

“The pattern painting is appropriated from the ribbons from our own beloved or bemoaned (depending upon who you ask) Portland building…The text painting has text pulled from a business called the VIP Collision Center on the corner of MLK and NE Rosa Parks. The words “Safe Honest Repairs” have been painted on that building’s windows for 5-6 years. I have been driving by the building for many years and those words always catch my eye…Why these two paintings together? The Portland Building is oddly beautiful, and it is a landmark worth saving, but it is in need of major modernization and rehabilitation. This immediately made these two disparate ideas connect. The greatness of the Portland Building being saved by such a simple, thoughtful promise of “Safe Honest Repair”.

Garrick Imatani

Toward A Future Plan | Mirror | Failure | Trap, 2016, mirrored acrylic and photographs mounted on inkjet print, 19 ½” x 24 ½” (pictured)

Garrick Imatani

“Even after it’s declaration as a city, Portland’s margins have fluctuated over time just like the Willamette River which currently splits the city into its eastern and western halves. LIDAR mapping imagery shows that 13,000-15,000 years ago during the Missoula Floods, where you are standing would have been submerged under water. The city is a blip in time. We live at the bottom of a lake.”  Garrick goes on to describe the photos that intersect with his vibrant blue map of the Willamette: “I came across archival photographs of the bombing of Portland City Hall in 1970 in police surveillance files. I made contact prints from 8×10 photographs documenting the Hall’s blown-out window frames…these contact prints were cut down to containers—frames of frames—then overlaid onto the river as imagined those thousands of years ago…This compression of geography and political history is a nod to time and the ongoing development of the city, which can either reflect or elevate what has evaporated.”

Ralph Pugay

 Lonely Traveler (Traveling pilot waiting to disembark at PDX), 2015,  Acrylic on yupo, 11” x 14” (pictured)

Pugay_VC

Obstructed Motility (Clerk experiencing astral projection at Portland Cash & Carry), 2015, Acrylic on paper, 12” x 16”

“Lonely Traveler was inspired by a pilot that I saw as I was leaving an airplane on a flight back to Portland. He remained seated in first class as many of the passengers were leaving the plane. I assume that he was there to continue on to the plane’s next destination…As I walked by, I pondered if there was a certain amount of discomfort for the pilot as he sat in the passenger seat. I am drawn to the ambiguous nature of his behavior, and presumably of others who might have witnessed this.”

RACC seeks submissions for the “Visual Chronicle of Portland”

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The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) is seeking works on paper—prints, drawings, paintings on paper and photographs—to purchase for the Visual Chronicle of Portland collection. To learn more about the submission guidelines, click here. Deadline for submissions is Monday, July 25, 2016.

The Visual Chronicle of Portland is a city-owned collection of original works on paper that portray artists’ perceptions of what makes Portland, Oregon, unique. Since its inception in 1985, the Chronicle has grown to 330 works by nearly 200 different artists. Works are displayed in publicly accessible spaces in City of Portland and Multnomah County buildings.

The Chronicle reflects a diversity of populations, artistic disciplines and points of view. The collection can be viewed as a timepiece that provides a visual narrative of greater Portland, and is meant to reveal our city’s distinctive and diverse personality as seen and interpreted by artists who are intimately familiar with the region. The Visual Chronicle represents a living archive, and RACC is committed to engaging and expanding the communities of artists and the range of artistic and cultural expression that it represents.

For more information and to view images and details of the entire collection, visit http://bit.ly/visualchronicle

This year’s purchase decisions will be based on how well the work matches the purpose and spirit of the Visual Chronicle—conveying perceptions of what makes Portland unique. We encourage work that documents, describes, or evokes areas, communities, and issues that are under-represented in the Chronicle. The bridges, the Rose Parade, Washington Park and other Portland icons that come immediately to mind are all well represented, but the collection has fewer works that portray people and places that exist beyond the central city areas. While no absolute boundaries or subjects are mandated or excluded, we hope to add range to the Chronicle and better represent vital neighborhoods, communities, and artists that contribute to an equitable view of Portland.

An independent volunteer panel of artists, curators and historians will select artwork for purchase in a two-part process. First, the panel will review digital images that are submitted. Artists whose works are selected for further consideration will be asked to deliver the actual artwork to RACC for a first-hand review and final selection. The panel reserves the right to purchase work from artists who do not submit work, and is not obligated to spend the entire 2016-2017 budget of $20,000.

Works on paper—prints, drawings, paintings on paper and photographs—from professional artists familiar with Portland are eligible. For more information about guidelines, visit the RACC website at https://racc.org/resources/listings/racc-opportunity-call-for-artists-the-visual-chronicle-of-portland/, or contact program manager Kristin Calhoun at kcalhoun@racc.org or 503-823-5401.

For artists who are new to the submission process, unfamiliar with preparing digital images, or would like to get additional background on the Chronicle, RACC is hosting two free information sessions: Tuesday, June 21 from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. at RACC (411 NW Park Avenue, Suite 101) and Thursday, June 23 from 6:00-7:00 p.m. at East Portland Neighborhood Office (1017 NE 117th Ave, Portland, OR 97220). Contact Salvador Mayoral at smayoral@racc.org to reserve a spot.

RACC is also hosting a free reception following the June 21st info session to highlight purchases made for the Visual Chronicle last year. Work by Avantika Bawa, Calvin Ross Carl, Garrick Imatani and Ralph Pugay will be on display, and Avantika Bawa and Ralph Pugay will be on hand to discuss their work. The event is free and open to the public, Thursday, June 21 at 6:45 p.m. at RACC.

To learn more about the submission guidelines, click here. The deadline for submissions is Monday, July 25, 2016.

RACC seeks submissions for the “Visual Chronicle of Portland”

Written by

PORTLAND, ORE — The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) is seeking works on paper—prints, drawings, paintings on paper and photographs—to purchase for the Visual Chronicle of Portland collection. Deadline for submissions is Monday, July 25, 2016.

The Visual Chronicle of Portland is a city-owned collection of original works on paper that portray artists’ perceptions of what makes Portland, Oregon, unique. Since its inception in 1985, the Chronicle has grown to 330 works by nearly 200 different artists. Works are displayed in publicly accessible spaces in City of Portland and Multnomah County buildings.

The Chronicle reflects a diversity of populations, artistic disciplines and points of view. The collection can be viewed as a timepiece that provides a visual narrative of greater Portland, and is meant to reveal our city’s distinctive and diverse personality as seen and interpreted by artists who are intimately familiar with the region. The Visual Chronicle represents a living archive, and RACC is committed to engaging and expanding the communities of artists and the range of artistic and cultural expression that it represents.

For more information and to view images and details of the entire collection, visit http://bit.ly/visualchronicle

This year’s purchase decisions will be based on how well the work matches the purpose and spirit of the Visual Chronicle—conveying perceptions of what makes Portland unique. We encourage work that documents, describes, or evokes areas, communities, and issues that are under-represented in the Chronicle. The bridges, the Rose Parade, Washington Park and other Portland icons that come immediately to mind are all well represented, but the collection has fewer works that portray people and places that exist beyond the central city areas. While no absolute boundaries or subjects are mandated or excluded, we hope to add range to the Chronicle and better represent vital neighborhoods, communities, and artists that contribute to an equitable view of Portland.

An independent volunteer panel of artists, curators and historians will select artwork for purchase in a two-part process. First, the panel will review digital images that are submitted. Artists whose works are selected for further consideration will be asked to deliver the actual artwork to RACC for a first-hand review and final selection. The panel reserves the right to purchase work from artists who do not submit work, and is not obligated to spend the entire 2016-2017 budget of $20,000.

Works on paper—prints, drawings, paintings on paper and photographs—from professional artists familiar with Portland are eligible. For more information about guidelines, visit the RACC website at https://racc.org/resources/listings/racc-opportunity-call-for-artists-the-visual-chronicle-of-portland/, or contact program manager Kristin Calhoun at kcalhoun@racc.org or 503-823-5401.

For artists who are new to the submission process, unfamiliar with preparing digital images, or would like to get additional background on the Chronicle, RACC is hosting two free information sessions: Tuesday, June 21 from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. at RACC (411 NW Park Avenue, Suite 101) and Thursday, June 23 from 6:00-7:00 p.m. at East Portland Neighborhood Office (1017 NE 117th Ave, Portland, OR 97220). Contact Salvador Mayoral at smayoral@racc.org to reserve a spot.

RACC is also hosting a free reception following the June 21st info session to highlight purchases made for the Visual Chronicle last year. Work by Avantika Bawa, Calvin Ross Carl, Garrick Imatani and Ralph Pugay will be on display, and Avantika Bawa and Ralph Pugay will be on hand to discuss their work. The event is free and open to the public, Thursday, June 21 at 6:45 p.m. at RACC.

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Ralph Pugay, Lonely Traveler, 2015, acrylic on yupo

Ralph Pugay, Lonely Traveler, 2015, acrylic on yupo

Susana Santos, City Dwellers, 1993, watercolor & gouache

Susana Santos, City Dwellers, 1993, watercolor & gouache

The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) provides grants for artists, nonprofit organizations and schools in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties; manages an internationally acclaimed public art program; raises money and awareness for the arts through Work for Art; convenes forums, networking events and other community gatherings; provides workshops and other forms of technical assistance for artists; and oversees a program to integrate arts and culture into the standard curriculum in public schools through The Right Brain Initiative. RACC values a diversity of artistic and cultural experiences and is working to build a community in which everyone can participate in culture, creativity and the arts. For more information visit racc.org.