Congrats to gallery artist, Carson Ellis on her E.B. White Read-Aloud Award for her children's book, Du Iz Tak? ! This charming tale has received much well-deserved recognition and we're thrilled to add this most recent honor to the list.
awards
DU IZ TAK? RECEIVES CALDECOTT HONOR
Congratulations to gallery artist Carson Ellis for her recent Caldecott Honor for her amazing book, Du Iz Tak?. The Caldecott is an annual honor awarded by the Association for Library Service to Children, part of the American Library Association, recognizing the "most distinguished" picture books for children. Here's what they had to say about Du Iz Tak?:
A diverse community of anthropomorphic bugs is intrigued by an unfurling sprout. Carson Ellis deftly depicts the mysteries of life in an imaginary, natural world. Through intricate details and the witty humor of a made-up language, “Du Iz Tak?” is a treasure trove of visual and linguistic literacy.
Follow THIS link to read about Carson's fellow honorees and the Caldecott Medal winner. Congrats to all!
ELIZABETH MALASKA'S PROFILE FOR THE OREGON ARTS COMMISSION
Artist Elizabeth Malaska is featured on the Oregon Arts Commission's website following her 2016 Individual Artist Fellowship. Congrats, Elizabeth!
TY ENNIS // STUPID MAN
Stupid Man by Ty Ennis, on view through June 20, 2016 (images Mario Gallucci Studio)
Clocked In (Sam Sheepdog), 2016, acrylic on canvas, 14 x 11”
El de la rollona (Mama’s Boy // After Goya), 2016, acrylic on canvas, 14 x 11”
Iggy Papa, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 10 x 8"
On view May 13–June 20, 2016
Opening reception Sunday, May 15 (3–6PM)
Closing reception & catalog release party Saturday, June 18 (5:30–7PM)
For his second solo exhibition at Nationale, Ty Ennis presents Stupid Man, a series of small black & white paintings that explore his present day-to-day life as an artist and young father with a full-time day job. Like most of his past work, they tell individual stories that are all part of a larger narrative. This new body of work, in its loose composition and black and white presentation, adds a more raw and stripped down layer to the ongoing monologue which has been the crux of Ennis’s work for the past twelve years. Although deeply personal and intimate, Stupid Man ultimately explores themes that inspire and challenge us all.
Ty Ennis (born 1981, Spokane, WA) lives and works in Portland, OR, where he graduated from Pacific Northwest College of Art in 2003 with a BFA in Printmaking. His work was previously included in the 2006 Oregon Biennial at the Portland Art Museum. He has exhibited across Portland at Nationale, Open Gallery, New American Art Union, Pulliam Deffenbaugh, and the Art Gym at Marylhurst University; in Seattle, WA, at Prole Drift; and in Los Angeles, CA, at William H Bothy. Ennis is the recent recipient of a Project Grant from the Regional Arts & Culture Council and a Career Opportunity Grant from the Oregon Arts Commission. He joined Nationale as a represented artist in the spring of 2013.
This project was funded in part by the Regional Arts & Culture Council.
CARSON ELLIS NOMINATED FOR A GRAMMY (FOR ALBUM ART)!!!
Congratulations to gallery artist Carson Ellis on her Grammy nomination. Our fingers are crossed for her tonight!
TY ENNIS AT WILLIAM H BOTHY IN LOS ANGELES
One of Ennis's three new paintings for the Bothy, LA, and his notes about the series.
Thanks to a Career Opportunity Grant from the Oregon Arts Commission, gallery artist Ty Ennis is off to Los Angeles for William H Bothy's inaugural exhibition, sub Jove Frigido featuring two other West Coast artists, Shaun O'Dell and Alessandro Pessoli. Join him on Saturday, February 13 in Highland Park for the reception (4 pm on).
ELIZABETH MALASKA RECEIVES ARTIST FELLOWSHIP FROM THE OREGON ARTS COMMISSION
Elizabeth in her studio. Photograph by Gia Goodrich
Congratulations to Elizabeth Malaska on her recent award from the Oregon Arts Commission! Elizabeth, alongside 12 other amazing artists, was just awarded a 2016 Individual Artist Fellowship.
About the Fellowship:
The Arts Commission’s fellowship program is available to more than 20,000 artists who call Oregon home. Fellows are recommended by a review panel of arts professionals from Oregon and beyond who consider artists of outstanding talent, demonstrated ability and commitment to the creation of new work(s). This year visual and design arts were reviewed. The 2016 review panel included gallerist Amy Adams, artists MJ Anderson and Modou Dieng, curator Yaelle S. Amir and museum director Scott Malbaurn and was chaired by Arts Commissioner Christopher Acebo. Their recommendations were approved by the full Arts Commission.
The following visual artists were awarded 2016 fellowships:
Natalie Ball, Chiloquin (Joan Shipley Fellow)
Fernanda D’Agostino, Portland
Laurie Danial, Portland
Tannaz Farsi, Eugene
Julie Green, Corvallis
Laura Heit, Portland
Michael Hensley, Portland
Aaron Flint Jamison, Portland
Jim Lommasson, Portland
Elizabeth Malaska, Portland
Brenna Murphy, Portland
Ronna Neuenschwander, Portland
Blair Saxon-Hill, Portland
Read more about the program and the artists honored here.
CONGRATULATIONS EMILY, TY, AND ELIZABETH!
Congratulations to represented artists Emily Counts, Ty Ennis, and Elizabeth Malaska on their Project Grant awards for 2016 from RACC. This funding will make a significant difference for these full time working artists and/or young parents preparing for solo exhibitions this coming year.
Emily Counts / Solo Exhibition / Artistic Focus / Visual Arts ($3,609)
I am seeking funding to create a body of work for a solo exhibition at Carl & Sloan Contemporary in mid March through April 2016. This exhibition will consist of small and large-scale abstract sculptures in a variety of media including wood, concrete and bronze, with an emphasis on ceramics. The works will explore themes of connectivity and fluidity in biology, technology and culture. With these new sculptures I will expand my ongoing experimentation with sequenced, stacked and connected objects. My goal is to create for the viewer an environment that suggests a narrative format, within each sculpture and throughout the gallery space, without the use of representational forms. Wall mounted pieces in various sizes will surround a large central freestanding sculpture. It will be my tallest and most complex sculpture I have created to date, comprised of stacked individual objects that decrease dramatically in size as they rise in a 7-foot column. I believe this piece especially is necessary for my creative development and that it will be a powerful focal point for the entire exhibition.
Ty Ennis / Solo Exhibition / Artistic Focus / Visual Arts ($ 3,855)
For my March 2016 exhibition at Nationale, a gallery, shop, and performance space on Southeast Division Street in Portland, I will be working on my first solo show since becoming a father in 2013. The project currently consists of small black & white paintings on canvas that explore my present day-to-day life as an artist and young father with a full-time day job. Like most of my past work, they tell individual stories that are all part of a larger personal and reflective narrative. The final body of work presented will consist of 12 professionally framed acrylic paintings. The framing is key to my conceptual vision for the exhibition, as each frame will be sprayed a different color to match a certain detail in each painting. I will also produce a catalog in conjunction with the show that will include personal writings, reproductions of the work, and an essay by a commissioned writer. There will be a public reception at the gallery, an artist talk and conversation with the Assistant Director, and a private tour of the exhibition with a Q&A for students of PNCA (my alma mater).
Elizabeth Malaska / When We Dead Awaken II / Artistic Focus / Visual Arts ($ 4,612)
When We Dead Awaken II is an exhibition of paintings by myself, Elizabeth Malaska, to debut at Nationale in September of 2016. Nationale is a gallery, shop, and performance space located in southeast Portland. The show will consist of eight paintings on canvas: three large scale, two medium scale, three small scale.
The main themes of this body of work are a reexamination of the nude female body in the history of painting and a critique of the current global culture of patriarchal aggression. These issues are addressed in the work through subject matter, specific use of materials, and strategic employment of technique. I began this body of work in the winter of 2013. The first installment of seven paintings was presented at Nationale in November, 2014. In Winter, 2017 I will show the entire series (parts I and II) at PCC Sylvania Campus’ North View Gallery. The upcoming Nationale show will include a public reception. I will also host a gallery talk open to the community, and two lectures with student groups from OCAC and PNCA. All talks will take place in situ at Nationale.
ELIZABETH MALASKA: RECENT GRANT
A beaming “congratulations” to Elizabeth Malaska for her recent Money for Women Grant from the Barbara Deming Memorial Fund!
About the Fund from their site: Barbara Deming (1917-1984) was a feminist, lesbian, poet, writer and nonviolent activist in the civil rights, anti-war and women’s movements. She founded the Money for Women Fund in 1975 to give financial and moral support to creative women. Money for Women is the oldest ongoing feminist granting agency. After Barbara’s Deming’s death in 1984, we became a memorial fund. While other grant sources have come and gone, our fund is in its third decade. We are still feminist and still willing to take risks. The fund gives encouragement and grants to individual feminists in the arts (writers, and visual artists). The Fund relies on a volunteer Board and judges to collaborate in making awards.