Robert Frank (installation view) at Bluesky

He's ultra influential and considered by many to be one of the fathers of street photography but Robert Frank's work is rarely seen because of the fragility and value of the work. To remedy this situation Frank and Gerhard Steidl conceived of a traveling exhibition of photos, books, and films. Rather than as ultra precious objects Frank's images are printed on sheets of newsprint and hung on the walls or from the ceiling. This is one not to be missed.

Robert Frank Books and Films 1947 - 2018 | January 4 - February 25
First Thursday Reception: January 4, 6-8PM
Blue Sky
122 NW 8th






Portland's Winter Light Festival at PNCA

Portland's Winter Lights Festival seems to get a little more serious every year. Some of it can be just eye candy spectacle for burners but some of the venues like PNCA are focused on the art... not just arty aspects of light. Portland is an installation art town though none of our festivals and institutions seems to make a point of featuring it... could the Light Festival be that venue some day? 24 different installations by artists are spread throughout the PNCA grounds.

Winter Lights Festival at PNCA | February 1-3 (6-9PM), 2018
First Thursday: February 1, 6:00-9:00PM
PNCA
511 NW Broadway




I Am This

An exhibition tracking a few of Jewish artists who have contributed to Oregon's visual arts ecosystem has been long overdue and this is just a small multi-generational sampler. From Mark Rothko to Michael Lazarus, Amy Bernstein, Hilda Morris and Mel Katz... it is a diverse group. Race is a tricky subject, partially because it is a mcguffin of sorts. It is easy read too much into race but at the same time it sets up subtle, pervasive defining parameters that are not easy to characterize as a group (hence it is a mcguffin, a trigger or plot point that acts in a sphinx-like or rebus way, rather than have specific defining meaning). Instead, race is more of a personal lamp post that each individual negotiates to smaller or larger degrees depending on where and among whom they live and this timely exhibition introduces the Jewish contribution regionally in a necessary way. For some reason these basic curatorial survey ideas are rare in Portland and this is your last First Thursday to catch the show.

I Am This | October 14, 2017 - February 4, 2018
Closing Reception: February 1 7-8:30PM
Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education
724 NW Park