November art highlights include new mixed media drawings reflecting on what it means to sit by M. Shoki Tanabe at Salem on the Edge (shown above), a continued look at the Hallie Ford Museum of Art collection, a collection exploring the rich history of plantation workers in Hawai`i by Kanani Miyamoto at Salem Art Association and more…

HALLIE FORD MUSEUM OF ART

Hallie Ford Museum, 700 State Street and is open 12 to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Cost to explore is free for children, students 18+ and educators (with school ID); $8 adults, $5 seniors, and free for everyone on Tuesdays. For more information, visit willamette.edu/arts/hfma, or call 503-370-6855.

Through December 2
Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts Biennial features a selection of over 20 contemporary prints created by artists Emily Arthur, Jeremy Okai Davis, John Hitchcock, Lehuauakea, Cory Peeke, Ralph Pugay, Wendy Red Star, and Fox Spears during their recent residencies at the Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts (CSIA). The Hallie Ford Museum of Art serves as the repository for the Crow’s Shadow Print Archive and as a dimension of the collaborative agreement with CSIA, hosts biennial exhibitions. This exhibition has been organized by the Hallie Ford Museum of Art in partnership with the CSIA, and curated by Rebecca Dobkins, professor emerita of anthropology at Willamette University and curator of Indigenous art at the Hallie Ford Museum of Art.

Through December 16
The Hallie Ford Museum of Art at 25: Highlights from the Permanent Collection — The Hallie Ford Museum of Art opened its doors for the first time in October 1998, and over the past quarter century has built an encyclopedic collection of Western and non-Western art and has mounted a dazzling array of temporary exhibitions intended to instruct, inspire, and delight. Over the years, the development of the permanent collection has been guided by Hallie Ford Museum of Art staff and its faculty-curators, as well as by the generosity, vision, and largesse of its many donors and patrons.

To celebrate its remarkable history and growth over the past twenty-five years, the Hallie Ford Museum of Art’s director, curators, outside scholars, and others have teamed up to mine the collection to reveal its many hidden treasures, often for the first time.

The exhibition represents a visual journey through the museum’s diverse permanent collection, featuring close to 100 works by Indigenous and non-Indigenous Northwest artists, as well as works from around the world, including ancient, traditional, and contemporary art, and pieces from the recently acquired Museum of Contemporary Craft. Visitors are invited to make their own visual connections between the thoughtfully juxtaposed works of art.

EVENTS @ Hallie Ford —

Every Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. through December 12, there will be a Gallery Talk “The Hallie Ford Museum of Art at 25: Highlights from the Permanent Collection” Free and open to the public.

Film Showing | Riches, Rivals, and Radicals: 100 Years of Museums in America — POSTPONED

Join John Olbrantz, the Maribeth Collins Director of the Hallie Ford Museum of Art, for a lecture celebrating the museum’s 25th anniversary, in conjunction with The Hallie Ford Museum of Art at 25: Highlights from the Permanent Collection exhibition. Learn about the museum’s rich and colorful history; the development of its diverse and impressive permanent collection, which includes over 11,000 objects ranging from ancient art to modern masters; its history of world-class exhibitions, dynamic education programs, and scholarly publications; some of the key individuals who have guided and supported the museum over the past twenty-five years; and its prospects for the future, 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.Thursday, November 9, in the Paulus Lecture Hall, Willamette University College of Law, 245 Winter St. SE. Free and open to the public.

The Bartow Project — Join Curator of Indigenous Art Rebecca Dobkins for an evening of short films about Wiyot artist Rick Bartow (1946-2016). Each of the three films takes a different approach to storytelling: one employs a documentary style, another is an animated short that liberally draws on Bartow’s imagery, and the third is a symbolic homage to Bartow’s relationship with his wife, artist Julie Swan. Together, the films introduce viewers to the complex work and life of one of Oregon’s most revered artists, whose art is central to the collection of the Hallie Ford Museum of Art, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, November 16 in the Roger Hull Lecture Hall, Hallie Ford Museum of Art. Free and open to the public.

LEVEL 2 GALLERY

Level 2 Gallery at the Salem Convention Center is curated by the Oregon Artists Series Foundation. Located on the second floor of the center, it features changing exhibits of work by established and emerging artists of the region. The Gallery is accessible Monday through Friday during regular business hours, during special events or by appointment by calling 503-589-1700. Info: oregonartistsseries.com

Through January 22
Miraculous Occurrences: Paintings by Gary Westford — “As an artist, I construct visual narratives that speak to our time, and yet, are timeless and universal. I’m committed to making good paintings that show a love for the medium of oil paint, and to a vision that is both clearly realized and open to interpretation,” says Gary Westford. “These Miraculous Occurrences paintings bear witness, as narratives, for what I have seen and experienced over time.”

Gary Westford was born in Oakland, California, and moved to Oregon in 1979. An artist and curator, he lives and works in Salem. He received an MA in painting from the University of California, Berkeley, where he studied with Elmer Bischoff, Joan Brown, and Robert Colescott. His paintings and mixed media constructions have been shown in over thirty regional, national, and international juried exhibitions in the US and Canada. He credits the work of Surrealist painter Rene Magritte, poet W. H. Auden, composer Erik Satie and filmmaker Stanley Kubrick among his artistic influences.

ART HALL @ Salem Public Library

A year-round gallery space under the guidance of the Salem Public Art Commission, the Art Hall at the Salem Public Library features the Salem Reads Art Exhibit each February as part of Salem Reads: One Book, One Community. During the rest of the year, the Oregon Artists Series Foundation will present curated rotating exhibits featuring regional artists.

Through January 24
Miraculous Occurrences: Paintings by Gary Westford — This show is a companion to the work on display at Level 2 at Salem Convention Center.

SALEM ON THE EDGE

From fine art, up-and-coming artists, graffiti muralists and more, Salem on the Edge features work by PNW artists in a variety of media both for purchase and in rotating exhibits. Stop in and visit at 156 Liberty St. NE. Info: salemontheedge.com

November 1 to 25
Featured artist M. Shoki Tanabe shares new mixed media drawings reflecting on what it means to sit. The situational act of sitting is myriad and complex in the purposes it serves, while functionally (if not paradoxically) it seems that we sit down either to rest or to work. It is the stopping of other actions we take that allows us the stillness to do one or the other.

The guest artist is Leonard Harmon, of the Lenape Tribe of New Jersey and the Nanticoke Tribe of Delaware, and currently lives on the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indian Reservation. “I like using older images to tell a new story of putting perspective on our history. As a newer artist, I like exploring all kinds of methods and mediums. Each new style I incorporate helps me express myself in a new way. I’m never scared to try new things and see where my mind takes me.”

EVENTS @ Salem on the Edge —

The gallery welcomes Emma from Emma Otherwise Design with her beaded jewelry, Amy Stoner with her felted jewelry and The Moxie Initiative (local arts- and community-building nonprofit) with Salem swag – shirts and stickers, for Small Business Saturday 12 to 5 p.m. November 25.

SALEM ART ASSOCIATION

Salem Art Association (SAA) at Bush Barn Art Center & Annex, 600 Mission St. SE. For more information, call 503-581‑2228 or visit salemart.org.

November 3 through December 24
Kanani Miyamoto: Golden Fruit — Golden Fruit shares the beauty of mixing cultures. In this body of work, the artist uses Japanese and Hawaiian imagery and motif in combination with traditional craft and process. The work explores the rich history of plantation workers in Hawai`i. 

Kanani Miyamoto holds an MFA in Print Media from the Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA), and a bachelor’s degree in Art Practices from Portland State University. Kanani Miyamoto is an artist, curator and educator. Her artwork has been shown nationally. She is originally from Honolulu, Hawai`i and is currently living in Portland, Oregon.

Kanani Miyamoto, is an individual of mixed heritage and identifies most with her Hawaiian and Japanese roots. Important to her work as an artist is sharing and celebrating her unique mixed background in our contemporary art world in hopes of representing her community and the beauty of intersectional identities. Miyamoto is a printmaker and uses traditional printmaking techniques to create large-scale print installations.

Passages: Doug Dacar & Sara Swanberg — When artists have known each other over a long period of time, but have been making work completely separately, the relationship of the work and the people follows an ebb and flow that is interesting to observe from the outside. The work of Doug Dacar and Sara Swanberg seems to relate strongly, but not in a formal way. There seem to be common themes, common sensibilities, and common conversations that are happening, although never with each other. I was curious to put these two artists into the same space so that their artwork could converse, whatever form that might take. — Kathleen Dinges Rice, Curator

SARA SWANBERG: Approaching my final years, these astonishing wood slabs have been filling my days with sanding, carving, gluing and carefully shellacking the rivers made of hand-made and stained clay balls.  Vicariously I am enjoying the many years of past white water rafting and camping with good friends, sharing evening gin and tonics and fine dinners while overlooking countless spectacular rivers.  All these years and only once was I thrown up into the air and into a roiling rapid!

DOUG DACAR: I’ve always been interested in the process of laboring and creating. Whether it be working on a gardening project or building a sculpture. It’s important to embrace curiosity, be present in the moment and build off the successes and failures of the materials I’m working with. 

EVENTS @ Salem Art Association —

Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife Art Show & Contests — Browse approximately 60 entries from the three different contests (Habitat Conservation stamp, Waterfowl stamp, and Upland Game Bird stamp). The winners of the 2024 contests will be announced, 12 to 4 p.m. Saturday, November 4

Queer Artists Series: 2SLGBTQIAP in Focus features Eboni Watt: Coming Home – My Introspective Creative Practice, a virtual one-hour presentation with Q&A, 6 to 7 p.m. Friday, November 3. In this talk, film photographer and zine-maker, eboni wyatt (they/them) will discuss their project, ‘coming home,’ a photo-zine completed in 2022, executed in color and black/white film photography and prose, that inspired their introspective creative practice and process. In sharing about their artistic journey, they hope to encourage participants to spend time looking inward and creating from what they find within.

A Reception for Kanani Miyamoto: Golden Fruit and Passages: Doug Dacar & Sara Swanberg will be held 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Friday, November 10.

Artist Talk with Kanani Miyamoto: Golden Fruit, 2 p.m. Sunday, November 19.

GALLERY 444

Gallery 444 is located within Elsinore Framing at 444 Ferry St. SE. Info: 503-581-4642, elsinoregallery.com

November 2 to 25
Photography of Frank Barnett — Frank is an award-winning photographer who has a rich history in the art world both as an artist and author. Reception: 3 to 5 p.m. November 3

More Art…

At Roy John Designer Goldsmith, 315 Court St NE, see Finding Perspective, new work by Susan Appleby. There will be an Opening Reception 5 to 7 p.m. Nov 3.

A local award-winning artist, Susan creates bold and expressive paintings with acrylic and mixed media. The energy of nature is explored in her paintings of landscapes, birds and flowers. Exploring the outdoors, her photos of the beauty of land and light are used as inspiration. Composition and a loose impressionistic style are important to help bring life to the subjects, and depth and movement into her work.

Susan attended the Academy of Art, in San Francisco and continues taking workshops and online courses to further her growth in painting, drawing, stained glass and mosaic. A professional career of over 25 years as a graphic designer, helps composition and color stand out in her art.

Susan is a member of Artists in Action, Salem Art Association, Hallie Ford Museum and currently showing at Bush Barn. She has had solo and group shows in the Salem area and has been honored with several awards.

Cultural Exhibits

WILLAMETTE HERITAGE CENTER

Preserving and interpreting the history of the Mid-Willamette Valley, the Willamette Heritage Center (WHC) features 14 historic structures that house permanent and changing exhibits, a research library and archive, a textile learning center, and rentable event spaces over a five-acre campus, which also has retail shops, art galleries, cooperative artist studios, and offices. It is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays to Saturday and located at 1313 Mill St SE. Cost to explore is $10. $8 senior, $6 student and youth ages 6 to 17. For more information, call 503-585-7012 or go to willametteheritage.org.

November 17, 2023 through January 31, 2024
Filaments — In partnership and the WeGO (Weaving Guilds of Oregon) and the Salem Fiberarts Guild, WHC hosts 2023 WeGO juried exhibition Filaments. All weavers and fiber artists use filaments of some size and shape to create. This show celebrates our materials and how, individually, we construct them for our purposes. Whether for domestic use, as decorative objects, or purely as art, we consider function as well as form, and choose our fibers accordingly. The exhibit has been juried by Associate Professor Emerita in the Department of Art, University of Oregon, and internationally renowned fiber artist, Barbara Setsu Pickett. 

WORLD BEAT GALLERY

The World Beat Gallery gives local cultural communities a space to share their heritage: the stories told and items exhibited come directly from members of our community. The Gallery is open year-round 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and Saturdays by appointment at 390 Liberty St SE. Info: salemmulticultural.org

Through December 8
Windows to Japan: A Glimpse Into Japanese Culture — Curated by Masumi Timson, this exhibit allows visitors to learn about Japanese music, cultural celebrations, wedding traditions and more. There are also several classes and activities planned throughout the exhibit, including a sample Japanese language class for beginners, koto lessons, a Shakuhachi demonstration, calligraphy and origami making.