Savage Art Resources, 1430 SE 3rd, Friday September 3, 8 pm, FREE
Chris Johanson’s paintings, drawings and installations are candy-coated social critiques in which playful line constructions reveal swastikas and cartoonish figures blurt word bubbles like, “Did I plan far enough ahead?” He rose to international prominence as a figure in San Francisco’s Mission District art scene, but has recently moved to Portland with his wife and fellow artist, Jo Jackson. With work touring in two hotshot exhibits–Baha to Vancouver and Born Losers–he could be expected to take a breather, but instead he is curating a smorgasbord of his friends’ work for a sort of arty housewarming party this Friday.
Okay, it’s at Savage Art Resources, which isn’t exactly new on the block, but even the posters for the show sound like a shy invitation sent by a friendly new neighbor: “About a month ago Laurel Gitlen asked me to do a project/and this is the project/it would be nice to see you there if you feel like it/thanks Chris Johanson.”
You may have missed the posters; they’ve been stolen almost as fast as they’ve been put up. But if you haven’t found one to take down yet, or you have a conscience and some money, you can buy one of 20 special edition posters for $50. The offering is an effort by Johanson and Savage Art Resources’ new gallery director, Laurel Gitlen, to provide affordable art for Portland’s under-employed masses and slacker aesthetes.
The evening’s centerpiece will be a screening of video work by Will Rogan, Jo Jackson, Harrell Fletcher, Euan MacDonald, Robert Arnold, Liz Miller, Robert Linder, and more. There will also be a sound installation, visual art and a performance by Johanson’s neighbor, the grade school-aged “comedy artist” Diego Vincent. It should be an opportunity to check out some not-so-familiar work from San Francisco and beyond.
This is Gitlen’s first event as gallery director at Savage Art Resources, and marks a move from a more traditional gallery to one focused on special events, collaboration, and the showcasing of under-represented artists.