For two years, Portland’s newest contemporary art venue, ILY2, has existed in a state of flux. It was a downtown storefront window that hosted live performances. It was an emotional support hotline. Its next-to-latest form was that of an offshoot “glamshot” pop-up in the Lloyd Center Mall—called ILY2 Too.
Now, in March, ILY2 will take root in a Pearl District art gallery space—the former home of PDX Contemporary, which has since moved to a new space in Northwest. But in many ways, ILY2 has just begun to make moves.
ILY2, which stands for “I Love You Too,” began during the depths of the pandemic. Founder Allie Furlotti—an artist, model, stand-up comedian, and philanthropist who previously ran the Calligram Foundation—was looking for ways to support fellow artists. She had an idea of what and how an art gallery should be, which the ILY2 site describes as “rooted in radical generosity, and anchored by increased access to resources, network building, and mentorship.”
To help realize her ambitious vision, Furlotti brought on an expert team: Jeanine Jablonski, a Portland-based art advisor and founder of Fourteen30 Contemporary, which closed in 2021, and Joshua Oduga, an independent curator who has worked with galleries and institutions around Los Angeles, including Jeffery Dietch, the Hammer Museum, and the Getty Research Institute.
Together, in September 2020, ILY2 started a series of retail residencies, inviting artists to take over a downtown storefront to sell their work, host performances, and just, in general, have a good time.
