Every even year, Disjecta Contemporary Art Center presents the Portland Biennial, a major survey of Oregon visual artists who are defining and advancing the state’s contemporary arts landscape.

Thirty-four artists and artist teams have been selected by Curator Michelle Grabner for Disjecta Contemporary Art Center’s Portland2016 Biennial exhibition.

 Get all the info here. 

Michelle Grabner, co-curator of the 2014 Whitney Biennial, reviewed over 400 artist submissions and conducted more than 100 studio visits across the state—perhaps the most extensive outreach to Oregon contemporary artists to date—prior to finalizing her choices. As a result, Portland2016 includes 13 artists from outside the Portland metro area, more than all previous biennials combined.

“From La Grande to Ashland, I was looking for work that addressed global realities as much as it embraced radical regionalism. By listening attentively to the language that frames artists’ imaginations while witnessing the space of making, my 105 studio visits yielded a treasure of exhilarating work. It was a privilege to transverse the state of Oregon and to meet with artists and arts professionals who are enthusiastically committed to fostering a spirited culture in the region,” Portland2016 curator Michelle Grabner says.

The thirty-four artists selected range from emerging to mid-career and work in a variety of media from installation, film/video, painting, craft and social-based practices, to site-specific works that challenge the viewer’s contemplation of space. They include:

Avantika Bawa, Portland
Carla Bengston, Eugene
David Bithell, Ashland
Pat Boas, Portland
Mike Bray, Springfield
Bruce Burris, Corvallis
Julia Calabrese & Emily Bernstein, Portland
Cherry / Lucic, Portland
David Eckard, Portland
Tannaz Farsi, Eugene
Jack Featherly, Beaverton
Howard Fonda, Portland
Julie Green, Corvallis
Midori Hirose, Portland
Jessica Jackson Hutchins, Portland
Colin Kippen, Portland
Anya Kivarkis, Eugene
Michael Lazarus, Portland
Charlene Liu, Eugene
Giles Lyon, Portland
Ellen McFadden, Portland
Whitney Minthorn, Pendleton
Donald Morgan, Eugene
Brenna Murphy, Portland
Julia Oldham, Eugene
Rebecca Peel, Portland
Lisa Radon, Portland
Jon Raymond, Portland
Jack Ryan & Chi Wang, Eugene
Heidi Schwegler, Portland
Rick Silva, Eugene
Storm Tharp, Portland
Weird Fiction, Portland
Ryan Woodring, Portland

“Michelle is an artist advocate. She places preeminent value on the studio practice—and conversations in, and about, the studio inform her curatorial interest,” says Disjecta Director Bryan Suereth. “Portland2016 will undoubtedly reflect the candid and engaging process Michelle favors.”

In addition to those artists selected for the Biennial, the 71 artists who also received a studio visit have been invited to participate in Salon: Portland2016 Biennial, The Studio Visits, a curatorial index that celebrates the broad spectrum of art-making in Oregon and illuminates the research and selection process of the curator.

Portland2016 is the fourth Biennial presented by Disjecta, and, for the first time, the exhibition will extend beyond Portland, activating locations around the state and making the exhibition available to a larger and more diverse audience. Confirmed sites are in Pendleton, La Grande, the Umatilla Indian Reservation, Bend, Madras, McMinnville, Astoria, Roseburg, and Ashland, with more venues planned.

Portland2016 is supported by the Oregon Cultural Trust, the Andy Warhol Foundation, the Robert Lehman Foundation, as well as our partnering venues.

ABOUT MICHELLE GRABNER

Incorporating writing, curating and teaching with a studio practice grounded in process and productivity, Grabner has created a multi-faceted and dynamic career. She is founder and co-director, along with her husband Brad Killiam, of three artist spaces that embody new models for facilitating and presenting artists’ projects: The Suburban, in both Riverwest and Walker’s Point, WI; and The Poor Farm, a year-long exhibition space at the former Waupaca County Poor Farm in Little Wolf, WI. Her criticism and essays are published in Artforum, Modern Painters, Frieze, Art Press, and Art-Agenda, among others. In 2014 Grabner was one of three curators for the prestigious Whitney Biennial.

As an artist, Grabner works in variety of mediums including drawing, painting, video and sculpture. Over four dozen solo exhibitions of her work have been organized by galleries and institutions including the Indianapolis Museum of Art; Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland; INOVA, The University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; Ulrich Museum, Wichita, KS; and University Galleries, Illinois State University. Her work is in the collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; Milwaukee Art Museum; DaimlerChrysler Collection, Berlin; Musee d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg; Mudam Museum, Luxembourg; Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

Grabner joined the faculty of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1996, becoming Chair of its Painting and Drawing department in 2009. She has taught at Yale University, Bard College, The Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, the University of Wisconsin, the Cranbrook Academy of Art, and the University of Pennsylvania. Grabner holds an MA in Art History and a BFA in Painting and Drawing from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, and an MFA in Art Theory and Practice from Northwestern University.

As David Norr writes in the introduction to her solo exhibition at MoCA, Cleveland, “All of Grabner’s activities are driven by distinctive values and ideas: working outside of dominant systems, working tirelessly, working across platforms and towards community.”

ABOUT THE PORTLAND BIENNIAL

A major survey of work by artists who are defining and advancing contemporary art practices, Portland2016 will include exhibitions, events and performances in multiple locations from July 9 through September 18, 2016. Disjecta’s 6,000-square-foot exhibition space in north Portland’s diverse Kenton neighborhood will be the central venue for Portland2016. And for the first time, Portland2016 will include venues across Oregon in addition to satellite locations in all five “quadrants” of Portland. A full list of partner locations and the artists exhibiting at each will be released in April.

Portland2016 continues the tradition of the Oregon Biennial, begun by the Portland Art Museum in 1949. With the end of the Museum’s Biennial in 2006, Oregon artists lost a longstanding platform for career advancement. In 2010, Disjecta reintroduced the Biennial, curated by then-Linfield College Gallery Director Cris Moss. The exhibition spanned nine venues throughout Portland and included 19 Oregon artists. Portland2012 presented the work of 24 artists at five venues and was curated by Prudence F. Roberts, former curator of American Art at the Portland Art Museum. Portland2014 was curated by Amanda Hunt, Associate Curator at the Studio Museum in Harlem, and included 15 artists.

For Biennial artists, Portland2016 offers opportunities for critical response from media and peers, and exposure to new and national audiences and patrons. This use of multiple venues will allow artists the space and flexibility to develop work specifically for this opportunity. A catalog with essays by visiting and local writers will support the exhibition.

ABOUT MICHELLE GRABNER

Incorporating writing, curating and teaching with a studio practice grounded in process and productivity, Grabner has created a multi-faceted and dynamic career. She is founder and co-director, along with her husband Brad Killiam, of three artist spaces that embody new models for facilitating and presenting artists’ projects: The Suburban, in both Riverwest and Walker’s Point, WI; and The Poor Farm, a year-long exhibition space at the former Waupaca County Poor Farm in Little Wolf, WI. Her criticism and essays are published in Artforum, Modern Painters, Frieze, Art Press, and Art-Agenda, among others. In 2014 Grabner was one of three curators for the prestigious Whitney Biennial.

As an artist, Grabner works in variety of mediums including drawing, painting, video and sculpture. Over four dozen solo exhibitions of her work have been organized by galleries and institutions including the Indianapolis Museum of Art; Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland; INOVA, The University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; Ulrich Museum, Wichita, KS; and University Galleries, Illinois State University. Her work is in the collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; Milwaukee Art Museum; DaimlerChrysler Collection, Berlin; Musee d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg; Mudam Museum, Luxembourg; Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

Grabner joined the faculty of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1996, becoming Chair of its Painting and Drawing department in 2009. She has taught at Yale University, Bard College, The Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, the University of Wisconsin, the Cranbrook Academy of Art, and the University of Pennsylvania. Grabner holds an MA in Art History and a BFA in Painting and Drawing from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, and an MFA in Art Theory and Practice from Northwestern University.

As David Norr writes in the introduction to her solo exhibition at MoCA, Cleveland, “All of Grabner’s activities are driven by distinctive values and ideas: working outside of dominant systems, working tirelessly, working across platforms and towards community.”

ABOUT DISJECTA

Disjecta Contemporary Art Center builds ambitious programs that promote artists and engage communities.

These programs present forward-thinking work from visual and performing artists, provide crucial resources so that artists can realize their best work, and fuel collaborations between artists, curators, and viewers. Disjecta exacts equal rigor from local and national artists, while keenly recognizing and supporting the talent of the region.

Press List

• March 9th, 2016 | Writer Jon Raymond’s 20-Year Portrait of the Portland Art Scene, Willamette Week
• February 3rd, 2016 | Disjecta Announces Artists For 2016 Biennial, Oregon Public Broadcasting
• February 3rd, 2016 | Artist List Announced for Portland2016 Biennial, Artforum
• November 30th, 2015 | Michelle Grabner at PNCA, Temporary Art Review
• November 19th, 2015 | Michelle Grabner gave a talk at PNCA. Here is a recording.
• June 15th, 2015 | Michelle Grabner Named Curator of Portland’s Contemporary Art Biennial, Artforum
• June 15th, 2015 | Michelle Grabner Announced as Portland2016 Biennial Curator, Artnews
• June 15th, 2015 | Disjecta Recruits a Distinctive National Curator for its Biennial, Oregon Artswatch
• June 15th, 2015 | Disjecta Announces Big Deal Curator for Portland2016 Biennial, Portland Mercury