Familiar
Opening Reception | January 14th 6-9 pm Show Runs | January 14th – February 13th
Talon Gallery
1100 SE Division Street Suite 135,
Portland, Oregon 97202
Talon gallery is set to hold it’s first opening tomorrow night in SE Portland. The show, Familiar, has a line up of artists the Antler has worked with in the past that mainly hail from Portland OR, the greater Bay Area in CA, and Philadelphia PA.
I am personally very excited to see Allison Sommers on the roster, and look forward to Antler and Talon’s curators working more with her- and hope fully bringing more of her moody surrealist work to Portland. A few more of my big favorites like Crystal Morey, John Casey, and Jeremy hush will have work in Familiar
I spoke to the founders of Antler in our Winter 2016 issue and here’s what they had to say about Talon:
It will be interesting to see the shift in styles from Antler to Talon as Susannah and Neil explore the darker and more mystical subjects in their curatorial practice.
GROWTH / DECAY -Review
Review by Danielle Schlunegger-Warner
Growth/Decay was co-curated by Susannah Kelly and Neil Perry of Antler Gallery with Sara McCorriston and Jason Chen from Paradigm Gallery. Both Galleries were started by artists and enthusiasts that wanted to create a space for building community and showing the work of emerging artists. Growth/Decay was a great opportunity for artists to gain exposure in a new city and broaden their network of fellow emerging and established artists. I believe it is also a good push for galleries to show work by new artists and reengage viewers by refreshing their rosters. While I still loved pieces by artists that both galleries had shown before, I was personally delighted to learn about Michelle Konczyk’s stunning works in watercolor, as well as Nick Pedersen’s surreal digital environments. I am looking forward to seeing this model used more in galleries across the country and internationally.
The opening at Antler drew a large crowd staying packed all evening for Alberta St.’s Last Thursday art walk in Portland. While attending the opening I had the opportunity to speak with the curators and a few of the artists visiting from Philadelphia. Sara McCorriston explained to me that when the two galleries were conceiving the show, they needed to find a theme broad enough that could facilitate two pieces from all the artists. “We gave each other the opposite theme… I see Antler as more of a ‘growth’ gallery, and Paradigm leans more towards themes of decay… ”
The abundance of flowers and animals that were present in these artworks and previous exhibitions show the curators’ draw to artists working with themes of nature. This is certainly a true for Antler Gallery. David Rice, Christina Mrozik, Brin Levinson, and Zoe Keller are just a few examples of artists that speak to artists’ connection with nature and their reaction to human led climate change. While still within the themes of nature, Paradigm generally seems to curate towards the breakdown, complexities, and the absurdities of being human in a natural world by bringing in artists like Drew Leshko, Caitlin McCormack, Nick Penderson and Jeremy Hush to their roster.
Press Release
Paradigm Gallery and Antler Gallery are excited to present a co-curated group exhibition which spans two themes and two cities, with an opening reception on each coast. Both galleries invited 16 artists, asking them to make two pieces tackling the themes of Growth and Decay.
We live in a time when progress and destruction — physical, economic, and sociological — seem to go hand in hand. This theme opens up space to consider the binary nature of the world we live in. The theme was selected as we felt it was universal enough to be explored by the vast majority of artists yet also offered a distinct duality which fulfills the desire to open different shows in each city. Both aspects of the theme needed to be cohesive with the other but also be able to stand alone as its own show in isolation, as all of the “Growth” works will be on display in Philadelphia at Paradigm Gallery and all of the “Decay” works will be on display at Antler Gallery in Portland, with openings less than one week apart. The works may be viewed as stand alone pieces, but many also serve as diptych works.
