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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 9, 2011)
THE YEAR IN j«e_36 DECEMBER 9, 2011 4 visualart WWW.JUSTOUT.COM V BY WAYNE BUND The crux of my 2011 top visual art picks springs from a quote from Ryan Trecartin’s 2006 video “(Tommy Chat Just Emailed Me.)”: “If my ideal Landscape Had a Word for Honestly It Would Live Online With You.” While Portland has a hustling scene of queer artists, queer-themed galleries, queer curators, and queer art-goers, the crème de la crème of Stumptown’s visual culture live on line. From John Waters-inspired posters branding queer dance nights and John Wa ters-inspired videos on YouTube to countless followers on Tumblr, digital culture has domi nated Portland’s art scene. pages include Wyatt Riot’s tenderheart, Brad Roberge’s volcanobird, Jonny Shultz’s epony mous jonnyshultz, as well as national pages such as bearsimjealousof, shamama, smill- er555, buckangel and fuckyeahfemmes. Pick #2: Girlfriends Portland was graced by lesbian royalty back in January with a visit from Catherine Opie. Not only did the Portland Art Museum showcase a sampling of her exhibit Girl friends, but Opie descended from the heavens to give us two hours of her time in lecture form. A highlight of Girlfriends was the dura tional presence of Opie’s subjects, such as in Pick #1: More Dicks and More Femmes “Idexa,” who appears in portraits from 1998 Everything is digital now, and everything is and 2008. The wear and tear and transition of new again. At least that’s the way tumblr.com Idexa transcends beyond the frame. makes me feel. With every scroll through my dashboard, it’s like I’m falling in love again for Pick #3 and #4: Video Savants the first time. Even more than Facebook, Ins- YouTube and Vimeo have been around for tagram or Flickr, Tumblr allows queers to a while, so it’s no surprise that the third pick shuffle, conglomerate and synthesize their own centers on two artists who have turned to visual style and build community around daily video to execute their sincere and twisted curatorial choices. Whether it’s blatant Not views of the world: Holcombe Waller and Safe For Work seminal phallus-ness or citing Anthony Hudson. Waller’s talen{ is best de esoteric femme-ness, the endless array of fresh scribed as down-meets-performance artist- images never ceases to amaze. meets-folk singer-meets-multitasking ge The wonder of Tumblr is that it is both local nius. With the release and rerelease of his and national at once. Some of my favorite local album Into the Dark Unknown, Waller ac Pick #5: Curate/Appropriate As the guiding hand behind monthly dance party MRS. at Mississippi Studios, Ally Picard of Bloodhound Photography has de signed entire nights with themes such as “Be yond Thunderdome,” “Space Odyssey,” “Cry Baby Divine,” and “Executive Realness.” This process has included picking a local queer and turning them into a burning effigy of pop cul ture. Picard superbly mines the movies that form the cultural subconscious of the twenty- and thirtysomethings of today and revision companied his inspiring melodies with the ing them into a club culture that allows us to creation of three music videos: “Bored of imagine what is possible, what might be pos Memory,” “Hardliners” and “Qu’Appelle sible, and what was once possible. Valley, Saskatchewan.” Waller is deft at capitalizing simple sincerity, cinematic magic Upcoming Picks for 2012 and artistic vision. • Cock Gallery, a space run by Paul Soria Hudson made his breakout moment in no with the mission of showcasing “provoca 2010 by creating an Oregon Public Health tive, intelligent works that otherwise might public service announcement about a zombie not be shown due to content or commercial outbreak, and ¿here's been no looking back value,” will be an interesting addition to the since. As the unsung star of the recent Shorty Everett Street Lofts ecology. Shorts Queer Short Film Festival, Hudson • The Tacoma Art Museum gets a little dominated the night with his “The Drag queer with the inclusion of Portland’s own TJ Mansion Gets a Job,” “The Real Drag Mani- Norris and lesbian feminist performance art son” and “The Awesomazing Show: Episode ist Wynne Greenwood (Tracey and the Plas 1 - Tagging (Pilot).” I predict Hudson will be tics) in the 10th Northwest Biennial opening our generation’s John Waters, if not the next in January. Also, HIDE/SEEK will open at Tom Six. TAM in March. Ü ! ► 4 arenile XV Ithowplaee 208 NW 3rd -rive.. P ortland, Oregon 97209 P c^crvations .■503-222-53,58 www.dare£ll£XV.eoP7 ©inner & §how age Z&Chpm ~ 1.65.00 per person Cocktail paèkagcc!9prn/-,'l>4’5.00 per person package» include Champagne & Midnight Breakfast Buffet
