Category: Blog

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In the Gallery

Adam Gerlach
Traces of Light
February 3rd – March 31st, 2025
Artist reception, Friday, March 7th from 5:30pm-8pm

Join us for wine and light refreshments on Friday, March 7th from 5:30pm-8pm to celebrate the artwork of shop owner, Adam Gerlach. On view will be selections from Traces of Light, a photographic series that documents moments captured at night during extended photographic explorations. Made through a process of long exposures and light painting, the minimalist images highlight his experience of nighttime wanderings and communes with the trees he encounters.

We hope to see you there!
-Adam and Vanessa

Bristlecone Pines, Study 19, Inyo National Forest, CALimited editions available up to 36 x 27” | Pigment print on cotton rag | 2019

Lake Merritt Trees, Study 1, Oakland, CALimited editions available up to 27 x 36” | Pigment print on cotton rag | 2018

Lake Merritt Trees, Study 2, Oakland, CALimited editions available up to 30 x 27” | Pigment print on cotton rag | 2018
Artist StatementFor me, simplicity is the most beautiful and satisfying photographic result. My photographic process has evolved over time to communicate more with less information, stripping things down to their minimal essence. My interest in simple and uncluttered compositions is one of the many reasons I love shooting at night. Most details disappear into shadow, leaving only the singular item I want to communicate, glowing prophetically against the darker areas. The backgrounds fade to black or contain only hints of detail created by the moon rising behind or by street lights above, allowing the viewer the chance to contemplate the few details that remain.
About Adam Gerlach:Adam Gerlach is an artist and curator living in Portland, Oregon. He is the owner of Village Frame and Gallery and also has a robust artistic practice. His work has been exhibited at venues including Kala Art Gallery in Berkeley, CA, The Center for Photographic Art in Carmel, CA, PhotoPlace Gallery, Middlebury, VT, A Smith Gallery, Johnson City, TX and The Center for Fine Art Photography, Fort Collins, CO. 

“I love the hunting for and gathering of night photographs, a ritual that is instinctual and meditative. Traces of Light is the culmination of many long nights dedicated to this practice.”See more of Adam’s work on his website: https://www.adamgerlach.com/We look forward to seeing you and providing the best in fine art picture framing; continuing in the 25 year tradition of Village Frame and Gallery!All our best,Adam and Vanessa
Village Frame and Gallery

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In the Gallery

Megan Hatch
yes – and
December 6th, 2024 – January 31st, 2025

Artist reception, Friday, December 6th, 2024 from 5:30pm-8pm

Join us for wine and light refreshments on Friday, December 6th from 5:30pm-8pm to celebrate the artwork of Megan Hatch. On view will be selections from, yes – and, a series of photographic diptychs. Each set of images are bound together by a thin golden line, representing healing and multiplicity.

We hope to see you there!

-Adam and Vanessa


the way isn’t clear

reaching

losing ground
Artist Statement: These photographs are from a body of work entitled “yes – and.” Begun in 2022, the photographs in this series are all diptychs. Each set of images is bound together by a thin golden line as if by kintsugi, the Japanese art of mending broken pottery with gold. They become vessels to hold our hurt and our hope. There is healing to be found in holding multiple truths in our awareness at the same time. By doing so, we get to practice wholeness. There is no way to where we want to go without practice.

About Megan Hatch: Megan Hatch (she/her) is an artist and curator living in Portland, Oregon. She is a recipient of the Julia Margaret Cameron Award for Women Photographers
(2023) and a Critical Mass Finalist (2022). Her work has been exhibited
internationally and is in collections both private and public.
 

“I currently run the exhibition program for the Multnomah Arts Center, where artists from the community help to choose the shows and shape the programming each year. Making art and working in community is fundamental to who I am. I know, deep down, that the arts are essential to our collective thriving. It’s part of how we’re going to find our way.”

See more of Megan’s work on her website: https://www.meganhatch.com

Village Frame and Gallery is located at 7808 SW Capitol Highway, Portland 97219 in the heart of Multnomah Village. Our regular hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10 am to 4 pm and Saturday 10 am to 2 pm.

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In the Gallery

Vanessa Marsh: The Sun Beneath the Sky

September 6th, 2024- November 29th, 2024

Artist reception, Friday, October 4th, 2024 from 5:30pm-8pm

Join us for wine and light refreshments on Friday, October 4th from 5:30pm-8pm to celebrate the work of Vanessa Marsh, partner of shop owner, Adam Gerlach. When Vanessa isn’t helping out in the shop, you’ll find her in the studio, creating imaginary landscapes with light sensitive materials.

Reflecting upon the landscapes of her life in the Western United States, the images she creates are meditations on memory, climate change and geologic time.

We hope to see you there!

-Adam and Vanessa

Three Fingers 14, Sunset, North Cascades, WA
Grand Teton, Late Afternoon
Mt. Shuksan 1, Sunrise, from Picture Lake, North Cascades, WA

About Vanessa Marsh:

Vanessa Marsh creates imaginary landscapes and atmospheres through a mixed media process based in photography. Working in various photographic processes she creates the illusion of a layered and dimensional landscape using opaque stencils and cut paper to make multiple exposures on light sensitive paper. She has translated this process into different forms of photographic printmaking, from traditional black and white darkroom prints, to analog color printing, wet plate collodion, lumen and cyanotype.

Vanessa Marsh (b.1978, Seattle, Washington) is a Portland, OR based visual artist. She received her M.F.A. from California College of the Arts in San Francisco in 2004. Marsh’s work has been the subject of solo and group exhibitions at venues including Dolby Chadwick Gallery in San Francisco, The SFO Museum, The Penumbra Foundation in New York, photoEye Gallery in Santa Fe, NM and The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco. Marsh has been the recipient of a Penland Winter Residency and Fellowship (2023), a Jentel Foundation Fellowship (2018), a Rayko Photo Center Residency (2014), a MacDowell Colony Fellowship (2007), and a Headlands Center for the Arts MFA Fellowship (2004). Marsh’s images are held in institutional collections including the San Jose Museum of Art, the San Francisco Art Commission, and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art.

Don’t miss this exhibit on view through October 31st!

See more of Vanessa’s work on her website: https://www.vanessamarshfineart.com

Village Frame and Gallery is located at 7808 SW Capitol Highway, Portland 97219 in the heart of Multnomah Village. Our regular hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10 am to 4 pm and Saturday 10 am to 2 pm.

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In the Gallery

Liz Thoresen
Landscapes
June 7th- July 31st, 2024
Artist reception, Friday, June 7th from 5:30pm-8pm

Join us for wine and light refreshments Friday June 7th to celebrate the lush landscape paintings of Liz Thoresen! Get lost in the pastoral vistas, budding trees and undulating grasses of Thoresen’s new works.

We hope to see you there!

-Adam and Vanessa

An Expanse to Build a Dream On
Reaching the Sunlit Uplands
Clover Time
Woodland Enticement

“This Spring has been particularly beautiful due to an abundance of rain and periods of welcome sun. This lush, green season has been pure inspiration and the reason the Pacific Northwest is so special. ” -Liz Thoresen

About Liz Thoresen:

Liz Thoresen was born in San Francisco, California, pursued her artistic passion from an early age and became an Art teacher in 1973.  Her interest at the time was Ceramics and she moved to Australia where she taught High School art and Ceramics at Caulfield Institute of Technology in Melbourne. After returning to the United States in 1980, she and her husband owned and operated a veterinary clinic for 26 years.  She has since retired and has been able to pursue her love of painting full time.   She has participated in many local and national group and solo shows. Her art has been published in two books and on the cover of the international magazine, the Journal of American Veterinary Medical Association.  She is a member of the International Society of Experimental Artists.

“I live in a beautiful part of the Pacific Northwest where it is easy to find inspiration from many different sources. Ideas come from really seeing the world around me and the process of painting allows me to see that world more clearly. I find inspiration from nature, the weather, conversations, quotations, colors, shapes both man-made and natural, laughter, exercise, and the sheer beauty of the world around me. The magic that happens when color blends on paper, canvas, or board excites me and leads me from painting to painting. My aim is to express an idea in it’s own unique manner which prompts me to approach an idea in a variety of ways. I enjoy painting both representational and abstract and paint from a place of joy and hope my art brings you happiness as well. My studio in Beaverton is on four acres across the street from 500 acres of Federal Wildlife Preserve and in a beautiful valley which provides continual and unlimited inspiration.” -Liz Thoresen

Don’t miss this exhibit on view through July 31st!

See more of Liz’s work on her website: https://www.lizthoresen.com/

Village Frame and Gallery is located at 7808 SW Capitol Highway, Portland 97219 in the heart of Multnomah Village. Our regular hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10 am to 4 pm and Saturday 10 am to 2 pm.

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In the Gallery

Adam Gerlach
Spaces Between
February 1st- March 31st, 2024
Artist reception, Friday, March 1st from 5:30pm-8pm

Join us for wine and light refreshments on March 1st, 2024 to celebrate the photographic work of the owner of Village Frame and Gallery, Adam Gerlach. When he is not carefully preserving and framing your precious objects, he’s out in the field, looking for just the right light and composition. Stop by to see these large format prints in person.

We hope to see you there!

-Vanessa and Adam

Installation view of Spaces Between

Endless Light, Carpinteria, CA | Pigment print on cotton rag | 2009/2017

Black Road, Craters of the Moon National Park , ID | Pigment print on cotton rag | 2006/2017

Descending Light, New Zealand | Pigment print on cotton rag | 2004/2017

More from the artist:

Adam Gerlach, BA, MFA, Brooks Institute of Photography. 
Each of my photographs is captured on film using traditional landscape photographic techniques. The negatives are carefully selected and transformed to exaggerate their more otherworldly qualities. I feel a picture is never complete until a certain luminosity is achieved. I like to test the bounds of what can be printed to help to create a feeling, and to present a more imaginative space for the viewer to contemplate. 

I seek out subjects which are symbolic vestiges of the exploration of an internal landscape. These symbols often represent moments from my own life; either reflections on my journey or postulations of moments to come. They are inspired by quiet instances of mystery and questioning.

The crafting of an image is as important to me as it’s content. Each image is taken through a transformative process that includes traditional film processing, scanning, and digital manipulation with the goal of getting beyond straight documentation into the realm of self-expression. These images become less about the places where they were photographed and more about a dreamlike location caught in the space between reality and imagination.

Through the careful control of light, shadow, tone and contrast a mysterious, and unique space is created inviting the viewer to explore the space between our world and a world unknown. 

We look forward to seeing you and providing the best in fine art picture framing; continuing in the 24 year tradition of Village Frame and Gallery!

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In the Gallery

Pamela Chipman
Roaming
November 3rd, 2023- January 31st, 2024
Artist reception, Friday, November 3rd, 2023 from 5:30pm-8pm

Depicting local landscapes as well as exotic locals with sensitivity to light and space the 18 works in this exhibit are dream like and ethereal, reminding one of sites seen on long meandering walks.

These small works make for a thoughtful gift to anyone living in Portland or anyone that loves to travel. The beautiful images are printed on vellum and then gilded on the reverse with a zinc and copper alloy, giving a luminous effect while adding depth and texture.  These golden jewels must be seen in person; they glow in a way that doesn’t come across digitally. Each one is precious and unique.
More about Pamela Chipman:
Chipman studied in the Fine Arts department at UCLA. She moved to Portland, Oregon and co-created the  Blue Gallery an innovative exhibition and performance space. Throughout her career, Chipman’s work has explored visual storytelling and gender roles through a variety of projects, utilizing photography and video, creating books, films, video loops, and public installations as well as prints. Chipman’s work has been exhibited and screened in galleries, on television and in installation work. Her work is also held in public and private collections.
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Beth Nichols says Goodbye as Village Frame & Gallery transitions to new ownership!

If you’ve stopped by Village Frame and Gallery recently you’ve likely noticed some changes. In late June I sold the business to Adam Gerlach. I had a chance to work with Adam in the months before the business changed hands. He is an experienced framer with a good eye and focus on quality, and he has the energy of the young! I am so happy that a nice, super-qualified framer is carrying on the legacy of this 24 year old business.

Adam and his wife Vanessa are both artists at heart and in practice. While Adam works with clients and does the framing Vanessa will be “wrangling the art,” meaning gallery shows will continue with opening events continuing on First Fridays. I encourage you to stop in the shop to meet Adam and bring your art finds in with confidence – You’re in good hands!

Nine years ago I purchased my favorite shop in Multnomah Village, Village Frame and Gallery. I met and worked with incredible clients and artists. I hired Lynne to help at the shop and found a friend. I have loved being a part of the fabric of the Village and the Village paid me back in ways I’ll never forget!

Meanwhile, Scott and I are building our “forever home” in Astoria. Getting to know our new city and the Pacific Northwest, taking time to really explore. Oh, I got a new haircut, too! Just in case you see me roaming around Multnomah Village on our monthly excursions back to the city. Please say “Hi!” 

Thank you to our clients, artists and fellow business owners for the last nine years. I wouldn’t trade it for anything!

– – Beth Nichols

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In the Gallery

F.L. Carrera
Investigations: Chalkboard Series
September 1st – October 28th, 2023
Artist reception, September 1st, 2023 from 5:30pm-8pm

We are thrilled to welcome local artist F.L.Carrera to the gallery for September and October! Join us for an artist reception on September 1st from 5:30pm-8pm and also experience First Fridays in The Village, with many local shops open late! 

“Inspired by the chalkboards that architect Louis Kahn designed and installed for the scientists at the Salk Institute, these paintings reference mathematical, religious, alchemical, Newtonian and scientific explorations. ” -F.L. Carrera

With layered and luminous surface treatments, these works bring together scientific forms, organic sensibilities and hints of chaos, evoking the tension created by human’s need to understand and control nature.
CADUCEUS mixed media with gold leaf/canvas 48 x 48
DOUBLE HELIX mixed media with gold leaf/canvas 48 x 48
ENTWINED mixed media with gold leaf/canvas 48 x 48

“While at work on this series, I found myself drawn to the works of
Archimedes, the philosopher Teilhard de Chardin, Carl Jung, and to the life and complex generativity of another complicated genius, the father of calculus, the author of the theory of universal gravitation, the first to understand the color spectrum…and some say the last great alchemist, Isaac Newton.” – -F.L. Carrera

More about F.L. Carrera: Carrera is a west coast artist and independent curator working in installation, mixed-media and painting.  Trained at Rutgers University, Carrera furthered her education at the Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, the Atlin Centre for the Arts in British Columbia, and was mentored by famed Philadelphia artist Dan Wittels, himself a student of Grace Hartigan. Carrera went to San Diego to pursue a Ph.D. in behavioral medicine as a clinical psychologist.  In 2002 Carrera changed careers to pursue visual art professionally.  Carrera was the recipient of a fellowship at the Atlin Centre for the Arts in British Columbia and nominated for the San Diego Art Prize as one of the “New Contemporaries” in 2012. Carrera recently closed a 4,000 square foot art installation in San Diego called “Museo du Profundo Mundo: The Carrera Expediton,” exploring the world of museum collections, cabinets of curiosity and the role of the  scientist/artist. Recent installations include Oceanside Museum of Art, Mesa College, The San Diego Museum of Art, Grossmont College and The Monterey Museum.Carrera’s installations and paintings often explore the nexus between science and art and man’s complex interactions with the natural world. Carrera currently resides and has a studio in Portland, OR.
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Multnomah Days!

Join us on Saturday, August 19th for Multnomah Days! This beloved annual event incorporates a one day open-air family friendly street festival with 120+ vendor booths, a community parade, live music, street entertainers, art, food & beverage carts plus outdoor street dining.

Stop by to see Liz Thoresen‘s beautiful exhibit and pick up some of her handmade cards!

Don’t miss Liz’s show, on view until August 23rd!

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In the Gallery: Liz Thoresen, Abstracts

Keeping Pace, 30″x30″ and Moving On, 24″x24″

Village Frame and Gallery welcomes Liz Thoresen to the gallery with a selection of dynamic Abstract Paintings. We are thrilled to be showcasing these layered and textural works, that spark imagination and contemplation. On view July 6th-August 23rd!

“The stimulus for painting an abstract is the self-discovery it brings as I layer paint and apply texture while balancing shapes, lines, and color.  My prompts are often inspirational lines from a book, song, or poem. Many times they are my emotional responses to current events.  Starting with words written on a substrate, I am surprised and energized with what transpires and appears on the canvas as the painting progresses.  The unexpected is my goal.  Abstracts allow for total immersion, unconstrained by a preconceived image.  It is this conversation with the unknown that excites me and keeps me painting over and over. ” -Liz Thoresen

About Liz Thoresen:

Liz Thoresen was born in San Francisco, California, pursued her artistic passion from an early age and became an Art teacher in 1973.  Her interest at the time was Ceramics and she moved to Australia where she taught High School art and Ceramics at Caulfield Institute of Technology in Melbourne. After returning to the United States in 1980, she and her husband owned and operated a veterinary clinic for 26 years.  She has since retired and has been able to pursue her love of painting full time.   She has participated in many local and national group and solo shows. Her art has been published in two books and on the cover of the international magazine, the Journal of American Veterinary Medical Association.  She is a member of the International Society of Experimental Artists.

“I live in a beautiful part of the Pacific Northwest where it is easy to find inspiration from many different sources. Ideas come from really seeing the world around me and the process of painting allows me to see that world more clearly. I find inspiration from nature, the weather, conversations, quotations, colors, shapes both man-made and natural, laughter, exercise, and the sheer beauty of the world around me. The magic that happens when color blends on paper, canvas, or board excites me and leads me from painting to painting. My aim is to express an idea in it’s own unique manner which prompts me to approach an idea in a variety of ways. I enjoy painting both representational and abstract and paint from a place of joy and hope my art brings you happiness as well. My studio in Beaverton is on four acres across the street from 500 acres of Federal Wildlife Preserve and in a beautiful valley which provides continual and unlimited inspiration.” -Liz Thoresen

Don’t miss this exhibit on view through August 23rd!

See more of Liz’s work on her website: https://www.lizthoresen.com/

Village Frame and Gallery is located at 7808 SW Capitol Highway, Portland 97219 in the heart of Multnomah Village. Our regular hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10 am to 4 pm and Saturday 10 am to 2 pm.

Village Frame & Gallery, 7808 SW Capitol Hwy, Portland, OR 97219 ● (503) 245-8001
Open Tuesday - Friday, 10am - 5pm, and Saturday 10am - 4pm, or by appointment.