Tag: Pacific Northwest Art Legacy

This year, Village Frame & Gallery is looking at the wider body of work that comprises the Pacific Northwest art legacy. Subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on Facebook as we explore art and artists from across the region. 

The Coming of the White Man by Hermon Atkins MacNeil

A gift to Portland in 1904 from the family of former Portland mayor David Thompson, The Coming of the White Man is a turn-of-the-century style 8’8” x 6’ x 6’3” bronze sculpture. It depicts two Native Americans, presumably watching Lewis and Clark breach the Columbia River Gap. The older figure is often said to be Chief Multnomah.

It was this time of year, in 1805, when Lewis and Clark were traveling through this area on their way to the Pacific. They reached the junction of the Snake and Columbia rivers on October 16th. On October 25th they were at The Dalles and on November 3rd, they camped just west of where Camas is today. They reached the Pacific on November 15th.

Local tribes had been trading with the occasional whites who traveled through the Pacific Northwest since the 1790s, but as we know now, the information Lewis and Clark took home from their expedition would have a great influence on the western fur trade and immigration into the area.  After Lewis and Clark, the number of whites coming into the area rose rapidly, with devastating consequences to the native people.

About Hermon Atkins MacNeil (1866-1947)

MacNeil was an American sculptor from Massachusetts. He is known for his works depicting Native Americans, for designing the Standing Liberty quarter, for the Pony Express statue in St. Joseph, Missouri, and for sculpting Justice, the Guardian of Liberty on the east pediment of the United States Supreme Court building.

See The Coming of the White Man

It’s a bit of a hunt, but you will find it in Washington Park on SW Washington Way, not far from the Oregon Holocaust Museum.

Can’t get enough art? You’ll love Village Frame & Gallery!

Exhibits are open to the public, at no charge, Tuesday – Saturday, 10 am – 6 pm, at 7808 SW Capitol Hwy, Portland, OR 97219.

This month, we’re featuring the work of the seven talented Bridge City Artists.

This year, Village Frame & Gallery is looking at the wider body of work that comprises the Pacific Northwest art legacy. Subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on Facebook as we explore art and artists from across the region. 

Da Tung and Xi’an Bao Bao (Universal Peace and Baby Elephant)

It’s hard to find a better tribute to fatherhood than Portland’s 135″ x 77″ x 168″ bronze of a father elephant with his youngster on his back. Like a great dad, the sculpture embodies strength, playfulness, and story; it symbolizes safe and prosperous offspring.

Based on a wine pitcher from the late Shang Dynasty (circa 1200-1100 BC), it is covered with animals from ancient Chinese mythology. If you want to see how many you can identify, here’s a list to get you started: Chinese Mythical Creatures.

Huo Bao Zhu

Da Tung and Xi’an Bao Bao was given to Portland by Hao Bao Zhu, owner of Shaanxi Yuan Kun Sculptural Arts Company in Xian, China. The sculpture was made in Hao’s foundry, which is licensed by the Chinese government to reproduce antiquities. It then traveled by boat to the United states and was installed in the Portland Park blocks in 2002.

This sculpture is just one of the many gifts Huo Bao Zhu has given to the United States. After a doctor in Portland treated Hao for a rare form of leukemia, he was moved to generosity by his gratitude, his Buddhist faith, and a lifelong desire to increase understanding between countries by sharing Chinese culture.

When plans were being made for the installation of Da Tung and Xi’an Bao Bao, Huo told the Oregonian he had come to feel an urgency to share the rewards of his successful business with others.

“Based on other people who have had my illness, today I should be dead, or bedridden. But now, I am not only still alive, but I am able to lead a normal life. It’s a wonderful situation,” Huo said. “I want to be loving and good, and to leave positive things with my remaining time.”

In addition to giving Da Tung and Xi’an Bao Bao to Portland, Huo Bao Zhu donated many of the featured artworks at Astoria’s Garden of Surging Waves.

See Da Tung and Xi’an Bao Bao

Just look for the big elephant located in the North Park blocks, between W Burnside and NW Couch, near the children’s playground.

If you’re out and about with your Dad today, pay a visit to Da Tung and Xi’an Bao Bao.

Can’t get enough art? You’ll love Village Frame & Gallery!

Exhibits are open to the public, at no charge, Tuesday – Saturday, 10 am – 6 pm, at 7808 SW Capitol Hwy, Portland, OR 97219.

Image credits:

Park Blocks Elephant Portland by User:Cacophony (Own work) [CC BY-SA 2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons

Elephant Scupture in Portland by User: Cornfusion (Own work) CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 via Flickr

This year, Village Frame & Gallery is looking at the wider body of work that comprises the Pacific Northwest art legacy. Subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on Facebook as we explore art and artists from across the region. 

Portland Store Fixtures Murals by Teri Payton

A tribute to the life-giving force of water and a reminder to conserve and protect our environment, the four Portland Store Fixtures murals illustrate the vital role water plays in our daily lives as Portlanders and Oregonians. 

Artist Teri Payton explained:

Each of the four panels represents one of Oregon’s major ecosystems: wetlands, forests, prairies and the coastline. Within those are fishing, logging, agriculture, and tourism. Even the source of most of our power comes from water. All of it is tied together. People tend to think of Portland and generalize all of Oregon’s climate as “wet and rainy,” but much of Oregon is impacted by drought conditions. We wanted to remind people of these things, to make the viewer think before tossing a cigarette butt on the ground or being wasteful. Everything goes to the river, and the river goes to the sea, and so on.

If you get close enough, you will see each 96″x 48 panel has quotes and water facts painted around the images, painted tone-on-tone so they aren’t shouting at you. The clean, yet intricate designs are reminiscent of art nouveau, which Payton has always been attracted to.

The murals were installed in 2009 and are acrylic on panel.

About the Artist

The Portland Store Fixtures murals were the first large scale pieces created by Portland artist Teri Payton, who describes herself as a songwriter, painter, woodworker, and dog walker. Teri’s work has been commissioned by a number of businesses around the area.

About Portland Store Fixtures

The murals were commissioned by Portland Store Fixtures owners Kat Schon and Penney Stephenson.

“We were doing some water conservation installations around the building — tree planting and permeable pavers and so forth — and got inspired to have murals done at the same time,” Kat explained.

Earth lovers and art lovers, Kat and Penny are working on a new project: organizing neighbors to paint over graffiti and then having artists come in behind them to paint murals. You can learn more about that effort by following their Facebook page.

This Year, Celebrate Earth Day Artfully

While you’re out and about, don’t miss the Portland Store Fixtures murals at 110 SE Main Street.

Can’t get enough art? You’ll love Village Frame & Gallery!

Exhibits are open to the public, at no charge, Tuesday – Saturday, 10 am – 6 pm, at 7808 SW Capitol Hwy, Portland, OR 97219.

This year, Village Frame & Gallery is looking at the wider body of work that comprises the Pacific Northwest art legacy. Subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on Facebook as we explore art and artists from across the region. 

Want to do something different for Valentine’s Day this year? Take someone you love to Heart Beacon!

Heart Beacon is an 18’x 10 1/2′ stainless steel and acrylic chamber that looks like it might blast off at any moment. Touch it, and Heart Beacon comes alive, using light, color, and sound to display your heart beat. Inspired by the work of the Emergency Coordination Center, Heart Beacon was built to literally and metaphorically take the “pulse” of the Portland Community.

How cool is this for Valentine’s Day? Or any day when you want to have a little adventure with someone. It’s not far from Ed Benedict Park and Kelly Butte Natural Area, so perfect for a date on a sunny day.

Want to step inside Heart Beacon? You can!

You will find it just outside the Emergency Coordination Center, Bureau of Emergence Management, at 9911 SE Bush St, Portland, OR 97266.

About the Artists

Heart Beacon is the work of Joe O’Connell and Blessing Hancock from Creative Machines

Joe O’Connell grew up making things and turned that into a career. After a long liberal arts education that spanned four universities, he began working for science museums where he designed and built exhibits. He founded Creative Machines Inc in 1995 to design and fabricate interactive exhibits for museums around the world. He began making public art in 2004 in order to reach new audiences.

Blessing Hancock owns Skyrim Studio Inc which focuses on site specific sculpture. She utilizes her BFA in Sculpture and MLA in Landscape Architecture to create innovative work for public spaces. She has completed monumental sculpture projects throughout the world and has extensive experience working with city agencies, project teams and community groups.

Creative Machines was founded in 1995 by artist Joe O’Connell. Since then, the company has grown to 30 artists, engineers and skilled craftspeople guided by a shared vision of awesomeness. Their 65,000 s.f. shop in Tucson, Arizona is devoted entirely to pushing the boundaries of public art and interactive exhibits through comprehensive design prototyping and fabrication. Check out the magical machines they are making at CreativeMachines.com.

Can’t get enough art by Pacific Northwest Artists? You’ll love Village Frame & Gallery!

Exhibits are open to the public, at no charge, Tuesday – Saturday, 10 am – 6 pm, at 7808 SW Capitol Hwy, Portland, OR 97219.

Pacific Northwest Artist Michael Florin Dente’s Work Commemorating an American Hero

This year, Village Frame & Gallery is looking at the wider body of work that comprises the Pacific Northwest art legacy. Subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on Facebook as we explore art and artists from across the region. 

The Dream is an 8-foot tall bronze statue by Michael Florin Dente that focuses on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and themes of equality, freedom, and justice, portrayed by three allegorical figures:

– A white man with his sleeves rolled up, who symbolizes working Americans stepping up to support equality, freedom, an justice;

– A woman wading ashore, who symbolizes our immigrant culture and their their faith in the freedom of America;

– And a little girl, just releasing Dr. King’s coattails, who symbolizes the “letting go” required when one is called away to join a struggle for the common good.

The artist, Michael Florin Dente, says he has been a sculptor since his pre-school days when he created whole worlds out of clay. He was a faculty member of Department of Fine Arts at the University of Portland from 1981 to 1985. His work is exhibited, commissioned, and collected internationally. You can see more of his work on his website and around the Pacific Northwest.

This week, as we commemorate the life and work of Martin Luther King, Jr., visit The Dream — a part of our Pacific Northwest Art Legacy — at the intersection of NE Holladay and Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard, outside the Oregon Convention Center.

Love art by Pacific Northwest Artists? You’ll love Village Frame & Gallery!

Exhibits are open to the public, at no charge, Tuesday – Saturday, 10 am – 6 pm, at 7808 SW Capitol Hwy, Portland, OR 97219.