What’s showing at Salem galleries, museums in August
This month, exhibitions in Salem ask visitors to slow down, enjoy nature and consider local history.
Between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 1, the Salem Art Walk will bring artists and musicians to local businesses downtown.
Here’s what’s showing this month.
Stefani Art Gallery
305 Court St. N.E.
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 12 – 5 p.m.
Admission: Free
BEING PRESENT – The Space Between
Aug. 1 – Aug. 31
Artist Neeraj Narayan’s portraits use spray paint, oil and acrylic to explore the space between “memory and identity, figuration and abstraction, confrontation and reflection,” according to a statement by gallery owner Christina Stefani.
Narayan said in a statement that the work is in response to a modern world filled with distractions, and that painting is a way for him to slow down.
“When we pause — not just physically, but mentally — something shifts. Time stretches. The noise diminishes. And for a moment, we arrive. Not in the past, not in the next thing, but here. Present,” he said.
There will be an artist talk and opening reception during the First Friday Art Walk, from 5-8 p.m., Aug. 1. The artist talk starts at 6 p.m.
Salem Art Association
600 Mission St. S.E.
Hours: Wednesday-Saturday, 12 – 4 p.m.
Admission: Free
There will be a joint reception for The Snail Blog and Garden of Wonders exhibitions on Friday, Aug. 1, from 5:30-7:30 p.m.
EVENTS – Yoga, Architecture tour
The Salem Art Association and Common People Yoga will host two sessions of yoga in Bush’s Pasture Park this month. They’ll be Thursday, Aug. 14, and Thursday, Aug. 28, from 6-7 p.m. It is a donation-based event. RSVP here.
On Sunday, Aug. 17, a tour of the Bush House Museum will answer questions about the architecture, history and oddities of the building itself. The tour has limited space, and starts at 1:30 p.m. There is a recommended donation of $15 per ticket. RSVP here.
FRIENDSHIP THROUGH POSTCARDS – The Snail Blog
Aug. 1 – 31
“The Snail Blog: Keeping in Touch” shares handwritten dispatches between Salem artist Bonnie Hull and her friend Ellen Crocket, who moved from Salem to Vermont.
They sent over 5,000 postcards to each other over 16 years, according to a gallery statement, kept in shoeboxes arranged by date.
“Similar to the note on tomorrow’s postcard, there is a delightful mystery about the content and arrangement of this coming exhibition. Simply put, ‘Greetings from the Bush Barn Art Center – Wish You Were Here!’” said the exhibit description.
SEED TO FLOWER – Garden of Wonders
Aug. 1 – 31
Artist David Cohen said in a statement that he’s always been fascinated by gardens and arboretums of all sizes. His “Garden of Wonders” exhibition features brightly colored mosaic- style paintings inspired by Roman designs to celebrate the natural world.
“Over the millennia, gardens have always been a place where people connect with nature in both a cooperative and mutually interactive kind of dance – learning and supporting one another in ways that just don’t happen anywhere else,” Cohen said in a statement.
RECLAMATION AND MEMORIAL – Black Archive
Through Sept. 30
Using clay, oil painting, performance art, film and more, artist Nikesha Breeze’s work has gained international acclaim.
“Grounded in a global African diasporic and Afro-Futurist perspective, her layered, immersive works draw on African diasporic research, reclamation, and memorial, forging otherworldly spaces rich with storytelling and historical education,” said an artist’s statement.
Breeze’s work has been featured in multiple publications, including The New York Times. Her sculpture “108 Death Masks: A Communal Prayer for Peace and Justice” is a permanent part of the Equal Justice Initiative’s Freedom Monument Sculpture Park in Montgomery, Alabama.
Breeze is originally from Portland, but is now based in New Mexico. Her work will be featured this month both in the Waldo Bogle Gallery at The Bush House Museum and in the A.N. Bush Gallery.
Learn more in below.
HUMAN NATURE – Radiant Figures
Through Aug. 26
Oregon artist Lily Roth mostly studies the important people in her life through paintings, but has recently expanded into sculpture.
“I feel that the study of human nature and figure as a vehicle to tell a story that either everyone can relate to or can expose them to something new,” she said in a statement.
HONORING DOCENTS – Celebration of Art: SAA Gallery Guides
Through Aug. 30
Since 1963, volunteer gallery guides have helped staff shifts at the Bush Barn Art Center and Annex and its events. This year’s exhibit honors 60 years of work, and features art by the volunteers and loaned from their personal collections.
Elsinore Framing & Fine Art Gallery/Artists in Action
444 Ferry St. S.E.
Hours: Monday-Friday 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Admission: Free
There will be a reception with artists from 5-8 p.m. during First Friday, Aug. 1.
OIL AND ACRYLIC – Featured artists Patricia Young and Jim Richards
Aug. 1 – 30
This month, Artists in Action is featuring the work of acrylic painter Patricia Young and oil and acrylic painter Jim Richards.
Young prefers to paint outdoors, and said in an artist’s statement that she is inspired by French impressionism, and has been recently using pallet knives instead of brushes.
Richards leans toward realistic landscapes, and said in a statement he’s inspired by small details and simple beauties.
WATERCOLORS – Invitational Watercolor Exhibit
Aug. 1-30
Elsinore Framing has invited local artists to submit original watercolor paintings of any subject, from scenery to abstracts to portraits, for a juried show that will select a best in show and additional top entries.
Hallie Ford Museum of Art – Willamette University
700 State St.
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 12 – 5 p.m.
Admission: $8 general, $5 for seniors. Free admission for children up to age 17, educators and students with ID and museum members. Free admission for all on Tuesdays. Passes available for checkout at the Salem Public Library.
PORTLAND MODERNIST PAINTINGS – C.S. Price: A Portrait
Through Aug. 30
A new exhibition will explore the work of C.S. Price, who became one of Oregon’s most influential artists in the 1930s and 1940s for his modernist paintings of the American West. It’s the first major exhibition of his work in over a century, according to a museum statement.
The exhibition features 48 works on loan from collections around the country, including some from Hallie Ford. It will also feature objects from his life, including his worktable. Retired art professor Roger Saydack will give a talk in the gallery on Tuesday, Aug. 12, at 12:30 p.m. Admission to the talk is free.
Willamette Heritage Center
1313 Mill St. S.E.
Hours: Wednesday-Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Admission: $10 adults, $8 seniors over 65, $6 students and children ages 6-17. Passes available for checkout at the Salem Public Library. Free admission for Oregon Trail/SNAP/EBT card holders.
A REMARKABLE TENURE – Caralyn B. Shelton The Nation’s First Female Governor
Through Dec. 6
For three days in 1909, Caralyn B. Shelton made history as the nation’s first female governor. She took on the role between the terms of George E. Chamberlain and Frank W. Benson. Women weren’t allowed to vote in Oregon for another three years. The exhibit will share her story and will be the first time artifacts from her collection will be shown.
“Her story was told by newspapers all over the world at the time, but few today know her name and her remarkable story,” said a museum statement.
Contact reporter Abbey McDonald: [email protected] or 503-575-1251.
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Abbey McDonald joined the Salem Reporter in 2022. She previously worked as the business reporter at The Astorian, where she covered labor issues, health care and social services. A University of Oregon grad, she has also reported for the Malheur Enterprise, The News-Review and Willamette Week.
