(Water Mandala, 2021. Eco-prints of sumac, eucalyptus, geranium and maple on raw silk canvas, cold wax and oils, 40” x 30” by Lisa Brinkman)
Art About Agriculture’s annual exhibition of agriculture and natural resource-themed artwork by Oregon State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences has started a statewide tour in Corvallis and will continue on to Baker City and Newport in the coming months.
The theme of the 39th annual juried competition and touring exhibition is Sustainable Feast, and it presents art from Northwest artists whose work explores food production and consumption, sustainability, diversity and innovation in our food system.
This year’s open call for artwork received 290 responses from artists in Oregon, Washington and Hawaii. The tour will include artwork by artists from 12 Oregon counties, five Washington counties and one county in Hawaii.
“I am continually inspired by the many varied interpretations of our calls to artists to submit creative work for the Art About Ag program,” said Owen Premore, directing curator of the program. “The ability for art to uniquely capture the tension between demanding economies and delicate ecosystems as we ponder the meaning of a ‘sustainable feast’ is truly powerful.”
The exhibition will visit four locations:
- May 10 to June 15: Giustina Gallery, The LaSells Stewart Center, Oregon State’s Corvallis campus. A reception will be held from 5pm to 7:30pm May 26.
- July 1 to 30: Crossroads Carnegie Art Center in Baker City. The opening reception is from 5:30pm to 8pm July 1. An OSU Baker County alumni event is also scheduled at Crossroads Carnegie Art Center from 3pm to 4:30pm on July 17. Space is limited to 200 guests for the alumni event and RSVPs can be sent to info@crossroads-arts.org. Dave Stone, director of Oregon State’s Food Innovation Center in Portland, will host a sustainable food panel discussion at 10am July 18 in the downstairs studio at Crossroads.
- August 5 to September 30: Pacific Maritime Heritage Center in Newport. The Pacific Maritime Heritage Center reception is from 5pm to 7:30pm August 5 and will include an opportunity to taste student-made products from the Beaver Classic food truck. A sustainable food panel discussion with Dave Stone will precede the opening reception from 3pm to 4:30pm in the Pacific Maritime Heritage Center’s auditorium.
- August 6 to 27: Newport Visual Arts Center, supporting exhibition in the Upstairs Gallery. The Newport Visual Art Center’s reception is from 2pm to 4:30pm August 5, just prior to the reception at Pacific Maritime Heritage Center. The supporting exhibition will include select artworks from the tour and aims to inspire visitors to see the larger exhibition at Pacific Maritime Heritage Center.
“It is always a thrill to share the connection of art and agriculture with this program,” said Staci Simonich, dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences. “There is nothing quite like it across other land grant universities, making this just one more example of what makes Oregon State so special.”
The College of Agricultural Sciences’ Art About Agriculture program was established in 1983 as the region’s first annual agricultural-themed arts competition and touring exhibit. It recognizes professional and emerging Northwest artists, creates a growing, dynamic, permanent collection of fine art based on portraying agriculture and natural resources, and presents the permanent collection and touring exhibits across the state.
Artworks selected for the annual competition and tour are eligible for several juried purchase awards. Purchase awards are funded by donations and endowments. These purchased artworks will be added to the Art About Agriculture permanent collection. Artworks are exhibited on the OSU campus in Corvallis and by loan agreement throughout Oregon and the Northwest. As of May 12, the permanent collection contains 395 works of art by 235 artists.
For more information on the competition and tour, visit the Art About Agriculture website.