I think i just never stop looking and listening for heavy obscure music and it’s a constant long term project.
Our new artist fellowship provides a stipend and a solo exhibition for recipients. Above: Granny Playing Tennis by fellowship recipient Jennifer Brommer.
IN PORTLAND, A NEW ARTIST FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM OFFERS A GRANT AND A SOLO EXHIBITION TO WORKING ARTISTS. Over the past two decades, we’ve been fortunate to work alongside some of the best and brightest paintings, prints, sculptures and photographs from regional artists in our Portland cafes. Since 1999, these galleries within our cafes have hosted shows by many Northwest greats, including some of our talented very own coworkers.
“As we aim to attract artists further along in their careers and give the cafe more of a gallery atmosphere, we wanted to recognize people who have been dedicated to their art practice and who have contributed to the cultural wealth of our city, and assist them in producing outstanding work,” Barruel explains.
Last fall, we launched a program called the Stumptown Artist Fellowship, with an inaugural museum-worthy solo exhibit by Wendy Red Star, a Portland artist working across disciplines to explore the intersections of Native American ideologies and colonialist structures, both historically and in contemporary society.
Since launching the program, Portland artist Wendy Red Star, photographer Jennifer Brommer and multimedia artist Melanie Stevens have been awarded stipends and given solo shows. “Wendy’s work is so important, I was blown away by her piece Apsáalooke Feminist last year at the Portland Art Museum, and it was a true honor to have her show at our downtown cafe in January,” says May. In February and March, Jennifer Brommer presented Memphis, a series of large-scale photographic portraits depicting her 90-year-old grandmother’s opulent life in Memphis, Tennessee, and examining race and class in the American south.
Curated by May Barruel, owner and curator of Nationale, and curator of the downtown cafe since 2007, the artist fellowship was designed with the understanding that producing high-quality, largescale work is often a big financial undertaking for working artists. Each artist who receives the fellowship is selected by Barruel and a small committee, and is awarded a $2000 stipend and a solo exhibit in our Portland downtown cafe for six to eight weeks. To celebrate each artist’s work, we host catered opening receptions featuring local djs or performers.