Jay Backstrand
With our own history deeply rooted in Northwest artists, the Laura Russo Gallery is excited to present an exhibition of work by alumni from the Pacific Northwest College of Art, formerly the Museum Art School. We join in celebrating the 100th anniversary of PNCA, along with many other galleries in Portland. The work of nineteen alumni artists will be featured in this show, ranging from Louis Bunce, Manuel Izquierdo and William Givler, early seminal figure from the college, to those who are still living and represent many stages of the college’s history: Jay Backstrand, Marlene Bauer, Michael Brophy, Sean Cain, Tom Cramer, Chris Gander, Roll Hardy, Jackie Johnson, Mary Josephson, Lucinda Parker, Jack Portland, Jan Reaves, René Rickabaugh, Eric Stotik, Margot Voorhies Thompson and Sherrie Wolf.
This alumni show will vividly illustrate the rich talent and diverse interests of artists who got their start at PNCA over the past 80+ years. From Bunce, who began as a student at the Museum Art School in 1925, and taught there from 1946-’72, to Hardy who graduated in 2002, and the talented group between them, these artists’ works encompass a broad range of styles and interests, from abstraction, to surrealism, to realism, to conceptually inspired work. The Laura Russo Gallery takes pride in the vision and lifetime commitment that is reflected in the work of these artists, and looks forward to what the next decades will bring.
