The gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of new wood carvings and wood burnings by Portland artist Tom Cramer. His distinctive creations dynamically explore semi-abstract line and energetic color. Cramer’s frequent travels and wide-ranging interests guide his artistic process and the enigmatic designs of his work. Technology and the patterns of the natural world also seep into his creative process. The results are visually dense carved, painted and sometimes burned wood panels. Whether carved and painted wood reliefs or wood burnings, Cramer’s works captivate the eye with the mystery of their interwoven shapes and subtly shifting colors, sometimes hinting at recognizable images, and other times embracing rhythmic abstraction.
Well-known Portland artist Tom Cramer graduated from the Pacific Northwest College of Art in 1982 and then studied at the Pratt Institute in New York. He has shown his work since the mid-1970s and was included repeatedly in the Portland Art Museum’s Oregon Biennials in the 1980s and 1990s. His work is included in the collections of the Portland Art Museum, the Hallie Ford Museum of Art, Salem, the University of Portland, and the University of Oregon; Microsoft Corporation and Whatcom County Museum of Art in Washington; and the Boise Art Museum in Idaho. His commissions include costume and set design for the Oregon Ballet Theater and Ballet Pacifica, as well as a recent mural project for Nike Corporation. His distinctive painted designs can be seen on murals and vehicles across the Portland metropolitan region.