Tag Archives: ongoing slow programming

Delving into the Down North Exhibition at Portland Museum of Art

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For its fifth Slow Art Day, Portland Museum of Art delved into three works from Down North: The North Atlantic Triennial. This exhibition was co-organized by the Portland Museum of Art, the Reykjavík Art Museum, Iceland, and the Bildmuseet, Sweden; it is the first exhibition devoted entirely to contemporary art of the North Atlantic region.

Participants joined Christian Adame, Peggy L. Osher Director of Learning and Community Collaboration, to look in-person with intention and attention at three works of art (pictured below) for a total of 90 minutes.

Lauren Fensterstock (United States, born 1975), The Order of Things, 2016, mixed media with shells, overall: 78 x 240 x 26 inches. Courtesy of the artist and Claire Oliver Gallery, NY. © Lauren Fensterstock

Bita Razavi (Finland/Estonia, born 1983), Gameplay video filmed in The Hunter: Call of the Wild from the series The Dog Days Will Soon Be Over, 2019, sound; HD video, 16:9, 5 minutes 39 seconds (loop), musical score by Svetlana Maraš. Courtesy of the artist. © Bita Razavi

Anders Sunna (Sápmi, born 1985) Torne STYX, 2021, paint and collage on wood, 48 x 88 13/64 x 5/32 inches. Courtesy of the artist. © Anders Sunna. Photographs by Piera Niilá Stålka

More information, including a video of the exhibition, can be found here. Be sure to explore the entire page as the selected works featured online are striking and evocative. Portland Art Museum also holds slow looking events throughout the year on an intermittent basis. Information on those events, and when they will be held, can be found on their calendar.

Portland Museum of Art can be found on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Vimeo, and Soundcloud.

We can’t wait to see what PMA does for 2023!

-Robin, Ashley, Phyl, Johanna, and Jessica Jane.

P.S. We want to recognize the long-time leadership of Christian Adame who first hosted Slow Art Day at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento in 2013. When he later moved to the Phoenix Art Museum he brought it there, and then, more recently, when he was hired by the Portland Museum of Art he again brought Slow Art Day with him. Christian is the pied-piper of our movement.

Looking Slowly in London at The Wallace Collection

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On Saturday April 2, 2022, The Wallace Collection in London hosted “Looking Slowly: Slow Art Day 2022” online. Organized by Miranda K. Gleaves and hosted by Oliver Jones and History of Art lecturer Jo Rhymer, the 136 attendees were guided through an hour of slow looking focused on a single painting, An Allegory of Fruitfulness, by Jacob Jordaens (1593-1678).

An Allegory of Fruitfulness, 1620-9, Jacob Jordaens, © The Wallace Collection.

The event was very well received with participants saying things like –

“Thank you. I can not even imagine from now on, rushing through paintings. This is such a nice experience”.

Later in the month of April, they hosted “Slow Art”, a two-day online event where they helped participants develop skills in visual analysis and active looking. We’ve asked them for more details on their curriculum, or anything we can share with the global Slow Art Day community.

Further, we are happy to say that The Wallace Collection is one of a growing number of institutions that also hosts slow looking sessions throughout the year as a part of their public programming schedule.

You can find The Wallace Collection on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. We can’t wait to see what they come up with for Slow Art Day 2023.

Ashley, Phyl, Jessica Jane, Johanna, and Robin

Look, Listen, and Relax at Drinking Gourd Gallery

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For Drinking Gourd Gallery‘s first Slow Art Day, founder Carol Torian hosted artist Kirsten Moore and led a 75-minute guided slow looking experience. Based in Raleigh, NC and conducted via Zoom, the event focused on Kirsten Moore’s food art paintings: “Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy,” “Spring Onions,” “Taste the Rainbow,” and “Traditions.” Following a meditative centering exercise, visitors observed each piece, then engaged in a group discussion to share their impressions of the artwork. Kirsten also shared aspects of her artistic process and what inspires her to create.

Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy, Kirsten Moore, 2022, Mixed Media, 20″x24″
photo credit: Carol Torian
Spring Onions, Kirsten Moore, Mixed Media, 2017, 24″x18″
photo credit: Carol Torian

Kirsten Moore’s works are mosaics of recycled materials, such as magazines, and build on the history of food as art. Moore has a passion for planet sustainability and uses repurposed materials and discarded items instead of traditional mediums to create her mixed media artwork. Her process of deconstructing the material and giving it new life can be seen in her paintings, sculptures, and even digital artwork.

Taste the Rainbow, Kirsten Moore, Mixed Media, 2018, 18″x24″
photo credit: Carol Torian
Traditions, Kirsten Moore, Mixed Media, 2016, 16″x20″

Drinking Gourd Gallery promoted their event on Facebook and Instagram using the following image:

The attendees were engaged and excited about the process.

We encourage Slow Art Day educators and curators to spend some time with Moore’s terrific food art.

We also note that the gallery, which gets its name from the folk song “Follow the Drinking Gourd” honoring those who were once enslaved, plans on holding virtual slow art events on a quarterly basis.

We can’t wait to see what Drinking Gourd Gallery comes up with for Slow Art Day 2023!

– Robin, Ashley, Phyl, Johanna, and Jessica Jane