Art Watch 6/18-6/24 | The Source Weekly - Bend, Oregon

Art Watch 6/18-6/24

Nacho Ordinary Art Event

How do we communicate when words fail us? If you're Icelandic band Sigur Rós, you create your own language, called Vonlenska or "Hopelandic." If you're OSU-Cascades Masters in Fine Arts students you get a little meta with, and create collaborative, site-specific art inspired by Sigur Rós' "Ágætis byrjun," a dreamy, expansive soundscape with a deep emotional resonance because of—rather than in spite of—its use of invented vocabulary.

And, in the event all that seems too predictable, just add nachos. Yes, the event title's cheesy pun—Nacho Ordinary Art Event—is not simply figurative. There will be nachos. That's because this is more than an ethereal or cerebral exercise, it's a party. The event celebrates OSU-Cascades' inaugural MFA graduating class by inviting student, faculty, and community members to join together in creating something larger than themselves, using writing, visual art, and music.

Getting the party started with be OSU-Cascades faculty Arielle Greenberg, Emily Carr, TC Tolbert, and Deborah Miranda; MFA students Laura Wilde, Austin Anderson, Irene Cooper, Mike Cooper, Melanie O'Brien, Susan Sarver, Dan Becraft, and Shareen Murayama; and local artists Kaycee Anseth, Megan McGuinness, and Workhouse owner/curator Cari Dolyniuk.

There are no rules, just an empty container (as the artsy types call it) waiting to be filled with unconventional, playful, and imaginative collaborations. But if you must attempt to predict an outcome, take cues from who's in the room. Arielle Greenberg is a feminist poet who coined the term "gurlesque," a fusion of riot grrrl, grotesque, and burlesque asthetics. Emily Carr, who runs the creative writing program, identifies as an eco-feminist love poet. TC Tolbert is a genderqueer and feminist poet new to the program this year.

Sensing a trend? It seems safe to predict a heavy dose of feminist poetics. Possibly involving whimsical creatures from the visual artists in the room.

Nacho Ordinary Art Event 

3-5 pm, Saturday, June 20. The Workhouse, 50 SE Scott St. Suite 6.

Free. 

Erin Rook

Erin was a writer and editor at the Source from 2013 to 2016.
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