Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Ekphrasis: A PCC Faculty Exhibition

Posted by Christine Weber

 

Ekphrasis: A PCC Faculty Exhibition

• Exhibition Dates: February 26, 2026 – April 17, 2026
• Gallery hours: Monday – Friday, 8am-4pm.
• Opening Reception: Saturday, February 28, 5:00 – 8:00 p.m.
• Additional Events announced soon.

Ekphrasis: A PCC Faculty Exhibition features recent art by Portland Community College Art faculty and lab techs, paired with ekphrastic poetry composed by PCC Writing faculty. The Poetry Foundation defines an ekphrastic poem as a vivid description of a work of art. Yet ekphrasis is more than mere description. Beyond giving voice to the visual, ekphrasis offers one’s own voice in dialogue with another. 

 

The word ekphrasis comes from the Greek words ek (out) and phrásis (speak), literally speaking out. In this exhibition, poets dialogue with the visual, textural and spatial languages offered by artists. Both the artists and writers created their work in the context of solitary artistic practices, yet when brought together in the gallery, their diverse voices ring together in new ways. They become partners on a path to deeper understanding through intersubjectivity.

Writer Lilliane Louvel explains ekphrasis as an encounter between artistic media, the materials used to make art. Each artist in this exhibition has built a unique vocabulary of colors, textures, lines, shapes, space, and ideas. Each writer has developed a voice with particular words, rhythms, sounds, and silences. Thus this exhibition encompasses a multitude of languages in one space. What unfolds when writers and visual artists position their work in relation to each other? What do ideas developed in solitude look like when placed in relation to the ideas of others? How do the thoughts and understandings of others expand our own perceptions? This exhibition is part celebration of the private creative practices of many PCC faculty and part experiment in asynchronous creative dialogue. 

PCC art and writing teachers provide countless opportunities for intersubjective experiences in their classrooms. They seek new ways of engaging students in the frightening and exhilarating process of expressing themselves to others. They work hard to create spaces of experimentation that push students to try new techniques, hone their craft, deepen their understanding of historical context, and find the courage to tell their own stories. This work alone is a full-time job.

Yet in order to do this work well, people who teach in the arts also build and nurture their own creative practice. Each teacher’s creative practice becomes a vital component of their students’ learning. Every arts educator, whether visual artist, performer, writer or musician, brings a wealth of experience from their own professional practice into the classroom every day. Their knowledge of the sometimes painful, sometimes thrilling process of creation, becomes a model for students embarking on their own paths. Thus this exhibition also proposes the professional work of PCC artists and writers as a catalyst that encourages students to find and honor their own voices. We need all of you (us) together making art now more than ever.

About the Artists and Writers:

The exhibition features work by artists Mark Andres, Ben Buswell, Brittney Cathey-Adams, Shelley Chamberlin, Brendan Clenaghen, Tatiana Gebert, Chrys Giffen, Sabina Haque, Ibrahim Harris, Genie Ilmenev, Todd Johnson, Una Kim, Chris Knight, Michael Lazarus, Dede Lucia, Kim Manchester, Mike McGovern, Rachel Milstein, Lauren Moradi, Sam Morgan, Kathi Rick, Zeinab Saab, Petra Sairanen, sandy sampson, Steven Schiewe, Rachel Siegel, Tatiana Simonova, Marie Sivak, Lisa Smith, Mandy Stigant, Melanie Treuhaft, Phyllis Trowbridge, and Charles Washburn, along with poetry by Rachel Attias, Anna Erfert, Caitlin Dwyer, Erin Ergenbright, Jessica Johnson, Justin Rigamonti, Selene Ross, Veronica Sandoval, Megan Savage, Scott Sutherland, and Vandoren Wheeler.

For full artist bios, please visit the exhibition.