CORVALLIS, Ore. - Oregon State University's Art About Agriculture exhibit celebrating the bond between Oregonians and the land will hang in the Chehalem Cultural Center in Newberg through Feb. 12.
For 33 years, artists around the Northwest have been asked to submit pieces related to an agricultural theme for the curated show presented by the OSU's College of Agricultural Sciences. The 2015 show, called This Everlasting Valley: Willamette River Valley and Basin, is the third to play homage to the fertile Willamette Valley.
On March 9, the exhibit moves to the Memorial Union Concourse Gallery on the OSU campus, where it will remain until May 7. A reception for the campus exhibit will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. April 6 in Joyce Powell Leadership Center Room 106.
The first of the Willamette Valley exhibitions took place in 2005 and focused on the upper part of the valley from the river's source to Albany. In 2009, the second turned to the mid-valley from Albany to Newberg.
"The works of art are always local and personal," said OSU's Shelley Curtis, curator of the exhibit since 1999. "We don't ask the artists for specific things. They interpret the theme from their inspiration of the connection between community and agriculture. This year it was the idea of linking the river and natural resources. That has everything to do with what you'll see in the show."
The 45 pieces of artwork, most of which are for sale, feature a multitude of media ranging from watercolors and oils on paper to mixed media and silkscreen. The majority of artists are included in the college's permanent collection, which includes more than 250 works and is supported by private donations.
"The thing that struck me as the person who gets to see the art come in, is the vast diversity," Curtis said. "I'd love to get a map and go see where these artists did their work or what they saw to inspire them to do the work."
She thinks others will be similarly inspired.
"The audience is going to appreciate more of what they see on a daily basis and want to explore," she said. "They'll think, 'I'd really like to find out where Elk Rock is. I'd like to see the Steel Bridge from this outlook. I want to see the field where those cows are grazing.' It's personal responses."
Learn more about Art About Agriculture in a video featuring Curtis.
Shelley Curtis, 541-737-5534
Click photos to see a full-size version. Right click and save image to download.