PNCA Announces Plans for New Center for Contemporary Art & Culture
February 03, 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 3, 2016
Contact: Lisa Radon
lradon@pnca.edu
PNCA Announces Plans for New Center for Contemporary Art & Culture
Museum of Contemporary Craft to be integrated into new Center
February 3, 2016—Portland, Oregon—Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) announces the formation of the new Center for Contemporary Art & Culture. Through exhibitions, workshops, lectures, screenings, performances, and publications, the Center will invite consideration and analysis of the current cultural moment. Housed within Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA), the Center will enrich the student experience at PNCA as well as throw open its doors to the greater public to foster conversation and community. Directed by Mack McFarland, the Center for Contemporary Art & Culture will develop programming and activities with the guidance of an advisory council of faculty, students, alumni, and collaborators from Portland’s creative community. McFarland is currently Curator and Director of Exhibitions for PNCA and Museum of Contemporary Craft.
“I look forward to building out the Center for Contemporary Art & Culture's programming and community, together with my colleagues at PNCA, including the students, faculty, staff, and alumni,” says Mack McFarland. “The Center offers us an opportunity to enter into dialog with committed partners, interested parties, and new audiences to reflect on our perpetually changing world and our role in that change.”
As part of this move, the programming and collection of PNCA’s Museum of Contemporary Craft will be incorporated into the Center for Contemporary Art & Culture within PNCA’s main campus building at 511 NW Broadway. The Museum of Contemporary Craft’s condo interest in 724 NW Davis, the building in which the Museum is currently housed, is being placed on the market. The Museum Store will not be transferred to PNCA’s main campus building but will be closed.
In 2009, with the support of a major gift from Hallie Ford, PNCA entered into a joint operations agreement with the Museum. Despite the focused efforts of the Museum of Contemporary Craft staff, commitment of PNCA administration, and work of a Board of Governors-led task force, the original vision of transforming the museum into a dynamic, student-centric educational resource was not fully realized. In the meantime, the financial cost to the college has remained high.
“Relieving the obligations of the Davis Street space will enable PNCA to refocus those resources on programs and assets that truly engage our students, alumni, and faculty and enhance students’ preparation for lives of creative practice,” says Casey Mills, PNCA’s interim President.
2016 and 2017 programming at the Center for Contemporary Art & Culture includes the exhibition, Design and Craft of Prosthetics, exhibitions and projects with David Horvitz, Cauleen Smith, Letha Wilson, and Futurefarmers, and the launch of an exhibitions program with artist-run spaces including Vox Populi (Philadelphia) and Machine Project (LA).
About the Center for Contemporary Art & Culture
The Center for Contemporary Art & Culture is a platform for the cultural production of our time. Through exhibitions, lectures, performances, and publications, the Center invites consideration and analysis of the current cultural moment. Housed within Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) the Center throws open its doors to the greater public to foster conversation and community.
About PNCA
As Oregon’s premiere college of art and design since 1909, PNCA has helped shape the region’s visual arts landscape for more than a century. Today PNCA is a dynamic platform for 21st century art and design education at its new campus in the heart of downtown Portland. PNCA offers four BFA programs with 10 concentrations, six graduate programs within the Hallie Ford School of Graduate Studies, and a Post-Baccalaureate program. For more information: pnca.edu