D. E. May (American, 1952-2019), Untitled (Mill Race to Footbridge), 1980, pattern paper, colored pencil, and graphite on found paper, 17 5/8 x 23 1/2 inches, Courtesy of PDX CONTEMPORARY ART, Portland. Photo credit: Mario Gallducci.
D. E. May: Postcards from Islandsalem
January 24 – March 21, 2026
Maribeth Collins Lobby and Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery
From January 24 to March 21, 2026, the Hallie Ford Museum of Art at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon will present D. E. May: Postcards from Islandsalem, a forty plus year retrospective exhibition for this important Salem mixed media artist who passed away in 2019 from pancreatic cancer just as he was emerging onto the national art scene. Organized by independent curator Linda Tesner, the exhibition will feature a range of objects created over the past four decades including collages, drawings, paintings, sculptures, templates, testbeds, and mail art, among others.
Sedrick Huckaby (American, born 1975), “She Wore Her Mother’s Quilt,” 2015, oil on canvas, 24 x 18 inches. Photo: Greg Staley, © Sedrick Huckaby.
Memories & Inspiration: The Kerry and C. Betty Davis Collection of African American Art
September 27 – December 20, 2025
Maribeth Collins Lobby and Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery
From September 27 to December 20, 2025, the Hallie Ford Museum of Art will present the traveling exhibition Memories & Inspiration: The Kerry and C. Betty Davis Collection of African American Art, in the Maribeth Collins Lobby and Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery. Organized and toured by International Arts & Artists, Washington, DC, the exhibition celebrates the passion and commitment of an ordinary couple who spent more than thirty-five years as devoted collectors and connoisseurs, building a collection of vivid artworks that are both resonant and remarkably personal.
C. S. Price (American, 1874-1950), "The Dark River", 1938, oil on canvas, 27 3/4 x 29 3/4 inches, collection of the Hallie Ford Museum of Art, Willamette University, Gift of Marge Riley, 2008.021.001. Photo credit: Dale Peterson.
C. S. Price: A Portrait
June 14 – August 30, 2025
Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery
The Hallie Ford Museum of Art is pleased to announce a new exhibition, C.S. Price: A Portrait, a major forty-plus-year retrospective exhibition for this important early Portland Modernist painter (1874–1950) who would emerge in the 1930s and ‘40s as a national figure and one of Oregon’s most important and influential artists. The exhibition opens on June 14 and continues through August 30, 2025, in the Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery and is the first major Price exhibition in a quarter century.
ALL OVER THIS PLACE!
April 19 – May 17, 2025
Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery
Each spring, the Hallie Ford Museum of Art features the work of senior studio art majors at Willamette University. Characterized by a wide variety of styles and approaches, the exhibition includes work in a range of media, including drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, and installation art. This year’s exhibition opens April 19 and continues through May 17, 2025, in the Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery.
Holden Head (American, born 1990), Swish, 2024, horse tail, mdf, Arduino, servo motor, 60 x 12 x 5 inches, courtesy of the artist. Photo credit: Holden Head.
Holden Head: A Day Goes By
April 19 – May 17, 2025
Atrium Gallery
Each spring, the Hallie Ford Museum of Art pairs its annual senior studio art majors’ exhibition with a small solo exhibition of recent work by one of the permanent, adjunct, or visiting faculty members in the art department. The purpose of the exhibition is to demonstrate the continuing connections and relationships among student and faculty research. This year’s faculty member is Holden Head (American, born 1990), a visiting assistant professor in sculpture. His exhibition opens April 19 and continues through May 17, 2025, in the Atrium Gallery.
Brenda Mallory (Cherokee Nation), "Precession" (detail), courtesy of the Russo Lee Gallery.
Brenda Mallory: The North Star Changes
January 25 – March 22, 2025
Maribeth Collins Lobby and Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery
Venture into a landscape full of sculptures and large scale installations by this Portland, Oregon mixed media artist (Cherokee Nation, born 1955). “The North Star Changes,” is based on the idea that humans perceive the North Star as permanent when, in fact, different stars have assumed the position and name over thousands of years. Permanence becomes impermanence as Mallory utilizes reclaimed and recycled objects throughout her work.
Nancy Floyd, "Field crew member Sydney Gastman measuring a Western Hemlock, H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest," 2023
Nancy Floyd: For the Love of Trees
December 7, 2024 – June 21, 2025
Study Gallery and Print Study Center
"Nancy Floyd: For the Love of Trees" features recent work by this award-winning Bend, Oregon photographer and author. In 2022, Floyd was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship to embark on a multi-year project exploring the unique bond that Oregonians have with the forest and trees. The exhibition will feature a range of work from the past two years.
Joe Feddersen, "Drizzle," 2018
Indie Folk: New Art and Sounds from the Pacific Northwest
September 28 – December 21, 2024
Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery
The Pacific Northwest is home to a unique artistic ecosystem involving craft traditions, pre-industrial cultures, and Indigenous and settler histories. Like folk art, the exhibition features handmade works that are unpretentious, and often blur the line between functionality and aesthetics.
Peter Voulkos (American, 1924-2002), “Gourd Shaped Vase, Vase with Leaf, and Green Swirls Vase,” 1952, glazed stoneware, Museum of Contemporary Craft collection, Hallie Ford Museum of Art, Willamette University, Salem, OR, gifts from Dr. Francis J. Newton and Rose Fenz; and recipient of the Osmon B. Stubbs Memorial Award, 1952, photo by Dan Kvitka.
Becoming Peter Voulkos: Works from the 1950s
September 28 – December 21, 2024
The Maribeth Collins Lobby
Becoming Peter Voulkos: Works from the 1950s showcases twelve works by the legendary ceramicist Peter Voulkos, focusing on his early career in the 1950s when he became nationally recognized as a master of wheel-thrown functional stoneware. The exhibition culminates with a single piece exemplifying Voulkos’ revolutionary shift which pushed ceramics into the broader conversation taking place in contemporary art during the mid-20th century.
Dennis Evans and Nancy Mee, "Bibliotheque de Requettes Philosophique," from "Prospero’s Library" (detail), 2015.
Dennis Evans: Apocrypha
June 11 – August 31, 2024
Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery
Dennis Evans: Apocrypha explores the myriad artistic accomplishments of Seattle mixed-media and performance artist Dennis Evans (American, born 1946). The exhibition chronicles the artist’s career over the past fifty years, from his early performances and installations of the 1970s and ’80s to his autonomous works and collaborations with his wife, glass artist Nancy Mee, in the 1990s and 2000s.
Gary Westford, “The Raft (evening moon rising)” (detail), 2018-2023 1992
Gary Westford: Lifeline (phases of the moon)
May 4 – November 16, 2024
Study Gallery
Gary Westford is a Salem narrative painter and conceptual artist who explores environmental, social justice, and amendment rights issues in his work.
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