— 5 May 08 —

PNCA+FIVE Idea Studios Presents Green with Envy: How Innovative is PDX in the Quest for a Sustainable City?

Susan S Szenasy, Editor-in-Chief, Metropolis magazine, leads panel discussion on the future of Portland

Friday, May 23 | 10:30 am
Gerding Theater at the Armory
128 NW 11th Avenue, Portland
Free and open to the public

Pacific Northwest College of Art is pleased to present a PNCA+FIVE Idea Studio, featuring Susan S. Szenasy, Editor-in-Chief of Metropolis magazine. The conversation, Green with Envy: How Innovative is PDX in the Quest for a Sustainable City?, explores internationally recognized sustainable communities, examining the capacity to successfully merge art, commerce, higher education and urban planning.

Metropolis magazine, known for its commitment to the coverage and advocacy of sustainable and collaborative design, examines contemporary life through all aspects of design: architecture, interior design, landscape design, product design, graphic design, crafts, planning and preservation.

As Editor-in-Chief since 1986, Ms. Szenasy is internationally recognized as an authority on sustainability and design. Ms. Szenasy is in Portland as a distinguished guest of PNCA, where she will receive an honorary doctorate and deliver the 2008 commencement address.

Green with Envy: How Innovative is PDX in the Quest for a Sustainable City?, will be co-hosted by Ms. Szenasy and PNCA President, Tom Manley. Representing a broad spectrum of opinion leaders from within the Portland community, invited guest panelists will include: Susan Anderson, Director, Portland Office of Sustainable Development; Greg Baldwin, partner, Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects; Mark Edlen, managing principal, Gerding/Edlen Development; Randy Gragg, Editor-in-Chief, Portland Spaces; and Scott Lewis, founder and principal, Brightworks. The second part of the program will open the discussion to the audience.

Panelists’ Biographies:

Susan Anderson has directed the City of Portland Office of Sustainable Development since its formation in 2000. Prior to that, Susan led the City’s Energy Office. In 1993, under Susan’s leadership at the City of Portland’s Energy Office, the city became the first in the U.S. to adopt a global warming policy. Over the years, Susan has worked with more than 30 communities to promote resource efficiency, the use of renewable resources and sustainable practices in commercial facilities, housing, transportation, land use planning and economic development.

Greg Baldwin is a design partner for the firm Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects LLP. With over 30 years of experience as an architect, urban designer and planner, he has been responsible for the design of numerous buildings, downtown plans and related transportation facilities in Portland, Seattle, San Francisco, Denver, Chicago, District of Columbia, Houston and other major cities.

Mark Edlen co-founded Gerding Edlen with Bob Gerding in 1996. The firm consistently searches for innovative development solutions that enhance our communities while protecting the natural landscape and conserving natural resources. Understanding that community building and environmental sustainability also contributes to a healthy economy and makes good business sense, Gerding Edlen has helped create sustainable communities in Oregon, California, Arizona, Utah and Washington.

Randy Gragg is a writer, editor, organizer and instigator who has worked in the Northwest for the past 25 years. Most recently he developed and is now editing a new design magazine called Portland Spaces. Gragg has written for wide range of national journals, among them, Metropolis, Architectural Record, Landscape Architecture, Harper’s and the New York Times Magazine.

Scott Lewis is the founder and principal of Brightworks, a Portland, Oregon-based sustainability consulting firm with offices and staff in San Francisco, Los Angeles and (soon) Beijing. Brightworks currently supports over eighty projects in a dozen states comprising more than twenty million square feet of space in development with construction value of over $4 billion. Brightworks projects include the first LEED Platinum highrise building in the world, the first LEED Platinum condominium project in the US, and the first LEED Gold US Courthouse.

About PNCA
Since it’s founding in 1909, Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) has become a leader in innovative educational programs that connects students to a global perspective in the visual arts. The College offers Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in Communication Design, Illustration, Intermedia, General Fine Arts, Painting, Photography, Printmaking and Sculpture. In addition, the College offers a mentor-based MFA in Visual Studies that allows students to create a studio-centered curriculum to support their personal artistic vision. PNCA has the oldest continuously running community arts education program in the Northwest. Located in an award-winning campus in the heart of the Pearl District, PNCA is actively involved in Portland’s cultural programming through exhibitions and a vibrant public program of lectures and visiting artists from around the world. In connection with its Ford Institute for Visual Education (FIVE) the College most recently debuted the PNCA + FIVE Idea Studios featuring artists James Turrell and philosopher Jacques Rancière. Visit the full events calendar and to learn more about PNCA’s BFA degree, MFA in Visual Studies or Continuing Education courses for all ages and skill levels.

For more information, please contact:
Becca Biggs
503-821-8892 | becca (at) pnca (dot) edu

Celena Carr
503-821-8962 | ccarr (at) pnca (dot) edu

Filed under: news

— 13 April 08 —

Pacific Northwest College of Art Announces Plans to Purchase Main Campus Building

Milestone reached in College’s goal for an innovative, integrated urban campus

Portland, OR –April 13, 2008 – Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) today announced plans to purchase its main campus building at 1241 NW Johnson Street, which the College has been leasing since 1998 from Edith Goodman and the Goodman family. “I am delighted to announce that we will soon assume ownership of our main campus building in the Pearl District,” said Tom Manley, PNCA President. “The building is the heart and soul of the College, and we are grateful to the Goodman family for the opportunity to secure it for future generations of art and design students.”

PNCA, which was founded in 1909 as the Museum Art School, has become a fast growing independent art college. The main campus building will continue to serve as the hub for the school’s expanding urban campus. PNCA established the Pearl District campus after separating from the Portland Art Museum and moving to the then forming neighborhood among warehouses and lofts. Along with the purchase of the main campus building, PNCA has recently announced the acquisition of the historic 511 NW Broadway building through a public benefit conveyance from the U.S. Department of Education, which allowed the transfer of the former post office to PNCA at no cost.

“One of the ways PNCA is changing the traditional educational model is to rethink the idea of a campus,” said President Manley. “PNCA’s approach envisions a school that is woven into the larger urban fabric—a school that activates, contributes to and draws from the city and state’s network of creative organizations and businesses. Our belief is that there is value to the ongoing exposure of our students to the wider cultural and social forces and that these can become part of the curriculum. Along with the recent acquisition of the 511 NW Broadway building, the ownership of our main campus building provides a solid foundation for the growth of the College, helping us to better realize our vision.”

The main campus building was a former warehouse and was redesigned by Holst Architecture and built by R&H Construction in 1998 to accommodate the College’s educational programs and provide a large open space for public events. The design and construction has won numerous awards, including the Unbuilt Citation Award for Excellence in Design from the American Institute of Architects and the Governor’s Livability Award. PNCA first outlined its larger plan to develop its campus in the College’s 2005 Master Plan, led by Board member and Master Plan Committee chair Laura Hill and executed by Brad Cloepfil of Allied Works Architecture. In 2007, with increasing enrollment and plans to add new graduate programs through the new Ford Institute for Visual Education (FIVE), the College began active discussions to acquire the building from its current owners.

About PNCA
Since it’s founding in 1909, Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) has become a leader in innovative educational programs that connects students to a global perspective in the visual arts. The College offers Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in Communication Design, Illustration, Intermedia, General Fine Arts, Painting, Photography, Printmaking and Sculpture. In addition, the College offers a mentor-based MFA in Visual Studies that allows students to create a studio-centered curriculum to support their personal artistic vision. PNCA has the oldest continuously running community arts education program in the Northwest. Located in an award-winning campus in the heart of the Pearl District, PNCA is actively involved in Portland’s cultural programming through exhibitions and a vibrant public program of lectures and visiting artists from around the world. In connection with its Ford Institute for Visual Education (FIVE) the College most recently debuted the PNCA + FIVE Idea Studios featuring artists James Turrell and philosopher Jacques Rancière. Visit the full events calendar and to learn more about PNCA’s BFA degree, MFA in Visual Studies or Continuing Education courses for all ages and skill levels.

For more information, please contact:
Becca Biggs
503-821-8892 | becca (at) pnca (dot) edu

Kathleen Mazzocco
503-577-7591 | km (at) clearpr (dot) com

Filed under: news

— 13 April 08 —

Pacific Northwest College of Art Launches Centennial Campaign for PNCA+FIVE

$3 million in new gifts announced in support of capital projects

Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) today announced the public phase of a $32 million fundraising campaign. The Centennial Campaign for PNCA+FIVE raises capital for the acquisition and refurbishment of the main campus building ($12 million), which the College is buying under an agreement announced separately, endowment for new academic programs and scholarships ($12 million), as well as funds for special projects and on-going operations ($8 million).

“We are pleased to announce that we have raised $26 million, 80 percent of our $32 million goal for this campaign, which will conclude during PNCA’s centennial in 2009,” said Tom Manley, PNCA President. “For that, we must thank the extraordinary PNCA donor community for its unwavering belief in the importance of the College’s work and our growing role as an epicenter for creativity in Portland and beyond.”

The announcement was made in conjunction with three new gifts of one million dollars each. The Harold & Arlene Schnitzer CARE Foundation and Al Solheim, Chair of the PNCA Board of Governors, have each pledged $1 million to the campaign, and the Maybelle Clark Macdonald Fund made a $1 million challenge grant, which asks the College to secure an additional $3 million in new gifts by the end of 2008.

Artist Lee Kelly, a 1959 alumnus, will chair the Campaign. The College also announced that Al Solheim, Chair, PNCA Board of Governors and board members Kathleen Lewis, Gene d’Autremont and Jamey Hampton will serve as vice chairs. “I am proud to help the College launch this important effort. As both an artist and a graduate, it has been a pleasure to see PNCA grow as a center for education, creative investigation and artistic practice. I want to help however I can as the school begins its next 100 years of exploration,” said Kelly.

PNCA secured a keystone gift for the campaign in 2007 when Hallie Ford gave the College a $15 million gift to create the Ford Institute for Visual Education (FIVE). Mrs. Ford’s gift provided for new academic programs at the College including an MFA in Visual Studies, and launched an international visiting artist series, PNCA+FIVE Idea Studios.

“As we move closer to the College’s centennial next year, PNCA is laying the groundwork for a new century of superior art and design education,” said Al Solheim, PNCA Chair of the Board of Governors. “I am very excited to help kick-off PNCA’s Centennial Campaign for PNCA+FIVE, and I applaud Harold and Arlene Schnitzner and the Maybelle Clark Macdonald Fund for joining me in supporting the growth of one of the region’s most distinguished and forward-thinking arts organizations.”

About PNCA
Since it’s founding in 1909, Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) has become a leader in innovative educational programs that connects students to a global perspective in the visual arts. The College offers Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in Communication Design, Illustration, Intermedia, General Fine Arts, Painting, Photography, Printmaking and Sculpture. In addition, the College offers a mentor-based MFA in Visual Studies that allows students to create a studio-centered curriculum to support their personal artistic vision. PNCA has the oldest continuously running community arts education program in the Northwest. Located in an award-winning campus in the heart of the Pearl District, PNCA is actively involved in Portland’s cultural programming through exhibitions and a vibrant public program of lectures and visiting artists from around the world. In connection with its Ford Institute for Visual Education (FIVE) the College most recently debuted the PNCA + FIVE Idea Studios featuring artists James Turrell and philosopher Jacques Rancière. Visit the full events calendar and to learn more about PNCA’s BFA degree, MFA in Visual Studies or Continuing Education courses for all ages and skill levels.

For more information, please contact:
Becca Biggs
503-821-8892 | becca (at) pnca (dot) edu

Kathleen Mazzocco
503-577-7591 | km (at) clearpr (dot) com

Filed under: news

— 31 March 08 —

$1 Million Endowment Created to Fund Scholarship Program at Pacific Northwest College of Art

Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) today announced the gift of a $1 million endowment by Ed Cauduro, art advocate and nationally known collector of contemporary art, to fund a new scholarship program at the College.

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Filed under: news | press releases

— 21 March 08 —

PNCA Receives Green Light to Acquire New Building

Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) announces that the U.S. Department of Education and General Services Administration (GSA) have approved the College’s application to acquire the Federal Building at 511 NW Broadway through the government’s public benefit conveyance for educational purposes program. The 511 NW Broadway building will extend PNCA’s campus from the Pearl District into Old Town, further integrating the College, its students, faculty and visiting artists into the heart of Portland’s thriving art and design district.

Comment [7]

Filed under: home | press releases

— 11 March 08 —

Background on Building Acquisition

“This is a big win for PNCA, which will stretch its campus from the Pearl District in to Old Town and, along the way, put a much bigger stamp on Portland’s culture.”
Read the Portland Architecture blog post. Also, read the PORT blog post.

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Filed under: home | press releases

— 16 January 08 —

PNCA Launches FIVE Idea Studios

PNCA announces the launch of Idea Studios as the leadoff program of the College’s recently established Ford Institute for Visual Education (FIVE). Idea Studios premieres February 16 with a talk by artist James Turrell, followed on February 29 with a lecture by Jacques Rancière, influential philosopher, critic and political theorist.

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Filed under: home | press releases

— 2 January 08 —

PNCA Welcomes Writer-in-Residence Kim Stafford

Kim Stafford, an esteemed Oregon-based writer, educator and recipient of Literary Arts’ Stewart H. Holbrook Literary Legacy Award, has joined PNCA as its first Writer-in-Residence. The appointment comes after an ongoing discussion within the PNCA community on the role writing plays in art making.

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Filed under: news | press releases

— 14 December 07 —

PNCA’s MK Guth to Launch Whitney Biennial Project in Portland

MK Guth, the Chair of Pacific Northwest College of Art’s MFA in Visual Studies, will begin her Whitney Biennial project—an interactive braid sculpture titled “Ties of Protection and Safekeeping”—at the Gerding Theater at the Armory in Portland’s Pearl District on Saturday, December 15, from 11am -7pm. The project will travel to numerous US cities before reaching its final destination as part of the 2008 Whitney Biennial. MK Guth is the only Oregon artist among 81 artists overall to be selected for the exhibition, which opens at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City on March 6 and continues through June 1, 2008.

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Filed under: news | press releases

— 30 October 07 —

PNCA Bridges Lecture Series for Students and Alumni

Thinking of Starting Your Own Business?
Thursday, November 1, 5:30 pm | Room 110

The Career Advising Program (CAP) and the Office of Alumni Relations are proud to offer a panel discussion for students and alumni thinking about starting their own businesses. This month features OFFICE PDX co-founder Kelly Coller and PNCA faculty and alumnus Fritz Liedtke.

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Filed under: press releases | public programming

— 8 June 07 —

FLIGHT - an installation

PNCA will present Dryden Goodwin’s installation Flight in the Feldman Gallery from June 7-28th, 2007. The installation combines live action, animated intervention, a multi-layered sound track and hundreds of pen and ink drawings.

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Filed under: news | press releases

— 22 May 07 —

College Receives Unprecedented $15 Million Gift

Pacific Northwest College of Art Receives Unprecedented $15 Million Gift from Mrs. Hallie Ford to Create PNCA’s Ford Institute for Visual Education.

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Filed under: institution | press releases

— 22 May 07 —

Media Alert: PNCA + FIVE

PNCA + FIVE unveiled at a 10 am Press Conference today in the Swigert Commons.

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Filed under: news | press releases

— 18 May 07 —

Animation Inside Out

PNCA becomes the hub for the Platform International Animation Festival’s installations, a major contemporary forum in the United States for the international animation community.

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Filed under: press releases | public programming

— 6 May 07 —

New MFA in Visual Studies

PNCA has reached a historic milestone with the selection of the first class of students for the Master of Fine Arts in Visual Studies.

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Filed under: press releases