Alyson Provax at Wolff Gallery

Alyson Provax at Wolff Gallery in Portland OregonWolff Gallery is featuring the print work of Alyson Provax through the month of June. This is a show you need to see in person because photographs of the prints don’t do them justice.

The show is “a meditation upon the expansiveness of the universe and eerie encounters with the unknown.” There are a number of marbled prints that have a planetary vibe interspersed with some text prints with found phrases such as “I felt the sound more than heard it”. Sounds a bit odd, but when you’re in the gallery it all just works together.

The two highlights were Diagram 50 and Diagram 51, both hanging in the front room. Both are silkscreen monotypes, one on Khadi, the other on St. Armand. Instead of being framed or mounted on birch, these free hang slightly away from the wall with the use of magnets. The papers have a wonderful texture and with the cut outs and layering of the marbled print underneath it creates a floating effect.

The show is wonderfully cohesive without ever seeming too saturated. The variety in the papers and mounting techniques holds your interest as you move through the space and there are just enough of the small text works to shake it up.

Wolff Gallery is located at 618 NW Glisan Street in Portland, Oregon. They are open Friday and Saturday from 1-5 pm. The ALyson Provax show runs through July 3.