By Allyn Cantor

MICHAEL PAUL MILLER: THE PRESENT END Laura Russo Gallery, Portland, Mar 7-30 The captivating oil paintings of Michael Paul Miller depict ominous scenes of a post-apocalyptic era. The tableaux-style paintings – riveting in their implied tales of destruction and survival, fear and hope – provoke a range of poignant contemporary issues to surface. Miller’s portrayals of desolate landscapes and figures set in the aftermath of explosive situations bring to mind humanity’s impending environmental impact, articulated with an alarming beauty.

KELLY RAUER: WEIGHT & SAMANTHA WALL: LAID TO REST The Art Gym, Marylhurst, Jan 13-Feb 15 Both Kelly Rauer and Samantha Wall focus on a single female figure to explore the emotional underpinnings of gesture in concurrent exhibitions at The Art Gym. Rauer’s multi-channel video piece of herself dancing in a spare setting emphasizes the possibilities and limitations of body mechanics. Wall, who was born in Seoul, South Korea, also uses video as the source imagery for six provocative drawings that consider the complex cultural expectations of biracial children and the struggles of self.

JUDY COOKE: SUBTEXT Elizabeth Leach Gallery, Portland, Feb 7-Mar 2 Judy Cooke, a well-known Portland artist, has continually demonstrated a commitment toward abstraction, the expressive quality of a line, and a continued inquisitive approach to painting. This new series is based on the idea of “provisional painting” that allows the artist to explore new possibilities within moments that arise during the creation process. Her pared down compositions employ bold shapes and a punctuated use of colour on her often custom-shaped panels.

DANNY LYON: THE BIKERIDERS Charles A. Hartman Fine Art, Portland, Jan 29-Mar 16 This celebrated series chronicles the Chicago Outlaws motorcycle club from 1963-67. Danny Lyon, who was a member of the group and shot their daily activities from his motorcycle, is an important photographer and filmmaker who came of age in the 1960s. The nostalgic images from this landmark series were published in a 1968 book, The Bikeriders, which launched Lyon’s career and brought motorcycle counter-culture to mainstream America.

STEVE TILDEN: SOFT MACHINES Blackfish Gallery, Portland, Feb 5-Mar 2 Steve Tilden’s newest sculptures expand upon his ongoing use of various material to create amorphous forms with conceptual leanings. Soft Machines was specifically inspired by Lee Bontecou’s innovative early work. Tilden uses steel frames covered with stretched fabric as the basis. The distressed surfaces include charcoal and acrylic, rough stitching and a soaked shellac finish, which obscures the material’s origin. Part mechanistic and part organic, these abstract pieces leave room for imagined uses or suggested identities.