NOUN

New Work by Micah Kassell

Opening Reception: Friday, November 6 | 4:30-8:000 PM

Show Dates: November 6 - January 1, 2027; open by appointment.

Most of us learned early that a noun is a person, place, or thing. Only later did the definition stretch to include an idea, and for Portland artist Micah Kassell, that addition changes everything. An idea, unlike a thing, is alive and not so easily held.

NOUN is Kassell’s exploration of that fourth category. The work is personal and rooted in memory, but it also reaches toward the notions that push his practice forward, looking for the point where a still image meets an active, thinking mind. Hats, piles, figures, and even a quasi self-portrait appear here more tangibly than in his past work, while his established language of color-broken space, intuitive shapes, and expressive marks holds it all together.

The exhibition brings together paintings in acrylic and oil on canvas and panel alongside ink drawings, and introduces a new series of found-object sculptures. As Kassell puts it, “Ideas are nouns at work, and nouns, by extension, are verbs at rest.” His images keep working even at rest, much like contemporary life for all of us..

About the Artist

Micah Kassell is an artist, designer, and musician based in Portland, originally from Silverton, Oregon. He grew up around art and design through his father, a designer and fine artist, but didn’t pick up a brush himself until after his father’s passing in 2016. What began as a way to process grief quickly became a serious practice. He has since shown in solo and group exhibitions across Portland and Seattle, and his work is held in private collections around the world. Alongside painting, Micah works in footwear design and still gigs and tours as a musician. We hope you’ll join us for the opening and experience the work in person.

More of Micah’s work can be found at micahkassell.com and on Instagram at @micahkassell.