TR: I noticed that many of your shows have considered labor in some capacity. Is this an intentional consideration or comment on the evolution of work?

SC: Labor Day, curated by Asha Bukojemsky, was the only show that was explicitly about labor, specifically the hidden labor in the day to day. The chickens laying eggs was a nice conceptual framing for that show. We have been lucky to work with artists and curators who are thoughtful and really consider the space, perhaps that translates to shows appearing to be about labor, but to me they seem more about the mystic and alchemical.

TR: How does this project relate to Portland? How do you balance your presence in the local community and global art world?

SC: Portland has a history of artist run spaces that are well curated, contemporary, and outward looking; we hope to fall into that history. We try to keep up with what is happening outside of Portland and bring home some of what we see that excites us.

TR: Tell us about your next show and future plans?

SC: Our January show is a two-person with Alec Egan and Andreas Gurewich. They are making work about origins: Andreas using French cave paintings as a starting off point, Alec using Irish mythological texts. The show is in conjunction with a two-person exhibition I am having of my work with Bobbi Woods at The Art Gym called Endings. Bobbi runs a gallery called Private Places and we were asked by Blake Shell, the curator, to make shows in our spaces that expanded Endings.

A CONVERSATION WITH CHICKEN COOP CONTEMPORARY

Leah Triplett Harrington, The Rib
Portland, Oregon | Resource 
December 15th, 2017

The Rib: Chicken Coop Contemporary is in a literal chicken coop. What came first, the chickens or the space?

Srijon Chowdhury: The chickens came first. When my family moved into our house the property came with a small barn with a chicken coop. We got baby chicks in the spring, then in the fall we had our first show with paintings by Dustin Metz.

TR: What's the focus and mission of the space?

SC: It’s a work in progress. We bring people from outside Portland here, but are also interested in figuring out ways to bring Portland artists elsewhere. We encourage people to consider the context and the aesthetics of the coop.

TR: How is it curated? Have you found particular media or artists that work especially well with chickens?

SC: We work with artists and curators that we want to learn from. So far we have shown painting, sculpture, installation, video, and conceptual work. It has all worked well. A sound or smell piece could be really interesting. Jesse Stecklow made a show that considered the chickens as the primary audience, that was great!

TR: I noticed that many of your shows have considered labor in some capacity. Is this an intentional consideration or comment on the evolution of work?

SC: Labor Day, curated by Asha Bukojemsky, was the only show that was explicitly about labor, specifically the hidden labor in the day to day. The chickens laying eggs was a nice conceptual framing for that show. We have been lucky to work with artists and curators who are thoughtful and really consider the space, perhaps that translates to shows appearing to be about labor, but to me they seem more about the mystic and alchemical.

TR: How does this project relate to Portland? How do you balance your presence in the local community and global art world?

SC: Portland has a history of artist run spaces that are well curated, contemporary, and outward looking; we hope to fall into that history. We try to keep up with what is happening outside of Portland and bring home some of what we see that excites us.

TR: Tell us about your next show and future plans?

SC: Our January show is a two-person with Alec Egan and Andreas Gurewich. They are making work about origins: Andreas using French cave paintings as a starting off point, Alec using Irish mythological texts. The show is in conjunction with a two-person exhibition I am having of my work with Bobbi Woods at The Art Gym called Endings. Bobbi runs a gallery called Private Places and we were asked by Blake Shell, the curator, to make shows in our spaces that expanded Endings.

A CONVERSATION WITH CHICKEN COOP CONTEMPORARY

Leah Triplett Harrington, The Rib
Portland, Oregon | Resource 
December 15th, 2017

The Rib: Chicken Coop Contemporary is in a literal chicken coop. What came first, the chickens or the space?

Srijon Chowdhury: The chickens came first. When my family moved into our house the property came with a small barn with a chicken coop. We got baby chicks in the spring, then in the fall we had our first show with paintings by Dustin Metz.

TR: What's the focus and mission of the space?

SC: It’s a work in progress. We bring people from outside Portland here, but are also interested in figuring out ways to bring Portland artists elsewhere. We encourage people to consider the context and the aesthetics of the coop.

TR: How is it curated? Have you found particular media or artists that work especially well with chickens?

SC: We work with artists and curators that we want to learn from. So far we have shown painting, sculpture, installation, video, and conceptual work. It has all worked well. A sound or smell piece could be really interesting. Jesse Stecklow made a show that considered the chickens as the primary audience, that was great!

TR: I noticed that many of your shows have considered labor in some capacity. Is this an intentional consideration or comment on the evolution of work?

SC: Labor Day, curated by Asha Bukojemsky, was the only show that was explicitly about labor, specifically the hidden labor in the day to day. The chickens laying eggs was a nice conceptual framing for that show. We have been lucky to work with artists and curators who are thoughtful and really consider the space, perhaps that translates to shows appearing to be about labor, but to me they seem more about the mystic and alchemical.

TR: How does this project relate to Portland? How do you balance your presence in the local community and global art world?

SC: Portland has a history of artist run spaces that are well curated, contemporary, and outward looking; we hope to fall into that history. We try to keep up with what is happening outside of Portland and bring home some of what we see that excites us.

TR: Tell us about your next show and future plans?

SC: Our January show is a two-person with Alec Egan and Andreas Gurewich. They are making work about origins: Andreas using French cave paintings as a starting off point, Alec using Irish mythological texts. The show is in conjunction with a two-person exhibition I am having of my work with Bobbi Woods at The Art Gym called Endings. Bobbi runs a gallery called Private Places and we were asked by Blake Shell, the curator, to make shows in our spaces that expanded Endings.

The Rib: Chicken Coop Contemporary is in a literal chicken coop. What came first, the chickens or the space?

Srijon Chowdhury: The chickens came first. When my family moved into our house the property came with a small barn with a chicken coop. We got baby chicks in the spring, then in the fall we had our first show with paintings by Dustin Metz.

TR: What's the focus and mission of the space?

SC: It’s a work in progress. We bring people from outside Portland here, but are also interested in figuring out ways to bring Portland artists elsewhere. We encourage people to consider the context and the aesthetics of the coop.

TR: How is it curated? Have you found particular media or artists that work especially well with chickens?

SC: We work with artists and curators that we want to learn from. So far we have shown painting, sculpture, installation, video, and conceptual work. It has all worked well. A sound or smell piece could be really interesting. Jesse Stecklow made a show that considered the chickens as the primary audience, that was great!

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