About
The Center for Art Research (CFAR) is a collaborative, artist-run platform for experimentation and exchange rooted in art making. The Center cultivates diverse modes of engagement related to the practices of contemporary artists by supporting speculative Research, Discourse, Exhibitions, and Publications. CFAR is directed by the faculty in the University of Oregon’s Department of Art, and is sustained by the contributions of individuals and institutions from around the world.
CFAR endeavors to serve artists, arts workers, and communities by creating space and agency for a range of practices, voices, and experiences in ways that are equitable and inclusive for all people regardless of race, ethnicity, heritage, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, age, socio-economic position, political perspective, cultural beliefs and traditions.
Research – CFAR brings together artists and scholars from around the world to catalyze unexpected connections and outcomes related to the practice-based research of affiliates. CFAR takes an expanded view of art research by supporting individual and collaborative projects, residencies, and a variety of initiatives that happen within and outside of studio practice. CFAR research responds fluidly to dynamic currents in society and culture that are relevant to a range of people and communities.
Discourse – CFAR challenges, synthesizes, and expands engagement with contemporary art through diverse approaches that include studio dialogue, public lectures and symposia, experimental gatherings, and more focused seminars and workshops. By approaching art practice as a catalytic mode of inquiry, center affiliates also work with colleagues from adjacent fields to develop transdisciplinary discourse that is relevant to broad constituencies.
Exhibitions – CFAR makes visible the work of contemporary artists through the Center and with partners by facilitating exhibitions and alternative forms of public display in local, national, and international spheres. Activities range from gallery exhibitions and site-responsive installations to experimental screenings, performances, and social actions.
Publications – CFAR publications vary in form and content, proliferating art thinking related to the experiences and conditions of contemporary life. Publications, authored by center affiliates and others, are both printed and web-based, and include essays, monographs, periodicals, public archives, editioned art multiples, and other experimental forms.
____
The University of Oregon is located on Kalapuya Ilihi, the traditional indigenous homeland of the Kalapuya people. Following treaties between 1851 and 1855, Kalapuya people were dispossessed of their land by the United States government and forcibly removed to the Coast Reservation in Western Oregon. Today, Kalapuya descendants are primarily citizens of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, and they continue to make important contributions to communities, institutions, the University of Oregon, the state of Oregon, the United States, and to the world.
In acknowledging the original people of the land we occupy, we extend our respect to the Indigenous people of Oregon and all other displaced Indigenous people who call Oregon home. With this website, and our collective activity, we recognize Oregon’s first people as the past, present, and future stewards of this land, and we pledge our commitment to make ongoing efforts to center Indigenous existence in the work we do. CFAR also extends this commitment to people who may not have directly been impacted by settler colonialism on sites currently inhabited by the University of Oregon yet have been systematically oppressed, denied access, and physically and psychologically abused for generations by the very structures and mechanisms that have afforded the University of Oregon and so many of our students, staff, and faculty opportunities to thrive. As such, CFAR pledges to support and make ongoing efforts to center the best interests of all BIPOC individuals and communities in our work.