A Good Universe Next Door at the Multnomah Arts Center

A redacted past, a precarious present, and an uncertain future, a group exhibition curated by Celeste Noche and Melanie Stevens
About this Event

The Multnomah Arts Center (MAC) presents A Good Universe Next Door – A redacted past, a precarious present, and an uncertain future, a group exhibition curated by Celeste Noche and Melanie Stevens. On view in the Front & Center Galleries from September 18 through October 17, 2026, the exhibition features new work by four regional artists: Amber Capwell, Ebony Frison, Maryanna Hollomon, and Orlando Almanza.

An opening reception will be held Saturday, September 19, from 1–3 p.m., and an artist talk will take place Saturday, October 10 at 2 p.m.

Stevens and Noche invited the artists to consider how utopia and dystopia manifest in their lives, and how they interpret these experiences. Through sculpture, photography, printmaking, and painting, the artists offer visions of futures shaped by remembrance, resistance, solidarity, creativity, and care.

Ebony Frison approaches utopia and dystopia as “conditions that coexist within the same historical moment.” Working with archival research, printmaking, photography, and artist books, Frison examines how Black histories persist despite erasure, describing utopia as “a practice of rememory—an active engagement with ancestral knowledge, community care, and historical reclamation.”

Maryanna Hollomon highlights the aftermath of war for children and the global systems that produce displacement. “A utopia cannot be achieved without working in solidarity with those most oppressed,” she writes. Her work asks viewers to consider militarism’s impact and to imagine new forms of resistance and collective care.

Amber Capwell creates sculptural works that envision utopian possibilities through Tarot readings for endangered Pacific Northwest flora and fauna. “These sculptures exist as a reminder to care,” they write. Their work incorporates queer and trans identities as part of an ecological futurism that demands “a utopia existing where we are allowed to live and thrive.”

Orlando Almanza imagines futures built on safety, connection, and community. “I dream of a place where my people can have picnics next to the river, to rest, to laugh… and the grandmothers can enjoy their old age, sitting in their rocking chairs on their front porch,” he writes. “Sueño con el día que pueda ver a mi familia reunida, en la tierra que nos vio nacer” (I dream that one day my family can be reunited, in the land that birthed us).

The Multnomah Arts Center is located at 7688 SW Capitol Hwy, Portland, OR, 97219. It is open Monday – Thursday 9 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., and Friday – Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Additional Information:

The Multnomah Arts Center is a part of Portland Parks & Recreation. MAC offers programs in a wide range of visual, music, movement, theater, and literary arts at an affordable cost to people of all ages. In addition to this vibrant arts education program, MAC runs a community-based visual arts exhibition program, which includes the MAC Front & Center Galleries. MAC also hosts theatre, music and dance performances, and other special events. The Multnomah Arts Center Association (MACA) is an all-volunteer, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that exists to support equity and access to arts education at MAC. MACA provides scholarships, supports community engagements efforts, and provides specialized arts equipment and facility improvements. Their efforts expand opportunities and enhance the experience of students, instructors, and the community at-large. For more information about MAC or MACA, please call 503.823.2787 or visit www.multnomahartscenter.org.