Tom Cramer has a new show opening at Laura Russo this week. He will be my guest tomorrow on Art Focus. His exhibitions keep pushing forward into new territory and this one in particular has a big variety of approaches. Some seems Byzantine; his silver and gold is better than ever. One work is like an oil slick, reminiscent of Arts and Crafts and Tiffany. There are loads of Art Nouveauish sexy loops and plantlike shapes. He's doing this all-over wood burning thing too which is subtle from afar and intense close up. There are a few pieces which are really 60s - in that optimistic, almost fabric/fashion Marimekko way. I love it all. It seems to me that wood is his arena, he really owns it and finds new ways to work with it.

For PICA's TBA festival we have an interview with Woolly Mammoth Comes to Dinner and the Oregon Painting Society on. Guests include: Woolly Mammoth--Rikki Rothenberg and Kathleen Keogh and Oregon Painting Society--Matt Carlson, Jason Traeger and Liam Drain.

Here is an interview with two artists: Fawn Krieger and Jesse Hayward, recorded during the construction of their respective installations at Time Based Arts Festival site for "The Works". For TBA '09, PICA (Portland Institute for Contemporary Arts) gained access to the defunct Washington High School. Using the old theater and two complete floors, artists set up a variety of installations in former classroom spaces. The artists interviewd here are only two of about a dozen different installations. Though TBA '09 events are over, the galleries are open at Washington High School through October. Visit PICA.ORG for more details.

Fawn Krieger is a New York based artist and was invited for residency to produce the installation interviewed in this piece. She calls it "National Park" and you can learn more about it and see photos at www.fawnkrieger.com.

Jesse Hayward is based in Portland and produces interactive installations that often speak to the playfulness of art and craft. You can also learn more about his work at www.jessehayward.com.

Also, notice an original short piece of Musique Concrete in between the interviews. I produced this on behalf of Fawn, who provided the audio samples.

This week on Art Focus my guest will be Michelle Ramin, who has a show up at Falsefront called Need it/Got it - along with the director of Falsefront, Jason Doizé. Falsefront is a curious space – in a neighborhood full of homes, it looks like it must have been a storefront at one time. Inside it looks like a regular gallery (which I confess to liking). The exhibition has a closing party this week.