SOUTH WATERFRONT
PORTLAND OREGON

This is the third in a series of interviews of the artists, designers, architects, and musicians that live in the South Waterfront neighborhood. The interviews are conducted by Zara Logue – a Portland-based designer, John Ross resident, and member of the SOWA Art, Culture, and Science committee.

The third interview is with Heidi McBride, an art consultant and owner of Heidi McBride Gallery who lives in Meriwether West.

(Zara Logue) Tell us about your background – where you grew up, where you‘ve lived…

(Heidi McBride) I‘m a Portland native. I went to high school here, then moved to San Francisco for college, taught for a year in Japan and traveled around Asia and wound up back in Portland. I lived in New Jersey briefly. I’ve been to Europe several times, Thailand, South Korea, Guam, China, Amsterdam. My college degree is in communications and business but I‘ve always been interested in art, design, and fashion. My parents are art hobbyists, my dad‘s an oil painter.

(ZL) How would you describe what it is you do for a living?

(HM) It‘s a blend of a traditional gallery and design consultancy. I look at the art-buying process as fluid and personal. I escort people on a path to buy art that moves them. I believe that owning original artwork and having it around you can shape the way you live – either in business or in a personal setting. I’m an art match-maker. I believe in presenting a unique and wide perspective but my number one priority is to help people discover what they‘re really connecting with. Sometimes that‘s a finished piece of art and sometimes they envision something and we end up commissioning a site-specific piece.

(ZL) Going back to what you just said about having artwork around you and how it affects you – you literally live among the pieces you represent – they‘re all over your home and in all of your rooms. How does the artwork affect you?

(HM) I‘m sensitive to energy. Being around the work is like being among stories. These are all original, authentic stories being told by each artist. I get to have experiences with each piece of art because I‘m constantly moving things around. I develop relationships with each of them over time. And I enjoy creating different moods in different rooms – a peaceful environment in the bedroom, more dynamic in the living spaces. For people new to my practice, it‘s a really rich environment. It takes them a moment to orient themselves when they come over. And I should say that it‘s a private gallery and the visitations are by appointment, it‘s not a public showroom.

(ZL) It seems like a really brave venture to go out on your own and create a practice that is meaningful to you without any existing business model. How did you get the guts/inspiration to do it?

(HM) Over the course of my lifetime, I‘ve developed a sense of where art, authenticity, and life connect. I was looking for a place where those values and my skills could come together and didn‘t see anything. I literally started having dreams about this thing that would connect my interests and passions. Then I started asking for it and things just starting coming. Even though it didn‘t seem like the right time. Financially, I wasn‘t in a place to start a business but my job was laying people off so I took the opportunity. I‘ve always been someone to follow my gut and I just went for it. It wasn‘t strategic, I wasn‘t saying to myself, “oh I want to start a business – what should it be?” it was more intuitive.

(ZL) How did you end up in the South Waterfront?

(HM) I had an idea of the layout of the space I wanted. I wanted something where I could have a holistic experience, both for myself and clients. The culinary arts where a part of that – I wanted to be able to host people for gatherings around food and art. I also wanted the business aspect to be integrated with my life, not a museum. I saw the listing for a place at the Meriwether and really just came down to see it so I could check it off my list. I didn‘t know a whole lot about the area. But when I saw the space the first time my heart started beating and I knew it was right. And everything going on the area was just right, things were emerging.

(ZL) Are most of the artists you represent local? How do you find each other?

(HM) I have art and artists from around the world but there‘s so much talent here that doesn‘t get enough attention. I‘m beginning to focus on Pacific Northwest artists, though. Lots of artists are doing well in other markets and don‘t have representation here in Portland. In terms of how I find artists, the talent seems to find me. I‘ve always attracted talented people to me, somehow. My role as a curator means selecting the strongest pieces of work and artistic voices to make as options for my clients.

(ZL) How do you keep up with what‘s going on in contemporary art and design?

(HM) I‘m lucky to have an amazing network of friends and colleagues that help keep me informed. I do my part, reading the paper and the magazines, visiting museums and other galleries and reading blogs. Although I have to admit, there is so much happening in the arts around the world, that it is nearly impossible to keep on top of it all.

(ZL) How can people get in touch with you to learn more?

(HM) I‘d encourage people to visit my website, http://heidimcbridegallery.com or send me an email at heidi@heidimcbridegallery.com.

I work with anyone with an interest in owning original artwork, from seasoned collectors to people just getting started. And the range of work that I have reflects that. I also do a lot of work for people in their homes and businesses. And site-specific installations and custom pieces as well. You can see an example of a site-specific glass piece at the South Waterfront location of Le Hana. My goal is to make outstanding & meaningful original art available to anyone who is interested in owning it.

This entry was posted on Monday, August 4th, 2008 at 8:02 pm and is filed under Art & Design. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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