Heather Watkins is a visual artist whose studio practice includes experimental forms of drawing and printmaking, book arts, installation, and sculpture. Her work has been shown in numerous exhibitions regionally and nationally, most recently at PDX Contemporary Art in Portland, Oregon; The Lumber Room in Portland, Oregon; Hoffman Gallery at Oregon College of Art and Craft; and Nine Gallery, Portland, Oregon. Her work is held in both private and public collections including the Vivian and Gordon Gilkey Center at the Portland Art Museum, the Regional Arts and Culture Council’s Portable Works Collection, the Jordan Schnitzer Printmaking Collection, the Newberry Library in Chicago, and Rhode Island School of Design Artist’s Book Collection. In 2010 she was an invited Senior Artist in Residence at Oregon College of Art and Craft, and was nominated a Jordan Schnitzer Printmaking Resident at Sitka Center for Art and Ecology. She has been the recipient of grants from Regional Arts & Culture Council, and Oregon Arts Commission, and has been awarded residencies at Caldera, in Sisters, Oregon, and at Em Space Book Arts Center in Portland. Over the past twelve years she has served as a faculty member at Lewis & Clark College, the Art Institute of Boston, and Massachusetts College of Art. Heather holds an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design. She is represented by PDX Contemporary Art.

HEATHER WATKINS

EDUCATION
2000
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI | MFA, Graphic Design

1992
Pitzer College, Claremont, CA | BA, English, cum laude; BA, Classical Studies, emphasis Art & Archaeology

SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2014
Art Gym, Marylhurst University,

2013
Portland Art Museum Apex, Portland, OR

2012
Movement of Objects at Rest, PDX Contemporary Art, Portland, OR
Gradual Instant, Edith Feldenheimer Gallery, Reed College. Portland, OR

2010
In The Dark At Sea, Em Space Book Arts Center, Portland, OR

2009
Ravel/Unravel, Paper Circle Gallery, Nelsonville, OH

2008
Character Study, Nine Gallery, Portland, OR
A Gleaning, PDX Window Project, PDX Contemporary Art, Portland, OR

2004
Group Dynamics, Navarre, Portland, OR 
2002 Recountings, Manuel Izquierdo Gallery, Pacific Northwest College of Art, Portland, OR

2000
Equinox Time Capsules, Sol Koffler Graduate Gallery, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2012
Clouds Inclose Comets: the envelope, PDX Contemporary Art, Portland, OR

2011
Interior Margins, The Lumber Room, Portland, OR
The New American Landscape, Kahnaway Art + Ecology, Washougal, WA
UnSpeakAble, The Arts Center, Corvallis, OR

2010
Signed and Numbered, galleryHomeLand, Portland, OR
Artist-in-Residence Exhibition, Hoffman Gallery, Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR
Alumni on Paper, curated by Sean Cavanaugh, Nichols Gallery, Pitzer College, CA

2009
WORD: curated by Ryan Burghard. Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center, Portland, OR
Open House Opening (project coordinated by Michelle Ross & Karl Burkheimer), private residence, Portland, OR

2008
Small Wild Things (coordinated by Michelle Ross), The Art Gym, Marylhurst University; Nine Gallery, Portland, OR
WORD: Curated by Ryan Burghard, Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center, Portland, OR
Gender Symposium Art Exhibition, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR
How The Ink Feels, The Ronna and Eric Hoffman Gallery of Contemporary Art, Portland, OR

2007
Faculty Exhibition, The Ronna and Eric Hoffman Gallery of Contemporary Art, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR
The Valentine Exchange: Making Love Since 1999, Caseworks 9, The Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Art Gallery, Reed College, Portland, OR

2006
The Thread Counts Project, Gallery Artists Studio Projects, Brookline, MA

2005
ComPlex, three-person exhibition curated by Nan Curtis and Stephanie Snyder, Disjecta, Portland, OR
Gender Symposium Art Exhibition, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR

2004
Gender Symposium Art Exhibition, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR

2003
Faculty Exhibition, The Ronna and Eric Hoffman Gallery of Contemporary Art, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR
Word Space, The Art Institute of Boston, Boston, MA

2002
April Is The Cruelest Month, Basil Hallward Gallery, Portland, OR

2001
100 Universes, Contemporary Crafts Gallery, Portland, OR
911 Artists Respond, Savage Gallery, Portland, OR
Biennial Faculty Exhibition, The Art Institute of Boston, Boston, MA

2000
Annual MFA Exhibition, RISD Museum, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Hot Printing 2000, Design Center, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI 

Cross Section, Sol Koffler Graduate Gallery, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI

1999
Drawing Exchange Show, Elam School of Art, University of Auckland, New Zealand
Valentine Exchange, Graphic Design Showcases, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Marking Time: Papermillennia, Sol Koffler Gallery, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI

1998
Graduate Studio I, Graphic Design Gallery, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Hoffman Gallery, Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR

1997
Invitational Print Portfolio, Centrum Gallery, Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR
Exchange of Matter, Hoffman Gallery, Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR

PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
Jordan Schnitzer Print Collection, Portland, OR
Portland Art Museum, Gordon Gilkey Print Center, Portland, OR
Regional Arts & Culture Council, Portable Works Collection, Portland, OR
Aubrey Watzek Library, Special Collections, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR
Newberry Library, Artist’s Book Collection, Chicago, IL
Rhode Island School of Design Library, Artist’s Book Collection, Providence, RI

GRANTS, RESIDENCIES, FELLOWSHIPS
2012
Individual Artist Project Grant. Regional Arts & Culture Council. Portland, OR

2010
Jordan Schnitzer Printmaking Residency, Sitka Center for Art & Ecology, Otis, OR
Oregon College of Art and Craft Senior Artist-in-Residence, Portland, OR
Caldera Artist's Residency, Sisters, OR
Em-Space Book Arts Center, Portland, OR
Oregon Arts Commission Career Opportunity Grant

2003 - 07
Faculty Development Grant, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR

1998 - 99
Graduate Teaching Fellowship, Rhode Island School of Design

REVIEWS/PUBLICATIONS
2012
"Heather Watkins and Julia Mangold: Two takes on taking control," by John Motley. The Oregonian (August 8, 2012)
“Less and More,” by Lisa Radon. www.orartswatch.org (January 28, 2012)
"Interior Margins: A Question of Language," by Amy Bernstein. www.portlandart.net (January 25,2012)

2011
“This is Real: Interior Margins at the Lumber Room,” by Lisa Radon. www.orartswatch.org (December 17, 2011)
“Interior Margins,” regional women artists working in abstraction, Review by John Motley. The Oregonian (December 1, 2011)
“Interior Margins at the Lumber Room,” by TJ Norris. Visual Art Source (December 2011)

2008
"Faculty Exhibition Reveals Connections Between Teaching and Making,” Lewis & Clark Newsroom (January 16, 2008)
“How The Ink Feels,” Exhibition catalog, essay by Doug Erickson and Paul Merchant, Watzek Library Special Collections

2007/03
Faculty Exhibition. Exhibition catalog, essay by Linda Tesner, director of The Ronna and Eric Hoffman Gallery of Contemporary Art, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR

2004
"Divided, We Think," Willamette Week (October 27, 2004) Artwork featured on cover. Essay by Stuart Horodner, PICA

LIMITED EDITIONS & ARTIST BOOK COMMISSIONS
2010
ABSTRACT. Designed catalog for ABSTRACT exhibition curated by Stephanie Snyder featuring the work of Léonie Guyer, Ruth Laskey, Lynne Woods Turner for the Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Art Gallery at Reed College, Fall 2010.

2009
An Occasion for Poetry: Mary Szybist & Michele Glazer. Designed and letterpress-printed broadsides for reading on October 5, 2009. Commissioned by Aubrey Watzek Library Special Collections. Edition of 150.

2006
Ursula Le Guin & Judith Barrington. Designed letterpress-printed broadsides for reading March 22, 2006. Commissioned by Aubrey Watzek Library Special Collections. Edition of 200.

2005
Ellie! Opera! Party! Commission to author, design and produce limited-edition artist’s book commemorating the opening of The Ellie Caulkins Opera House in Denver, Colorado. Edition of 750.

2004
Interstate MAX Public Art Guidebook. Design, art direction and production oversight of 48-page catalogue written by Mary Priester, featuring public artworks commissioned by TriMet for a new lightrail line in Portland, Oregon.

2000
Fait Ce Que Voudras. Artist’s book of original photographs by photographer Terry Evans. Designed and produced book structure in collaboration with the artist. Edition of 45.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
Independent Publishing Resource Center Board member
Disjecta Advisory Board member

2010
Guest Lecture and Gallery Tour, Abstract Expressionist NY exhibition at Museum of Modern Art, invited by Lewis & Clark College New York semester program, New York, NY
Panelist/Presenter: “Abstract: Symposium.” Held in conjunction with Abstract exhibition at Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Art Gallery, Reed College, Portland, OR
Artist Lecture, Senior Artist in Residence program, Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR
Workshop: “Experimental Drawing Lab.” Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR

2009
Panelist/Presenter: “Focus on Creativity: Approaches to Intra- and Cross-Disciplinary Learning and Teaching.” Foundations in Art Theory and Education (FATE) Biennial Conference, Portland, OR Panel chairs: Lari Gibbons, Fo Wilson
Panel Chair: “Feedback: The Studio–Classroom Loop.” FATE Biennial Conference, Portland, OR

2008
Panelist: “The Artist’s Footprint.” Focus The Nation Conference, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR

2005
Panelist/Presenter: “Interdisciplinary Projects.” (R)evolution: Philadelphia, AIGA Design Education Conference, Philadelphia, PA (Panel chair: Muneera Spence)
Paper: “Made By Hand: Homemade Aesthetics.” For “W(h)ither the Touch?” A special session hosted by AIGA at the College Art Association Annual Conference, Atlanta, GA (Panel chair: Rafael Fajardo)
Guest Lecture: “Seeing Sound.” Presented to Nora Beck’s Music & Language class, Lewis & Clark College, Portland OR
Guest Critic: Senior Project Reviews. Pacific Northwest College of Art, Portland, OR

2004
Visiting Artist Lecture: “Expressive Type/Experimental Form.” Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR
Guest Critic: Expressive Typography class. Professor Muneera Spence. Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR

2003
Visiting Artist Lecture: “A Process of Accumulation.” for Lewis & Clark Graduate School for Teacher Education, Portland, OR
Visiting Artist Lecture: presentation of work to Graphic Design classes. Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR
Panelist: “Beauty Salon.” Seminar on Beauty, Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR
Visiting Artist Lecture: “A Look at Looking at War.” For English department course: The International Short Story, Lewis & Clark College

2002
Panelist: “What is Beauty?” Philosophy Symposium, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR
Visiting Artist Lecture, Visiting Designer Annual Lecture Series, Graphic Design Department, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Visiting Artist Lecture: “D: All of the Above.” Speaking of Art Lecture Series. Pacific Northwest College of Art, Portland, OR
Guest Critic: Senior Seminar. Instructor: Michelle Ross. Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR

2001
Guest Critic: 3-D Foundations. Instructor: Daniel Duford, Pacific Northwest College of Art
Guest Critic: Senior Reviews, Communication Design Department. Massachusetts College of Art, Boston, MA
Workshop: Bookbinding structures for Typography II classes. Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI

2000
Guest Critic: Class Action Workshop. Instructors: Tom Starr, Evin Yegar, Jackie Thaw. RISD

ACADEMIC EMPLOYMENT
2002–2009
Visiting Assistant Professor of Art. Lewis & Clark College. Portland, OR

2000–2001
Adjunct Faculty. Massachusetts College of Art. AND Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University. Boston, MA

1999–2001
Adjunct Faculty, Instructor of Record. Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI