Manny Layers - New Romancer | MFA Graduate Exhibition - Opening Reception

Manny Layers - New Romancer - MFA Graduate Exhibition Exhibition on view May 18 - 28, 2015 Reception: Thursday, May 21, 4pm-7pm, live performances at 6pm Autzen Gallery Neuberger Hall, 2nd floor 724 SW Harrison Street (on SW Broadway between Harrison and Hall streets) Gallery Hours: Monday-Friday, 10am-5pm Public Lecture, Wednesday, May 20, 6-7pm Shattuck Hall Annex 1914 SW Park Avenue (entrance on SW Broadway at Hall street) Statement New Romancer is a declaration of a Queer space. With a stage for live performances, a multi-channel sound installation, and Pop Art-inspired fashion and photography, a utopian performance venue is created. New Romancer blurs the lines between masculine and feminine cultural ideals by playing with gender, identity, and sexuality. Throughout the exhibition the audience is invited to explore Manny’s many personas. Manny Layers (Manny Sáenz-Reyes) is a Queer, Chicano, sound artist from downtown Las Vegas, residing in Portland the last 15 years. Manny has performed at Portland Art Museum, Disjecta, PNCA, Hollywood Theater, and Risk/Reward Festival in Portland; ATA and San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery in San Francisco; and Perhspace and The Smell in Los Angeles. Manny is the founder of post-punk quartet Atole, PSU’s student organization Time Arts Club, and Portland’s longest-running local electronic music monthly, Supernature. He attended Signal Fire Artist Residency, is a recipient of the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, and has curated a variety of performance festivals such as Tropix and SuperFest! Manny studied film, theater and art at Hunter College in NYC, and is currently a candidate for PSU’s MFA in Contemporary Art Practices.