bio
Amber is a community-taught, transdisciplinary artist and designer who grew up throughout Southern California before moving to Portland, Oregon in 2014. Their relationship with art has taken many forms over the years, beginning in 2010 when they opened an all-vegan bakery in Riverside, California. Through this project, they developed a love for recipe development and graphic design, skills that continue to inform their studio practice today. Amber’s adoration for printmaking emerged from community workshops in local infoshops, where collaboration and camaraderie were foundational. After moving to Portland, their creative practice began to blossom. Meeting new people and discovering new mediums sparked an insatiable curiosity that led them to become an artist of many trades. In 2019, they began prioritizing creative work through jewelry making and brand development with a project titled Softvvear, designing ceramic, stained glass, and metal jewelry, returning to their early methods of hands-on business development.
When the global pandemic made service work unsustainable, Amber transitioned into social work as a shelter manager for people experiencing houselessness. Over three years, they developed a research-based approach in response to the constant shifts in protocols and structures, where their appreciation for developing systems flourished. This work allowed their values of care, adaptability, and collaboration to converge through the communities they served. Yet, as funding uncertainties grew and burnout set in, Amber turned once again to the only container that grounded them and helped process grief - art.
After spending time in this container they decided to return to academic studies. Driven by a desire to share knowledge and passion for the intersection of print and sculpture, ecology, and social systems, Amber is currently deepening their understanding of how a conceptual research and studio practice that prioritizes the urgency of our climate crisis can aid in composing visual testaments to the interconnectedness of humanity and nature. Amber graduated with honors from PNCA in 2025 double majoring in Printmaking & Sculpture with a minor in ceramics. They have been a recipient of numerous grants and scholarships including the Gilman Scholarship to study abroad. Amber believes creative expression is a powerful tool for collective reflection and healing. In a world inundated with information, art offers a sanctuary - a space to process, to connect, and to imagine better futures. Working across relief, sculpture, stained glass, and textiles, Amber’s practice seeks harmony between materials and meaning. Through this work, they explore how art can help us circulate emotion in response to overwhelming change, and how, together, we might rediscover balance.
statement
My practice is rooted in curiosity, care, and a deep respect for materials. Working across printmaking, sculpture, stained glass, textiles, and jewelry, I explore the interconnected relationships between humanity, ecology, and social systems. I am drawn to processes that allow intuition and research to coexist, where conceptual inquiry meets tactile experimentation.
Community learning and collaboration shape the foundation of my work. Early experiences in infoshops, cooperative spaces, and small-scale entrepreneurship taught me to value shared knowledge, mutual support, and accessible creativity. These values continue to guide how I approach both making and meaning. I see art as a tool for collective reflection, as a way to process complexities, hold emotions, and cultivate connection in times of uncertainty.
In response to the urgency of the climate crisis, my work seeks to honor the intelligence of natural systems and the fragility of our shared ecosystems. Through layered forms, translucent surfaces, and rhythmic patterning, I create visual spaces that invite slowing down, noticing, and contemplation. Materials become collaborators, carrying histories, labor, and environmental impact that shape each piece.
Group & Solo Exhibitions
2026
Utopias, sculptures - Multnomah Arts Center, Portland, OR - u p c o m i n g
A Show for the Cooks, selected works - Guilder, Portland, OR
2025
Endangered Tarot: The First Iteration - Gallery 157, Portland, OR
A Chorus Without Name, Selected Sculptures - Untitl3d Coll3ctive, Portland, OR
Planted / Placed, Botanical Watercolor Paintings - Future Artifacts, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Collective Realities, Sculptural Prints - PNCA Merit Scholarship Exhibition, Portland, OR
2024
Loose Ends, Paintings & Prints - Burren College of Art, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Burren Art Students for Palestine, Sculpture & Prints - Burren College of Art, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Common threads, Commissioned Paintings, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Overgrow, overflow, Embroidered prints - Offset Gallery, Portland OR
Big Pride, Little Art, Sculptures & Prints - Radius Art Studio, Portland, OR
Symbiosis, Trans Explorations of Ecology & Community, Sculptures & Prints, Parallax Gallery, Portland OR
Element(action), Curated Works of the Elements, Commons Gallery, Portland, OR
2023
Stream of Consciousness, Sculptures and Prints - Studio BGH, Portland, OR
Music is Community is Growth, Sculptures and Flora - Glass Studio, Portland, OR
Big Pride, Little Art, Screen Prints - Radius Art Studio, Portland, OR
Selected Works, Hand Carved Prints on Paper & Wood - Akemi Studio, Portland, OR
Facets-A Sculptural Work, Ceramic Sculpture, Gallery 511, Portland, OR
BFA Juried Exhibition, Ceramic Sculpture, Gallery 157, Portland, OR
2022
Big Pride, Little Art, Relief Prints - Radius Art Studio, Portland, OR
Overgrow the System, Relief Prints - Alberta Street Gallery, Portland, OR
6x6x6, Relief Prints on Wood - Alberta Street Gallery, Portland, OR
2014
Abstract Dimensions, Mixed Media on Canvas - Riverside Public Library, CA
Amazine - A Collection of Zines - Blood Orange Infoshop, Riverside, CA
2013
Gendered, Acrylic Paintings on Canvas & Glass - Studio 216, Riverside, CA
Selected Works, Mixed Media on Canvas - The Dial Artist Collective, Murrieta, CA
2012
Reflections, Mixed Media on Canvas - Back to the Grind, Riverside, CA
2026
Utopias, sculptures - Multnomah Arts Center, Portland, OR - u p c o m i n g
A Show for the Cooks, selected works - Guilder, Portland, OR
2025
Endangered Tarot: The First Iteration - Gallery 157, Portland, OR
A Chorus Without Name, Selected Sculptures - Untitl3d Coll3ctive, Portland, OR
Planted / Placed, Botanical Watercolor Paintings - Future Artifacts, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Collective Realities, Sculptural Prints - PNCA Merit Scholarship Exhibition, Portland, OR
2024
Loose Ends, Paintings & Prints - Burren College of Art, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Burren Art Students for Palestine, Sculpture & Prints - Burren College of Art, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Common threads, Commissioned Paintings, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Overgrow, overflow, Embroidered prints - Offset Gallery, Portland OR
Big Pride, Little Art, Sculptures & Prints - Radius Art Studio, Portland, OR
Symbiosis, Trans Explorations of Ecology & Community, Sculptures & Prints, Parallax Gallery, Portland OR
Element(action), Curated Works of the Elements, Commons Gallery, Portland, OR
2023
Stream of Consciousness, Sculptures and Prints - Studio BGH, Portland, OR
Music is Community is Growth, Sculptures and Flora - Glass Studio, Portland, OR
Big Pride, Little Art, Screen Prints - Radius Art Studio, Portland, OR
Selected Works, Hand Carved Prints on Paper & Wood - Akemi Studio, Portland, OR
Facets-A Sculptural Work, Ceramic Sculpture, Gallery 511, Portland, OR
BFA Juried Exhibition, Ceramic Sculpture, Gallery 157, Portland, OR
2022
Big Pride, Little Art, Relief Prints - Radius Art Studio, Portland, OR
Overgrow the System, Relief Prints - Alberta Street Gallery, Portland, OR
6x6x6, Relief Prints on Wood - Alberta Street Gallery, Portland, OR
2014
Abstract Dimensions, Mixed Media on Canvas - Riverside Public Library, CA
Amazine - A Collection of Zines - Blood Orange Infoshop, Riverside, CA
2013
Gendered, Acrylic Paintings on Canvas & Glass - Studio 216, Riverside, CA
Selected Works, Mixed Media on Canvas - The Dial Artist Collective, Murrieta, CA
2012
Reflections, Mixed Media on Canvas - Back to the Grind, Riverside, CA
People, Places & Things, Film Photography - Back to the Grind, Riverside, CA
PUBLICATIONS & COLLECTIONS
2025
Just Seeds Palestine Solidarity Graphics Package - B.A.A.G.
2023
Belly Magazine, Issue 2
Just Seeds, 2023 Catalogue of prints for a free Palestine
EDUCATION
2025
Printmaking & Sculpture - Dual Bachelor of Fine Arts PNCA
Grants & Scholarships
2025
OSAC Grant
PNCA Merrit Scholarship
Oregon College of Art & Craft - Julia Hoffman Visual Arts Scholarship
Jacob and Ruth Cole Kainen Scholarship
2024
Oregon State Opportunity Grant
PNCA Merit Scholarship
GLAAD Scholarship
Hawthorne Hunt Scholarship
Gilman Scholarship - Study Abroad
2023
Steve O'Hare Scholarship
PNCA Merrit Scholarship
Vivian & Gordon Gilkey Printmaking Scholarship
Residencies
2026 Ayatana’s Biophilium Science School for Artists Metamorphisis
2023 The GramOunce - Alternative MA in Food & Art
2025
OSAC Grant
PNCA Merrit Scholarship
Oregon College of Art & Craft - Julia Hoffman Visual Arts Scholarship
Jacob and Ruth Cole Kainen Scholarship
2024
Oregon State Opportunity Grant
PNCA Merit Scholarship
GLAAD Scholarship
Hawthorne Hunt Scholarship
Gilman Scholarship - Study Abroad
2023
Steve O'Hare Scholarship
PNCA Merrit Scholarship
Vivian & Gordon Gilkey Printmaking Scholarship
Residencies
2026 Ayatana’s Biophilium Science School for Artists Metamorphisis
2023 The GramOunce - Alternative MA in Food & Art