The 9th Northwest Biennial at Tacoma Art Museum should represent the very best of Northwest art and provide a good barometer of what regional art in the Northwest is today.



Visit the show, which opens Saturday, and see if you think it accomplishes these lofty goals. Included are some artists who have already gained regional fame, such as Michael Brophy from Portland and Jack Daws from Seattle. Plus a lot of names that may be new to the scene. It’s also a big city show. All but one of the 24 artists — selected from a pool of 543 entries — are from Seattle and Portland, the only exceptions being Tannaz Farsi from Eugene and Zhi Lin, Sammamish. Nobody from Tacoma or Olympia.



Curators Rock Hushka, from TAM, and Alison de Lima Greene, curator of Contemporary Art and Special Projects at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, say the show includes “artists working in a wide variety of media, including traditional forms, craft-based work, and digital projects were encouraged to apply, as well as artists exploring alternative visual forms such as conceptual and performance works and installations.”



[Tacoma Art Museum, Jan. 31-May 25, 1701 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.272.4258]