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Featuring Mathew Boulay, Executive Director of the Salem Art Association, and John Olbrantz, Founding Maribeth Collins Director of the Hallie Ford Museum of Art. They will give us an inside view and history of their respective organizations.
Willamette University’s Hallie Ford Museum of Art is the third largest art museum in Oregon and has about 30,000 visitors a year. It opened in 1998, and it exhibits collections of both art and historical artifacts with a focus on Oregon related pieces of art and artists, including Indigenous contributions. It also hosts lectures, films, panel discussions, artist demonstrations, and workshops, and awards fellowships to artists.
Founded in 1919, the Salem Art Association is a non-profit arts organization serving the mid-Willamette Valley and is one of the largest community arts organizations in Oregon. SAA achieves its mission with multiple programs: the Annual Salem Art Fair and Festival in Bush Park, community arts education, art workshops for adults, and SAA Artists In the Schools Program. In so doing, SAA engages with more than 7,000 people per year.
Speakers
Matthew Boulay enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve in 1997 and served in Iraq in 2003. After coming home, he served as the Director of the Fund for Veterans' Education and the Campaign for a New GI Bill. In this capacity, he designed and managed a national scholarship program for veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and successfully lobbied Congress to pass a new GI Bill. In addition to his work with veterans, Boulay founded the nonprofit National Summer Learning Association in 1993, and has written and edited a number of books on the subject of summer learning and educational excellence. He is a practicing artist and has served as the Executive Director of the Salem Art Association and the historic Bush House Museum since 2021. Boulay holds a BA in History from Johns Hopkins University and a PhD in Sociology and Education, from Teachers College, Columbia University.
John Olbrantzis the Founding Maribeth Collins Director of the Hallie Ford Museum of Art and is an Associate Professor of Art History, Willamette University, Salem, Oregon. Since 1998 he has been responsible for overall operations of the HFM including collections development, temporary exhibitions, education and outreach, just to name a few. Throughout his professional career, John has held numerous and various non-profit management positions in Washington, California, and most recently, in Oregon. He has been Director of the Bellvue Arts Museum, the San Jose Museum of Art, and the Whatcom Museum of History and Art in Bellingham; he also helped found two museumsof art. A specialist in ancient and American art, he is particularly interested in Roman art, the history of archaeology, contemporary American art, and the history of museums.
John’s education includes a BA and MA in Art History from Western Washington University and the University of Washington. He did post graduate work at the University of California Berkley and at UC Santa Barbara. Here’s additional information about John Olbrantz and the Hallie Ford Museum
Program Sponsors
Christine Chute & Walter Perry
Event Details
Doors Open at 11:30 am
Program Begins at 112:00 pm
Carlee Wright, self-described "Community Instigator with a grand love for Salem" will speak to Salem City Club about Salem's current art, culture and entertainment scene. Carlee seems to be everywhere in Salem, looking into the nooks and crannies of the community to report on the social spirit of the city. Focusing exclusively on Salem, her beautifully produced print publication, pressplay, free for the taking at various places in Salem, offers detailed information and reporting on what to do and see here. A digital version of pressplay is available online at https://pressplaysalem.com. Our community has a lot to offer and pressplay helps us find it.
A big believer in the power of community, Carlee will share with us why she does what she does for Salem with such enthusiasm and passion. This promises to be a spirited and fun short program as we come to the end of 2025.
Speaker
Carlee Wright is a community instigator with a grand love for Salem and notably fashionable shoes.
She’s the founder and creative force behind Press Play Salem, the city’s go-to guide for arts, entertainment, and culture, where storytelling meets community and curiosity fuels discovery.
Carlee serves as Marketing Director for the Elsinore Theatre, is an instructor in the Visual Communications program at Chemeketa Community College and is currently pursuing her MBA at Willamette University. She also volunteers as Chair of the City of Salem’s Cultural and Tourism Promotion Advisory Board.
Since moving to Salem more than two decades ago, Carlee has immersed herself in the city’s cultural fabric. She’s danced at the World Beat Festival, helped launch Cherry City Roller Derby, co-curated TEDxSalem, and co-founded The Moxie Initiative with Brian Hart.
Beyond her roles in media and marketing, Carlee is also a textile artist transforming discarded materials - like Crown Royal bags and expired gift cards - into wearable art. Her designs challenge ideas about waste and value, sparking conversations about sustainability, creativity, and community impact.
Whether curating stories or championing the arts, Carlee’s purpose remains constant: to connect people through creativity and inspire a deeper sense of place and participation in Salem’s story.
Contact Us
Salem City Club
PO Box 2283 | Salem, OR 97308
office@salemcityclub.com
