ARTS WEEK 2026 JURORS

Kathy Foster she/her: Kathy is a musician and creative person living in Portland, OR. She has played, recorded and toured in many bands past and present including Roseblood, The Thermals, Hurry Up, All Girl Summer Fun Band, WLY MTN, Slang, Roselit Bone. Her debut solo album, Roseblood, was partially recorded at an artist residency at Sou’wester! She makes visual art sometimes with paper collage or paint. She also likes to sew and hand-dye things. rosebloodband.bandcamp.com, | www.ghostnote.com/p/kathyfoster

Clare Lilliston they/them: Clare Lilliston is a writer and editor from Seattle, Washington. Clare has an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College, where they were a Community Engagement Fellow and coordinator of the Mills Oakland Writers Workshop, and a BA in Literary Arts from The Evergreen State College. Clare’s work has been published in BOMB Magazine, The Tiny, The Encyclopedia Project, PUSH/PULL, and elsewhere. Clare is a founding member of Sundae School, an annual summer gathering for collaborative, creative, and pedagogical experimentation. @specific_baby | clarelilliston.wordpress.com

Ryan Noon: Ryan Noon is the founder and director of NOON Projects, a Los Angeles–based gallery dedicated to empowering artists through exhibitions, public programs, and community-centered events. He is also the interim Artistic Director of Los Angeles River Arts.

Across more than 15 years, Noon’s work has moved fluidly between contemporary art, fashion, education, and cultural strategy. He previously spent 12 years at Nike, where he founded the Blue Ribbon Studio and School, led trend research and creative strategy, and served as a designer. His broader practice includes fashion design, mentorship, and nonprofit leadership, with a sustained commitment to compassionate leadership, queer methodologies, and artist-led futures. noon-projects.com

Benji Santos they/them: Benji squints and yearns. Benji hunches in the dark. They are less interested in credentials than what happens off the record. Through lyric essay, audio, still and moving image, Benji assembles waiting rooms for personal afflictions that could use a place to writhe in the meantime. froeutfum.blogspot.com

Liz Talley she/her: Liz Talley is an artist, illustrator and community media director in Astoria, Oregon. 
She has created work for various musicians (Gipsy Kings, Rachael Yamagata) and is a regular contributor and creative lead for community publication The Current. Prior to her role as Membership Director at KMUN, she worked for Sou’wester Arts as a program admin and curator. In 2025, she directed Sou’wester Arts Week 2025: Embers – From Darkness to Fire. She holds an interdisciplinary BFA (2017) from the Nova Scotia College of Art & Design University. nicefolk.co

Dawn Stetzel  / Jury Chair

@dawnstetzelstudio | dawnstetzel.com
souwesterartsweek@gmail.com