Bellevue portrait show goes above and beyond

So what's über about "ÜberPortrait," the current exhibition at Bellevue Arts Museum? The German word "über" has come to mean "super," as in "übercool," and the show is, in fact, pretty great. But BAM curator Stefano Catalani, who organized the exhibition, wants the term to suggest the meanings of "over" or "beyond." To that end, Catalani has pulled together more than 30 edgy, complex and marvelously crafted works of art by 11 artists who "blur, if not erase, the representation of an individual through the depiction or construction of an overarching cultural reality."

Ultimately, did the show make me think differently about a more expansive role for portraiture and its function in today's global culture? Not really. But every single work of art drew me into its own portrayal of a person, identity or cultural facet and kept me looking.

Two porcelain busts by Chinese-born sculptor and ceramicist Ah Xian greet you in the lobby of the museum, but the full impact of the artist's work is fully felt in the exhibition itself, where 10 busts are displayed on three-quarter-height pedestals. I couldn't help but wonder how I would relate to the busts if they were elevated closer to eye level, but, still, the sculptures communicate powerfully, not through facial expression but through the artist's use of material, color and motif.

Ah Xian makes plaster casts of real people, creating molds which serve as the bases for his final works in porcelain, lacquer or cloisonné. An emigrant from post-cultural Revolution China, who now lives in Australia, Ah Xian uses traditional Chinese colors like vivid red and jade green and classic motifs — dragons, abstract cloud forms, and graceful flowers and branches — that spread across the faces, heads and chests of his figures as if their visual culture has become a shiny, enameled skin.

While Ah Xian's works are elegant and quiet, the fantastic "Soundsuits" by Nick Cave are brash and wild. Cave creates full-body costumes that are piled thick with brightly colored fabrics, yarn and everyday and whimsical objects: buttons, tops (the spinning kind), ceramic birds, purses. They are hulking, absurd, imposing creations. In an effective curatorial choice, Catalani has installed the "Soundsuits" so that visitors encounter them as sculptural objects before seeing the mesmerizing videos of Cave dancing in some of his suits. The videos draw attention to sounds of the suits created through motion; even the subtle rustling of raffia is amplified.

Cave, a fiber-arts professor and Alvin Ailey-trained dancer, inhabits and performs the regalia in exaggerated, hypnotic movements that — along with the powerful shapes of the costumes and the accumulation of everyday objects — conjure up associations with transformative, magical African sculpture and dance. The oddly sweet "Soundsuits" and performances both reflect his identity as an African- American and mask his individuality.

I must confess that I wasn't expecting to be blown away by "ÜberPortrait," but the visually and conceptually charged objects are deeply compelling, having been forged by artists who employ diverse techniques and media that are often associated with craft: ceramics, painting on metal, wood carving. It's a wonderful example of how the Bellevue Arts Museum, with its focus on contemporary art, design and craft, is in a unique position to present finely wrought and unexpected shows.