Peruse local artwork at Alberta Street Gallery in Northeast Portland.

Credit: NashCO

Arts

Galleries, public art, events and avant-garde institutions fill Portland’s vibrant arts scene.

Peruse local artwork at Alberta Street Gallery in Northeast Portland.

Credit: NashCO

Monthly Art Walks in Portland

Explore Portland's art gallery scene with three regular art walks, held in different creative neighborhoods around town.

Portland Film Festivals

Portland hosts more than 20 film festivals every year. Here's an overview of some of the city's top cinematic events.

Live Storytelling Events in Portland

Hear true stories about love, sex, history, movies and even middle school at six regular live storytelling events in Portland.

The Portland Book Festival

Portland Book Festival (formerly “Wordstock”) returns every November with an impressive (and extensive) lineup of local and national authors.

Portland Saturday Market

Open every Saturday and Sunday from March–December, Portland Saturday Market is the largest arts-and-crafts fair in the U.S.

Fertile Ground Festival

See Portland's newest theater and dance works every January at Portland's Fertile Ground Festival.

Portland Open Studios

For two weekends every October, Portland Open Studios invites visitors to explore the houses and offices of artists across the city.

Time-Based Art (TBA) Festival

Portland's Time-Based Art (TBA) Festival, returning Sept. 5–15, 2019, unites visual artists, musicians and performers from around the world every year.

The Jim Pepper Native Arts Festival

Portland saxophonist Jim Pepper's "Witchi Tai To" is the only song based upon a Native American chant to break into the Top 40.

Portland Winter Light Festival

Brighten your February with glowing sculptures and thousands of twinkling lights at the annual Winter Lights Festival.

Design Week Portland

This annual springtime festival showcases Portland's creative community, with a week full of lectures, design events and open houses.

All Jane Comedy Festival

Portland's five-day comedy festival showcases nearly 50 female comedians each October.

Portland Jazz Festival

The Portland Jazz Festival returns every February with a stellar series of concerts and events celebrating Black History Month.

POW Film Fest: Portland Oregon Women’s Film Festival

POW Film Fest showcases films by female directors, along with filmmaker workshops and moderated panels, every March in Portland.

Visual Arts in Portland

View paintings, sculptures and other visual art in a wide range of galleries, public spaces and unexpected venues.

Explore more

Portland Art Museum

The Portland Art Museum is central to the city's cultural district, housing a large and wide-ranging collection of artworks.

Disjecta Contemporary Art Center

The North Portland art center's offerings range from visual art installations to collaborations with bands like the Shins.

Center for Contemporary Native Art

The Portland Art Museum's Center for Contemporary Native Art showcases the work of modern-day Native American artists.

Blue Sky Gallery / Oregon Center for the Photographic Arts

Founded as the Oregon Center for the Photographic Arts in 1975, Blue Sky is a venue for local photography. The organization has expanded its offerings over the last 35 years to include national and international artists.

Russo Lee Gallery

Established in 1986, the Russo Lee Gallery exhibits high-quality work by both established and emerging artists. They showcase contemporary Northwest artists working in a variety of media, including painting, sculpture, paper and print.

Guardino Gallery

Since 1997, the Guardino Gallery has offered exhibitions that change every month and a gift shop with a fine selection of contemporary crafts.

Land Gallery

This eclectic gallery and gift shop in North Portland showcases independent artists.

Nationale

Nationale is an art gallery and specialty shop dedicated to the promotion of the arts through exhibitions, performances and a selection of carefully chosen goods.

Portland Theater

Portland has a well-established network of venues and theater companies and an increasingly dynamic and diverse small theater scene.

Dance in Portland

Portland dance has an inventive spirit that welcomes collaborations and often spills beyond the generally accepted boundaries of “dance.”

Children’s Theater

Portland's children's theater companies introduce kids to live theater and teaches them people in costumes are fun, not scary.

Literary Portland

This book-friendly city is home to an annual book festival and the world's largest independent bookstore.

Turn the page

Portland Center Stage at The Armory

The city's largest theater company, Portland Center Stage puts on full musicals and productions on its main stage, along with stripped-down, avant-garde plays in its intimate basement studio — both inside The Armory, a historic building.

Imago Theatre

Founded in 1979, Imago Theatre features original productions that have toured internationally for decades. Imago’s productions (from classics to excursions into vaudevillian existentialism) have won acclaim around the world and at home in Portland.

Artists Repertory Theatre

Founded in 1982, Artists Repertory Theatre is the longest-running professional theater company in Portland. Artists Rep’s mission is to engage diverse audiences in fresh, thought-provoking and intimate theater.

Third Rail Repertory Theatre

Third Rail Repertory Theatre, a permanent ensemble of highly skilled theatre artists, is dedicated to pushing our audiences and ourselves to the edge of the comfort zone, the zone of the tickle, the chuckle, the gasp, and the ache.

CoHo Theatre

After 21 seasons, this theater boasts over 90 co-productions, including more than 20 world premieres. CoHo’s seasons have represented master playwrights, while also providing a forum for local Portland playwrights.

The Portland Hip-Hop Scene

Take a deep dive into the past, present and future of Portland's hip-hop scene with our expert guide to the best performers, showcases, stores and more.

Classical Music in Portland

Portland's opera, symphony and other companies offer an ongoing lineup of inspiring performances, from timeless works to modern interpretations.

Portland Jazz

In Portland, it's pretty easy to find small venues hosting intimate combos of world-class talent, or bigger, more boffo live shows.

Editor's Pick

Nov. 15–17, 2019

Celebrating the 16th anniversary of showcasing anime and Japanese culture, Kumoricon is ready for its biggest year yet. Gaining its namesake (kumori) from the Japanese word “cloudy,” Kumoricon embodies the best parts of fandom and what it is to live in the Pacific Northwest. Stretching across generations, anime fans have gathered together for an amazing…

Editor's Pick

Art & Design

Conventions

Film

Editor's Pick

Nov. 7–17, 2019

Siren Nation Festival

Various Locations Prices vary

The 2019 Siren Nation Festival presents a stunning musical lineup, a night of the best comedians from the Northwest, a visual art show with outstanding Northwest artists, an art and craft sale and free workshops, held throughout November 7-17. Schedule and venues vary daily; some events are free, and others require a cover. Please visit…

Editor's Pick

Art & Design

Comedy

Festival

Music

Shopping

Editor's Pick

Nov. 1–30, 2019

Mumvember

Lan Su Chinese Garden Adults $10, Seniors $9, Students $7, Family Pass $28

During the month of November, Lan Su Chinese Garden will be packed with more than 750 potted chrysanthemums artistically displayed throughout the garden. More than 75 different chrysanthemum varieties will unfurl in all colors, shapes and sizes including: spiders, quills, spoons, regular incurves, irregular incurves, reflexes, semi-doubles, anemones, brush, thistle, exotics and more. Take in…

Editor's Pick

Art & Design

Exhibition

Editor's Pick

Oct. 5–Dec. 1, 2019

Noritaka Tatehana: Refashioning Beauty

Portland Japanese Garden Free

Portland Japanese Garden presents the art of Noritaka Tatehana in his first-ever North American solo exhibition. Installed in the Pavilion and Tanabe Galleries located within the manicured grounds of the renowned Gardens, Tatehana enchants through his use of traditional symbols of sophistication and beauty with the inclusion of new, never-before-seen artworks created especially for this…

Editor's Pick

Art & Design

Cultural Communities

Exhibition

Editor's Pick

Nov. 19–21, 2019

Handmade NW

OHSU Center for Health & Healing Free

Get a head-start on holiday shopping at Handmade NW. Now in its twelfth year, this three-day event rotates artisans from each day, offering shoppers unique items throughout. This year’s market takes place to OHSU’s Center for Developmental Health. The center is committed to finding the root causes of chronic disease and to developing new methods…

Editor's Pick

Art & Design

Shopping

Editor's Pick

Nov. 23–24, 2019

Wild Arts Festival

Pure Space $10

The Wild Arts Festival is Pacific Northwest’s premier art show and book fair celebrating the natural world. Held each November by the Portland Audubon, the festival attracts nearly 5,000 visitors each year. New for 2019, the popular festival has moved to Pure Space in Portland’s vibrant Pearl District as the festival celebrates its 39th year….

Editor's Pick

Art & Design

Exhibition

Festival

Shopping

Editor's Pick

Feb. 6–8, 2020

Portland Winter Light Festival

Various Locations Free

Brighten your February with glowing sculptures and thousands of twinkling lights at the annual Winter Lights Festival.

Editor's Pick

Family Friendly

Festivals

Winter

Editor's Pick

Feb. 8–May 17, 2020

Volcano! Mount St. Helens in Art

Portland Art Museum Free

Marking the 40th anniversary of the eruption of Mount Saint Helens, this exhibition explores the overwhelming power of nature and the epic cycles of volcanic destruction and regeneration with stunning photographs, paintings and drawings of the mountain from 1845 to the present day. Curated by Dawson Carr, Ph.D., The Janet and Richard Geary Curator of…

Editor's Pick

Art & Design

Exhibition

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