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The Official Guide to Portland

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  • Attractions
    • women dances with large fans outside on a city street surrounded by people in colorful dragon costumesView All Attractions
    • Museums
    • Parks & Gardens
    • Family Friendly
    • Shopping
    • On a Budget
    • EVEN MORE THINGS TO DO
  • Culture
    • people dining at picnic tables in front of a food cartView All Culture
    • Arts
    • Beer
    • Biking
    • Cannabis
    • Cultural Communities
    • Craft Spirits
    • Food
    • Makers
    • Music
    • Nightlife
    • Outdoors
    • Sports
    • Weird
    • Wine
    • MORE CULTURE
  • Neighborhoods
    • aerial view of downtown area with buildings and roadways, bridges crossing a river to a smaller set of buildings that expand into the distanceView All Neighborhoods
    • Alberta Arts District
    • Belmont
    • Central Eastside
    • Division/Clinton
    • Downtown
    • Hawthorne
    • Lloyd
    • Mississippi
    • Northwest / Nob Hill
    • Old Town Chinatown
    • Pearl District
    • St. Johns
    • Sellwood-Moreland
    • Williams
    • ALL NEIGHBORHOODS
  • Region
    • RegionView All Region
    • Near the City
    • Columbia River Gorge
    • Mount Hood
    • Oregon Coast
    • Willamette Valley
    • ALL REGIONS
  • Plan
    • Light rail train car driving past people shopping at an outdoor marketView All Plan
    • Portland Maps
    • Portland Visitor Center
    • Where to Stay
    • Tours & Itineraries
    • Transportation
    • When to Visit
    • Accessible Portland
    • Portland Weather
    • COVID-19 FAQ
    • Safety in Portland
    • Plan a Meeting
  • Events
  • Search
i
Peruse local artwork at Alberta Street Gallery in Northeast Portland.
Credit: NashCO
Culture

Arts

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

i
Peruse local artwork at Alberta Street Gallery in Northeast Portland.
Credit: NashCO

Art gallery wanderers, theater lovers and those with a curious eye will find something to marvel at in this creative city. Read on to learn more about Portland’s arts offerings, then check out our events calendar to plan your next trip to The Rose City.

More Portland Events

Visit our events calendar to discover even more things to do in Portland. Search by date, event type and more.

See All Events

Enjoy the Arts

Portland is packed with things to do, including these art festivals and special events.

See events calendar
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Monthly Art Walks in Portland

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

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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.

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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.

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The Portland Book Festival

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

performers on stage at Coho Productions

Fertile Ground Festival

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

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Portland Open Studios

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

a performer on stage

Time-Based Art (TBA) Festival

Portland’s Time-Based Art Festival (TBA) returns every September with 10 days of boundary-pushing performances, visual art and projects that defy categorization.

a saxophone in a red velvet-lined case

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.

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Portland Winter Light Festival

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

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Biamp Portland Jazz Festival

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

Visual Arts in Portland

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

Explore more

On Display

The city's museums and galleries feature work by renowned local and international artists.

More Museums
Two people kissing in front of the \"Love Rules\" sign at Portland Art Museum.

Portland Art Museum

The largest art museum in Oregon and one of the oldest in the country, the Portland Art Museum is central to the city's cultural district, housing a large and wide-ranging collection of artworks.

two people looking at artwork in a gallery

Oregon Center for Contemporary Art

In North Portland find visual art installations and performance art to collaborations with bands, chefs and mixologists, with international curators and partnerships with Oregon art makers, Oregon Contemporary is the cutting edge of visual arts.

A room filled with artwork made by native artists.

Center for Native American Art

The Portland Art Museum's Center for Contemporary Native Art showcases the work of modern-day Native American artists. The innovative gallery hosts annual exhibitions along with a range of related talks and activities co-created by the artists.

5 To Try

Art Galleries

Discover exciting local artists at these galleries located around town.

  • 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.

  • Blackfish Gallery

    This cooperative-owned gallery by shows diverse contemporary works created by its members; currently over 30 Oregon 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.

Performing Arts

Portland's performing arts include music, dance and theater, often combined in unexpected ways.

more than a dozen ballerinas in white tutus on a stage covered in a white mist

Dance in Portland

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

Theatrical cast on a stage

Portland Theater

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

Four large headed scary/funny monsters on stage

Children’s Theater

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

drag queen in blue sequined gown on a stage throws out arms with blue stage lights

LGBTQ+ Performing Arts & Drag

Portland's drag show options include drag queen brunch and a Guinness World Record holder.

a comedian performs on stage at a comedy club

Comedy in Portland

There's always something funny happening in Portland. From stand-up comedy to improv or even comedy classes Portland has any kind of comedy you may be looking for. Portland boasts many stages to bring you fresh, up-and-coming, and touring comedians.

Local Music Scene

Discover Portland through our talented musical artists in every genre.

More music
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The Portland Hip-Hop Scene

Take a deep dive into the past, present and future of the Portland hip-hop scene with our expert guide to the best rap artists, showcases, shops and more.

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Classical Music in Portland

Classical music in Portland isn't just the classics. Classical musicians offer new and innovative works, and an ongoing lineup of inspiring performances, from timeless works to modern interpretations.

Gary Bartz-Alto Saxophone

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.

5 To Try

On Stage

From big to small stages, Portland theaters delight with these local companies.

  • 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. The theatre and the ballroom located above it are also available to rent for private events.

  • 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.

Portland Bookstores and More

There's no better place than Portland to go book shopping, then settle in for a long read.

More Literary Portland
Three people sit and read a book at Mother Foucault\'s bookstore in front of a wall of books.

Portland Bookstores, Beyond Powell’s

Don't stop with the largest independent bookstore in the world; these seven other shops offer an abundance of literary riches.

a close-up of a hand holding the book “The Portland Black Panthers” with bookshelves in the background

A Booklover’s Guide to Portland

From coffee houses with community libraries to writing workshops and a book festival, bookworms rejoice; this is for you.

Powell\'s City of Books

Powell’s City of Books

Covering an entire city block, Powell’s has grown into a Portland landmark and the world's largest new and used bookstore — and its location is at the heart of the city, bridging the Pearl District, downtown and the West End.

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