Search Visual Arts in Portland
Galleries, public art and avant-garde institutions complete Portland's visual arts scene.
Portland’s thriving and innovative art scene keeps in touch with international trends while remaining true to its Pacific Northwest roots. Events like First Thursday (in the Pearl District) and Last Thursday (in the Alberta Arts District in the summer) draw big crowds, but local galleries, museums and arts organizations continue to churn in the interim. Mainstays like the Portland Institute of Contemporary Art and the Portland Art Museum have full calendars of visiting artist lectures and events that supplement exhibitions around the city. Read on for our guide to the city’s thriving visual arts scene, then head to our events calendar to discover even more things to do on your next visit to Portland.
Holding sway as the premier collecting museum in Oregon, the Portland Art Museum occupies an entire city block in the South Park Blocks. Home to a dizzying array of work from all over the world, it also boasts the Clement Greenberg Collection, a personal look into the taste of one of Modernism’s most powerful critics. Alongside these 20th century masterpieces, the museum also highlights regional contemporary artists at its APEX space, possesses a fine collection of Native American art, schedules regular exhibitions of its collection of world-class prints and drawings and frequently hosts blockbuster events from major collections, both public and private.
Outside of the museum walls, commercial and alternative galleries abound. Some venues have stood the test of time (and the reinvention of the Pearl District), while others are upstarts looking to make a splash with young artists and new media. Cornerstones like PDX Contemporary Art and Elizabeth Leach Gallery show a mixture of local and international emerging and mid-career artists. Their exhibitions run the gamut from photography to abstract painting to more conceptual considerations. Russo Lee Gallery, Augen Gallery and Froelick Gallery all continue this trend, with a mixture of original works from prominent locals and the occasional blue-chip name.
Straddling the area between traditional gallery and alternative exhibition space, PNCA’s 511 Gallery, Adams & Ollman, and Fourteen30 Contemporary stand at the edge of the avant-garde. Meanwhile, the venerable nonprofit Blue Sky Gallery has a long history of advocacy and showing first-rate photography, while Elisabeth Jones Art Center specializes in works with a focus on ecology and social justice.
Alternative Art Spaces
Beyond the more traditional models, some spaces fully embrace the moniker of “alternative space,” playing host to exhibitions, performances, publications and films. The Everett Station Lofts are a group of combined living and workspaces in Northwest Portland, focusing on small galleries and project spaces with an immersive and community-oriented approach. Other exhibition spaces like Building 5 expand on these ideas to showcase emerging artists and more experimental endeavors.
Oregon Center for Contemporary Art in the Kenton neighborhood is less grassroots but works to further a regional understanding of the arts through professional publications, retrospectives and their Portland Biennial. If you want to buy some books, prints or various art objects while also taking in an exhibition, head over to Nationale.
On Display
The city's museums and galleries feature work by renowned local and international artists.
Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA)
Portland Institute of Contemporary Art (PICA) brings internationally and locally renowned performances, installations and artists to their warehouse space in Northeast Portland.
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.
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.
Exploring all of Portland’s art scene can be a daunting task. Luckily, there are multiple maps, calendars and schedules to simplify your art outing. For public art, check out Public Art PDX. Interested in attending First Thursday? Click through to the Portland Art Dealers Association for a smattering of member galleries and related institutions.
Where to See Visual Art in Portland
Explore Portland's visual arts offerings at these local galleries and museums.
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Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA)
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South Park Blocks
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PDX CONTEMPORARY ART
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Elizabeth Leach Gallery
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Russo Lee Gallery
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Augen Gallery
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Froelick Gallery
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Blackfish Gallery
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Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) + 511 Gallery
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Adams & Ollman
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Fourteen30 Contemporary Gallery
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Blue Sky Gallery / Oregon Center for the Photographic Arts
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Everett Station Lofts
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Elisabeth Jones Art Center
Upcoming Visual Arts Events
Check out our editor's top picks for visual arts exhibitions in Portland.
Social Forms: Art as Global Citizenship
This free, citywide art exhibition features 50+ local and global artists at 15+ venues across Portland and promises an exciting opening weekend. Through the theme of Social Forms: Art as Global Citizenship, this year’s biennial is a curated showing of the world’s leading contemporary artworks — some of which will debut for the first time…
Throughlines: Connections in the Collection
Throughlines embraces wonder and curiosity, bringing together artworks from across the Museum’s collections to explore the range of artistic innovation. From diverse geographies, cultures, and time periods, artists have consistently created images, objects, and experiences that ask us to consider ourselves and the world from different perspectives. Visitors will encounter playful groupings that reveal how…
Africa Fashion
The Portland Art Museum is pleased to present Africa Fashion, a major exhibition from the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London that will celebrate the richness and diversity of African creativity, cultures, and histories, using fashion as a catalyst. Spanning the mid-twentieth century to contemporary designs, Africa Fashion explores the vitality of a fashion…
Black Artists of Oregon
Black Artists of Oregon, highlighting and celebrating the work of Black artists in and outside the collection, will deepen awareness of the talented artists that have shaped and inspired artists regionally and nationally. The exhibition is the first of its kind to consider the work of Black artists collectively in Oregon, often underrepresented and unacknowledged….
Veteran's Showcase
The Gallery at the Oregon Society of Artists is proud to present an exhibition dedicated to the artwork produced by US Military Veterans. For over six years, the Oregon Society of Artists has partnered with various foundations to provide free art classes to military veterans. Each November The Gallery is dedicated to showcasing the wonderful…
A Question of Hu: The Narrative Art of Hung Liu
Groundbreaking Chinese American artist Hung Liu (1948–2021) made highly narrative images that foregrounded workers, immigrants, refugees, women, children, and soldiers in haunting, incandescent portraits that mingle Chinese and Western artistic traditions. Liu was born in Changchun, China, and her childhood and youth coincided with one of the most tumultuous periods in Chinese history. After she…
Leonard Baskin, the Great Birdman
Leonard Baskin’s Orthodox Jewish upbringing and deep knowledge of Jewish texts and history are evident throughout his oeuvre. His art, expressed in sculpture and painting, and the printing techniques of lithography, woodcut, etching, and engraving, carries multiple sources of inspiration, including monumental Egyptian and Mesopotamian sculpture, classical Greek mythology and literature, and portrayals of Native…
Mundos posibles / Possible Worlds
The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at PSU is pleased to present Mundos posibles / Possible Worlds, featuring collaborative and participatory work by Mexican artist Nuria Montiel. The exhibition is on view from October 12 through December 2, 2023, with a conversation with the artist and reception on Thursday, November 16 from 5:00-7:00 PM, at…
Yishai Jusidman, Prussian Blue
Yishai Jusidman’s Prussian Blue is a series of paintings rendered almost exclusively in one of the earliest artificially developed pigments used by European painters—Prussian Blue. The chemical compound that makes up this pigment happens to be related to the Prussic acid in Zyklon B, the poisonous product deployed at some of the Nazi concentration and…
First Friday PDX
Located in Portland’s vibrant East Side Arts District, the First Friday Art Walk takes place on the first Friday evening of every month year-round. Offering a gateway into Portland’s thriving arts culture, First Friday PDX includes more than 23 independent galleries, shops, and studios and a street exhibition from April to October. The self-guided tour…
Marcus Fischer–What Was Lost and What Remains
What Was Lost and What Remains is a collection of work addressing themes of loss, generational trauma, and gun violence in America. Still, it is also a container to hold space for these things that aren’t so easy to discuss. Artist Statement: How does loss change us? What is an acceptable amount of Loss? What…
FROELICK GALLERY: Rick Bartow Art Exhibition
Rick Bartow lived and worked in Newport, Oregon until his passing in 2016. Bartow was a Vietnam Veteran, a lifelong musician and songwriter, a widower, an enrolled member of the Mad River Band of Wiyot Indians, and is considered one of the most important leaders in contemporary Native American art. This December Froelick Gallery will…
12 x 12 Art Show And Sale
The Oregon Society of Artists Gallery is proud to announce the 12 X 12 Art Show and Sale. One of our most popular exhibits, the 12 x 12, features affordable artwork, all under $225. The 12×12 Art Show and Sale at OSA will highlight premier works that celebrate art and culture in all of its…
First Thursday with Marci Marsden
First Thursday Artist Reception with Marci Marsden. Marci’s artwork is an expression of her love for color and pattern and influenced by the flow and movement of her modern dance days. Her paintings reflect the joy, determination and whimsy of her deepest self, and the strength that she has cultivated throughout her battle with Scleroderma.
Spring Forward: William Hernandez, Paul Rutz, Linda Cochrane, Amy Daileda and Jodi Burton
Yes, it's December, but time is hurtling forward, and you're invited to Spring Forward into the unknown. Artists that tickle fancies and create exciting and moving narratives have been invited, including painters William Hernandez, Paul Rutz, Linda Cochrane, Amy Daileda, and LK Gallery-represented artist Jodi Burton. Meet all the artists during this First Thursday party,…
Entre Primaveras: Memories of a Migratory Bird by Natalia Cardona Puerta
Entre Primaveras is a mixed media and bilingual solo show by local artist @natsandme. Her new body of work speaks about their recent trip back home to Pereira, Colombia. It touches on the themes of migration, identity, and the meaning of Home as a patchwork of people, food, culture, and nature. Just as migratory birds…
OSA Student, Instructors and Volunteer Art Show
Every work of art is a process – the end result of trial and error, unexpected discoveries, and the collaboration of maker and materials. Artmaking is a lifelong pursuit, an inquiry whose answers only lead to more questions. At OSA students, instructors, and community members show up week after week to engage in the process…
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