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.
Galleries and Museums
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, Charles A. Hartman Fine Art, Augen Gallery and Froelick Gallery all continue this trend, with a mixture of original works from prominent locals and the occasional blue-chip name.
Nearby, younger spaces like Upfor focus on video, new media and installations that speak to Portland’s place in the ever-decentralizing art world. 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.
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 S1, Yale Union, and the Portland Museum of Modern Art expand on these ideas to showcase emerging artists and more experimental endeavors.
Disjecta, in the Kenton neighborhood, is less grassroots but works to further a regional understanding of the arts through professional publications, retrospectives and Disjecta’s Portland Biennial. If you want to buy some books, prints or various art objects, while also taking in an exhibition, head over to Ampersand or Nationale, where their galleries thrive alongside commercial spaces.
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.
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Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA)
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Portland Art Museum
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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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Charles A. Hartman Fine Art
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Augen Gallery
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Froelick Gallery
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Upfor 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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Yale Union
Upcoming Visual Arts Events
Kumoricon
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…
Siren Nation Festival
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…
Mumvember
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…
Noritaka Tatehana: Refashioning Beauty
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…
Handmade NW
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…
Wild Arts Festival
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….
Portland Winter Light Festival
Brighten your February with glowing sculptures and thousands of twinkling lights at the annual Winter Lights Festival.
Volcano! Mount St. Helens in Art
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…