The Arts

For the fifth year in a row, Portland has been named one of America's "Top 25 Arts Destinations" by the culturally savvy readers of AmericanStyle magazine, who voted the "Rose City" one of the "most stimulating and artistically inviting art destinations" in the country. Visit our calendar of events page for a comprehensive list of arts events.

Here's a sampling of Portland’s vibrant arts scene:

Arts
Galleries
Festivals
Artists

Portland Art Museum

Celebrating the visual arts for more than 110 years, the Portland Art Museum (PAM) is the oldest museum in the Pacific Northwest. One of the 25 largest museums in the country, the PAM’s 85,000 square feet of space accommodates blockbuster exhibitions and the centers for Native American art and Northwest art. Sculpture garden, museum café and gift shop. 1219 S.W. Park Ave. 503.226.2811; www.portlandartmuseum.org

Portland Center for the Performing Arts

This multi-venue complex is home to the Oregon Symphony, Portland Center Stage, Oregon Ballet Theatre, Tears of Joy Theatre, Portland Opera and Oregon Children’s Theatre. The Portland Opera also presents a season of touring Broadway productions. See www.pcpa.com for a calendar of performances.

Portland Gay Men’s Chorus (PGMC)

Founded in 1980, PGMC is the nation’s fourth-oldest gay-identified chorus. The group has released four professional CDs and performed more than 40 specially commissioned pieces and world premieres. www.pdxgmc.org

Portland Lesbian Choir

The Portland Lesbian Choir is committed to excellence as a performance group and to performing lesbian/gay-positive music with a special emphasis on music by, for and about women. The group has been singing and touring the Northwest since 1986. www.plchoir.org

Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA)

PICA creates an annual playbill of exhibits and performances that stretch the definition and boundaries of art. Dedicated to advancing contemporary art by engaging audiences in a critical creative dialogue, PICA’s offerings are staged at a variety of venues throughout the city. Information: 503.242.1419; www.pica.org.

Rose City Gay Freedom Band

An organization comprised of a marching band, concert band and swing band, the Rose City Gay Freedom Band offers concerts year-round, including an annual appearance by the marching band in Portland’s Pride celebration. www.rcgfb.org

Triangle Productions – Pride Series

Founded in 1989 as a predominately gay professional theater company, Triangle Productions has expanded its repertoire by offering individual series of avant-garde and mainstream plays and musicals. Its Pride Series more directly explores gay themes. Tickets: 503.239.5919; www.tripro.org.

White Bird Dance

Portland’s premiere dance presentation company, White Bird brings internationally renowned and emerging dance companies to town for two dance series. Past performers include Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane dance Company, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, Trisha Brown Dance Company and Mark Morris Dance Group. Information: 503.245.1600; www.whitebird.org.

Maryhill Museum of Art

Take a scenic drive along the Columbia River to visit one of the Northwest's most enchanting cultural destinations. Housed in a spectacular Beaux Arts mansion on 5,300 acres, Maryhill Museum of Art features special exhibitions and world-class permanent collections, including more than 80 works by Auguste Rodin; European and American paintings; objects d'art from the palaces of the Queen of Romania, who was a close confident of founder Sam Hill; Orthodox icons; Native American basketry; and the renowned Théâtre de la Mode, featuring small-scale mannequins attired in designer fashions of post-World War II France.

35 Maryhill Museum Drive
Goldendale, Wash.
Phone: 509.773.3733
www.maryhillmuseum.org

Back to top

Galleries

First Thursday

On the first Thursday of every month galleries and shops in Portland’s Pearl District, Old Town and downtown neighborhoods stay open late (6-9 p.m.) to present new exhibitions and invite the public to mingle with the artists. www.firstthursday.org

Last Thursday

Complementing First Thursday is Northeast Alberta’s “Last Thursday” event, which falls on the last Thursday of each month (6-9 p.m.). The Alberta arts district is a relatively new enclave of galleries, studios, shops and restaurants. For more information visit www.artonalberta.org.

Back to top

Festivals

June

Portland Pride Festival - Pride Northwest

Portland Pride showcases the diversity and talents of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender communities in a two-day festival, culminating in a parade on Sunday morning. The festival at Waterfront Park will have local and national speakers and entertainers, as well as vendors from around the country.

October

The Portland Lesbian and Gay Film Festival

This annual festival screens some 100 films and attracts more than 7,000 filmgoers during its nine-day run. www.plgff.org.

The Imperial Sovereign Rose Court’s Coronation Ball

The Imperial Sovereign Rose Court is a nonprofit organization dedicated to having fun while raising money for charities within the LGBT community. Its annual Coronation Ball is a drag extravaganza. www.rosecourt.org

Back to top

Portland Portraits: Three artists who helped put Portland on the cultural map.

Walt Curtis is Portland’s "Unofficial Poet Laureate." His novel, Mala Noche, was originally published in 1977. A decade later Gus Van Sant selected Mala Noche for his directorial debut and created the film that launched his anti-Hollywood movie-making career.

Gus Van Sant moved to Portland from New York in the early 1980s. Director of films such as Drugstore Cowboy, My Own Private Idaho, To Die For, and Good Will Hunting, Van Sant has established himself as one of the most influential voices in independent films.

Bill Plympton, native Portlander and well-known animator, won the Cannes Film Festival jury prize in the short-subject category for Push Comes to Shove in 1991. The Peckerneck Poet, his 1998 documentary on Walt Curtis, features the man reading his work and expanding on his outlandish life, loves and art.

Back to top