Portland Arts
From the Portland Art Museum to last Thursday on Alberta, the city's creative community is large, independent, and not interested in waiting for permission.
The Portland Art Museum — founded in 1892, making it one of the oldest on the West Coast — holds a collection of over 42,000 works including significant holdings in Native American and Pacific Northwest art, European masters, and modern photography. Admission is free the first Thursday of each month.
The Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA) runs TBA Festival each fall — one of the most adventurous multidisciplinary arts festivals in the country, featuring performance, visual art, music, and dance from artists who are genuinely difficult to categorize.
The Alberta Arts District in NE Portland runs Last Thursday — a monthly gallery walk and street fair that has been happening since 1997. It's informal, it's local, and it's one of the better ways to see what Portland artists are actually making right now. The Regional Arts & Culture Council manages the city's public art program and artist grants.
Good PDX will build out a curated guide to galleries, public art, open studios, and arts organizations — with a focus on emerging artists and underrepresented voices.