125th Anniversary
Honoring History, Embracing the Present, and Looking Ahead
On December 12, 2017, the Museum marks a milestone anniversary—125 years of bringing the world to Oregon and Oregon to world. During the next nine months, join us as we reflect on our history and embrace the future through exhibitions, programs, interviews, archival photos, and more.
EXHIBITION: Picturing Oregon
Through August, 2019
On the eve of the Museum’s 125th anniversary, Picturing Oregon offers an extraordinary opportunity to reflect on the importance of place and to celebrate the incredible geographic diversity of Oregon, and the artists whose work it inspired. Picturing Oregon presents paintings and photographs inspired by the distinct regions that comprise the state—the Coast, Greater Portland, Mt. Hood/The Gorge, Willamette Valley, Central Oregon, Eastern Oregon, and Southern Oregon. Featuring works from the late-1800s, including Oregon’s pioneer period, and touching on contemporary pieces—all from the Museum’s permanent collection.
PROGRAM: Curators in Conversation
Bi-monthly beginning October 2017
Join us for this program series in celebration of the Museum’s 125th anniversary. Each one-on-one conversation will take place between director Brian Ferriso and the Museum’s respective curators, o ering insight into an area of the permanent collection. Learn about the rich histories of building the Museum’s collection and hear curatorial visions for the future.
- April 5: Maribeth Graybill, Ph.D., The Arlene and Harold Schnitzer Curator of Asian Art
- June 7: Sara Krajewski, The Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art
- August 2: Grace Kook-Anderson, The Arlene and Harold Schnitzer Curator of Northwest Art
- October 4: Julia Dolan, Ph.D., The Minor White Curator of Photography
View past conversations
- Mary Weaver Chapin, Ph.D., Curator of Prints and Drawings
- Dawson Carr, Ph.D., The Janet and Richard Geary Curator of European Art
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for photos from the archives, curator essays, and more.
A History of Engagement
This is a history that is about paying attention to the amazing moments of connection, big and small, that this institution has engaged in since 1892. This book traces a strand of the Portland Art Museum’s history of engagement, with a focus on the work conducted by the Education Department. This selected timeline is by no means exhaustive and instead focuses on strategies that move outside of standard practice, reach beyond the Museum to build relationships, foster community participation, and make clear that a museum can be a center of not only cultural engagement, but civic, social, and community activity.