Walking Tour: Portland Architecture and Its Beaux-Arts Legacy

Join this leisurely stroll through downtown to steep yourself in Portland’s own Beaux-Arts traditions. Beaux-Arts architecture is associated with the highly influential École des Beaux-Arts in Paris where numerous 19th- and early 20th-century American artists and architects studied. Like its counterparts in painting and sculpture, the architectural style emphasized classical Greek and Roman forms and features, along with elaborate detailing, massive plans, and heavy masonry. This grandly formal style transformed America’s major cities between the 1880s and the 1920s after being introduced at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Soon, Beaux-Arts architecture was swept along by the turn-of-the-century City Beautiful Movement, which left in its wake a sea of magnificent public buildings of polished stone, from state capitols and courthouses to city halls, train stations, and museums. Stops on the Portland walking tour will include: The First Christian Church, U.S. National Bank Building, and U.S. Customhouse.

These tours are organized in partnership with the Architectural Heritage Center of Portland, whose knowledgeable guides will lead the discussions.