11 am – 1 pm, Sunday, May 4
Portland Institute for Contemporary Art
15 NE Hancock St, Portland, OR 97212
You’re invited to participate in the creation of a large-scale, permanent 2D public artwork for Portland International Airport (PDX)! Artist Kate Newby has been commissioned to create “The Sound of Trees,” a 76-foot-long mural that evokes Oregon’s forested landscape through a richly textured surface of glazed ceramic tiles, for PDX Airport. Community members are invited to participate in “Touch Glass,” an urban foraging workshop led by Newby, in partnership with Portland Institute for Contemporary Art and the Regional Arts & Culture Council. During the workshop, participants will collect discarded glass, which will be embedded into the clay tiles and fired, becoming a permanent part of the mural. The mural is anticipated to be installed in late 2025 and debuted to the public in 2026.
Learn more about the commissioned artwork for PDX airport
Kate Newby (b. 1979, Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland, Aotearoa, New Zealand; based in San Antonio, TX) is a sculptor known for her site-responsive installations, architectural interventions, and material-driven explorations. Working primarily with glass, ceramics, and found materials, Newby engages with space’s physical and atmospheric qualities, creating sculptures that emerge from sustained engagement with a place. Her work incorporates elements reflecting a site’s social and environmental rhythms—wind, light, rain, and human and non-human activity traces.