Public Art

The region’s public art enlivens urban and rural landscapes and promotes dialogue among people of all ages and backgrounds. Through a variety of public-private partnerships, RACC helps acquire and maintain community-owned artworks in public places. A Public Art Advisory Committee oversees RACC’s public art program, which is among the oldest and most highly regarded public art programs in the country.

Team Members to Contact

Kristin Law Calhoun
Director of Partnerships and Programs
kcalhoun@racc.org

Salvador Mayoral IV
Deputy Director of Public Art
smayoral@racc.org

Sophie May
Public Art Project Manager
shook@racc.org

News

RACC shares update on the Thompson Elk restoration plan from the Portland Parks Foundation

Released to media on 10/3/22 from the Portland Parks Foundation CONTACT: Randy Gragg, 503-799-2655; rgragg@portlandpf.org Thompson Elk Fountain Restoration Feasibility Study Update Portland Parks Foundation’s team completes study and preliminary cost estimate The Portland Parks Foundation has completed its feasibility study and preliminary cost estimates for the restoration and reinstallation of the Thompson Elk Fountain. […]

RACC announces public art collaboration with Port of Portland at the Portland International Airport

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  November 14 2022 Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) announces the launch of new public art projects in collaboration with the Port of Portland (Port) at the Portland International Airport (PDX) Portland, OR – The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) is pleased to announce a unique collaboration with the Port of Portland (Port) to install […]

RACC unveils Going Public! A Mural Skill Building Intensive

  We are pleased to announce in partnership with the City of Hillsboro, Miller Paint, and TriMet a collaborative opportunity supporting public art in our community. This project is also supported with funds from the City of Portland. Envisioned over the last two years, this program has come to fruition with guidance by administrators Salvador […]

RACC launches new Fresh Paint Mural in partnership with Open Signal

Artist Jerome Sloan Comes Full Circle with New Mural, Growth Now on view at Open Signal on NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd as part of Fresh Paint, a partnership with the Regional Arts & Culture Council Jerome Sloan spent his youth in Portland’s Irvington neighborhood, starting his creative journey as a spray painter in […]

The Installation Space’s Inaugural Exhibit: KSMoCA’s Present Days

The Installation Space’s inaugural art exhibition in the newly renovated Portland Building includes a selection of ephemera from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School Museum of Art (KSMoCA), an art museum within an elementary school in Northeast Portland. This display includes a selection of previous artworks and comments by Lomarion, a fifth-grader at the school […]

Black Portland Matters Art & Placemaking Initiative launches two new projects featuring local photographer Richard Brown and writer Renée Watson

The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) has teamed up with the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) to support local Black-led art projects around the city. Along the median strip on NE Holladay Street, between the Oregon Convention Center and the Hyatt Hotel and parking structure, the temporary public art project that began in 2019, […]

Call for Artists: Midland Library | Exterior Canopy Artwork Design

Approved by Multnomah County voters in 2020, the Library Capital Bond Project will include expansions and renovations to seven branch libraries; building an East County flagship library; adding gigabit speed internet to all libraries; and creating a materials handling and distribution center, also known as the Library Operations Center. The renovation and expansion of Midland […]