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Inversion +/-, Lead Pencil Studio, 2012-2013
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.
Posted May 24, 2013
On Monday, June 10th at 7:00PM, BCCTV will host a free screening of short works created by individuals who have experienced homelessness. The films were made at a RACC-sponsored, artist led production lab at Bud Clark Commons (BCC, at NW Irving & Broadway in Old Town/Chinatown) and will be screened at Hollywood Theatre (4122 NE […]
Posted May 23, 2013
Project Background: Artists Patricia Vazquez Gomez and Betty Marin will present their social practice based Welcomeinstallation in the lobby of the Portland Building June 3 – 28. The project was conceived when the artists began to contemplate the connection between the building that institutionally represents the City of Portland and the lives and experiences of […]
Posted May 20, 2013
The artist collective, SpaceCraft Mission to Arts, has completed one of the largest murals funded by RACC’s Public Art Mural Program and will celebrate this collaborative project with a community celebration on Friday, May 24th, 3:30-6:30pm, in the grassy field across the street southwest of the project site. The mural is located on the west […]
Posted May 15, 2013
Local photographer Jonathan Marrs recently installed a series of photographs printed on aluminum at Fire Station 18, 8720 SW 30th Avenue in Portland. A celebration of the project’s completion, with the artist and station crew, will take place on Tuesday, May 21st, from 6:30-8:00pm. The celebration is open to the public. Jonathan spent time […]
Posted May 9, 2013
Artist Dan Corson and RACC are currently installing Nepenthes, a series of four illuminated sculptures along NW Davis Street. These glowing sculptural elements are inspired by the carnivorous plants called Nepenthes, which are named after the magical Greek potion that eliminates sorrow and suffering. By referencing the patterns of native Oregon native and other carnivorous […]
Posted May 8, 2013
RACC and artist Jorge Pardo have begun installing a new Streetcar Art Shelter at NE Broadway and Weidler. This eccentrically shaped sculpture will provide a shelter with “rainy on the outside, sunny on the inside” experience for waiting streetcar passengers. Fabricated of steel, wood and fiberglass, the new shelter measures 35’ long by 18’ wide […]
Posted April 16, 2013
Project Background: “Is Bigfoot real? I hope so, but I’m pessimistic.” This quote from Jacob Sorenson might serve as a tagline for his installation which opens April 29th at the Portland Building Installation Space. Sorenson, known for his elaborately designed and elegantly constructed kinetic sculptures, will present a nature-circus landscape in the space that embodies […]
Posted March 13, 2013
The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) is pleased to announce a line-up of nine new installations by local artists at the Portland Building Installation Space. Over the next twelve months artists representing a wide range of approaches to art making will be featured in 4 week installments. Since 1994 RACC has managed the Installation […]
Posted March 7, 2013
This is the first in a series of residencies for the Portland Archives & Record Center (PARC). The artists will create work that engages and/or is a result of working with the collections and staff at PARC. City Archivist Diana Banning says “We hope that this artist residency will help to breakdown stereotypes of how […]
Posted February 4, 2013
Project Background: Artist Nathan Sandberg has developed a fascination with the repetitive nature of modern life. This fascination began when he started thinking about ways to mark the time he spent performing life’s everyday rote mechanical tasks—putting on socks, brushing teeth, walking out the front door. To both curse and honor the extraordinary amount of […]
Posted January 8, 2013
Project Background: Bellingham artist Margot Myerscombines her drawings, prints and other media to create installations and works on paper. This month she will create a site-specific piece in the Portland Building Installation Space. Inspired by her study of turn-of-the-century scientific illustrations, she’s recently begun working with intricate stencils to describe complex biological forms of radiolaria—microscopic […]
Posted January 2, 2013
A new sculpture, Noble Architect, was dedicated on Friday December 14 at 3:30pm by the artists at NE Alberta Street at 18th. This artwork was selected by a local panel of artists and citizens, and will become part of the City of Portland’s Public Art Collection, administered by the Regional Arts & Culture Council. Artists Ruth Frances Greenberg and David Laubenthal […]
Posted December 12, 2012
WHO: Noble Architect by artists Ruth Frances Greenberg and David Laubenthal WHAT: Sculpture Unveiling WHEN: Friday, December 14, 2012 at 3:30pm WHERE: Corner of NE Alberta Street at 18th NOTES: Artists Ruth Frances Greenberg and David Laubenthal conceived of the sculpture to “mirror the ebullient, raw and wonderful vigor of nature as well as our […]
Posted November 28, 2012
It is that time of year again; the annual City and County employee exhibition in the lobby of the Portland Building opens on Tuesday, December 4th and runs through the holiday season. This “salon style” exhibition, open to all current City or County employees, is a yearly favorite and is anxiously awaited by regular visitors […]
Posted October 4, 2012
Project Background: Using silverpoint to document gesture and movement, artist Linda Hutchins will bring a performance created specifically for the Installation Space to the Portland Building the week of October 22nd. Silverpoint is an old master drawing technique in which actual silver is drawn on a prepared surface much as we apply graphite to paper […]
Posted September 18, 2012
Project Background: Project Everyone is an ongoing video series with the lofty goal of interviewing every person on earth. Creators Stephen Kurowski & Marina Tait bring their open interview station to the Portland Building lobby where they will conduct ten minute interview sessions with volunteer participants. Each interviewee is prompted by the same set of […]
Posted September 6, 2012
Starting this week, the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) is presenting Selections of the Visual Chronicle of Portland at the Basil Hallward Gallery at Powell’s City of Books, 1005 W. Burnside in Portland. This exhibition, featuring 25 works from the collection, has been curated by Marci Macfarlane. An opening reception is scheduled for Thursday, […]
Posted August 29, 2012
Artists have begun creating three new large-scale public artworks in Portland, funded through the 2% for art ordinance as part of the Eastside Portland Streetcar expansion. Artist Jorge Pardo is creating a sculptural shelter at Broadway and Weidler, and Lead Pencil Studiois creating a pair of sculptures on Grand Avenue near the on-ramps for the […]
Posted August 28, 2012
Funding from the Oregon Cultural Trust will help RACC restore three significant sculptures in Portland’s public art collection The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) has received a $5,000 Cultural Development Grant from the Oregon Cultural Trust to support general restoration of three key historic monuments in the City of Portland’s public art collection: George […]
Posted August 10, 2012
Six large scale mural projects are recently completed or underway in Portland this summer – all recipients of grant funding from the Regional Arts & Culture Council. RACC’s public art mural program, financed by the City of Portland, provides funding for community murals that reflect diversity in style and media and encourages artists from diverse […]