Portland Art Museum & the Pearl District

ART IN PORTLAND



"Autumn" Gustave Courbet

 Though there are several museums throughout Portland, the Portland Art Museum, founded in 1842,  is the oldest in the Pacific Northwest and offers an extensive collection to its visitors.  The museum's 42,000 objects, 90% being part of the museum's permanent collection, are housed in two connected multi-storied buildings that comprise over 100,000 feet of exhibit space; one building being fully dedicated to contemporary and modern art.  In addition to the main center for the arts, the museum is connected to the Gilkey Center for Graphic Arts and the Northwest Film Center.

In the main gallery, there are four floors offering special exhibits, Asian Arts, 19th-20thc European & American Art, and  strong holdings in Northwest and Native American Art.   In the adjoining Jubitz Center, the four levels consist of NY & Paris schools, Impressionism, Minimalism, Post-1960s and Contemporary Arts.  It is an impressive museum and very well curated. http://www.portlandartmuseum.org/   A slideshow of several works from the museum's collection are included in this evening's blog's slideshow.



L-R: Herschel McGraw, Susan Hodge, & Kerry
in front of D. Slader's work at Gallery 903



After several hours of viewing works at the museum, A. Paul & I drove to several of Portland's neighborhoods, stopping to take in galleries in the Pearl District.    It is here that we met gallery owners Susan Hodge and Herschel McGraw at Gallery 903.  The gallery is part of a collaborative space, shared by three businesses related to the arts.  The work on exhibit at Gallery 903 is diverse; reflecting a strong urban influence.  There are several emerging artists among the gallery's stable of well established artists.  The painting by David Slader in this image is an artist of special note according to Susan .  The artist is a proclaimed,"Digestive Expressionist"  The owners at the gallery would be more than happy to explain this to you.   To see more of this artist's works and those of Gallery 903's other artists, visit http://www.gallery903.com/ . Thank you Susan & Herschel for your time and hospitality.

Following our visit through the Pearl District, home to one of the nation's premier art & crafts festivals on Labor Day Weekend,   http://www.artinthepearl.com/   A. Paul & I traveled across one of Portland's nine steel bridges spanning the Williamette River to the "more colorful" Hawthorne District.  Upon our return back across the bridge, dusk was approaching, creating a phenomenal reflection on the river surface and backdrop to the cool steel bridges.  The effect was incredible and beckoned to be captured in images,and are included in the slideshow.

For anyone who has interest to travel this area, Portland lives up to its reputation of being a city with a small town feel.  Its mass transportation and one way streets make it easily navigable for visitors and the city has so much to offer.  Though we leave tomorrow for Seattle to try to beat the "new" storm, we know there is so much more to visit here (the World Forestry Center, Classic Chinese Gardens, Rose Gardens, and more);  we will have to come back to spend more time on a future trip. 

We bid you all a safe day tomorrow if you are under the winter attack and will catch up  once we settle in Seattle.  Until then, please enjoy the art and city images.