Everywhere You Look, There’s Art
Published Feb 13, 2009
The Burnside Rocket Building at 1111 E. Burnside St. displays the creative expressions of various artists.
Art can be seen just about everywhere in the Portland region. From the University District and downtown area to the Pearl District, Lloyd District and Old Town/Chinatown, artistic expressions abound – from stunning sculptures, fountains, mosaics and murals to ornately adorned stairways and solar-powered illuminations.
This veritable wonderland of art is no accident but rather a statewide commitment to creating an enduring, uplifting, publicly owned legacy that’s accessible to everyone.
Legislation called Percent for Art designates that at least 1 percent of capital construction budgets in all counties is used for the acquisition and care of public artwork. Portland and Multnomah County have raised their designations to 2 percent.
The collected money goes into a Public Art Trust Fund, which is administered for Portland and Multnomah County by the nonprofit Regional Arts and Culture Council.
As a publicly funded arts advocacy and service organization, RACC also provides grants to artists, arts organizations and schools, along with offering affordable training.
In addition, RACC collaborates with a wide range of agencies and organizations, including the Northwest Business for Culture & the Arts. This business membership organization advocates for the arts and recognizes top business donors to the arts.
“The business community is starting to pay attention to the importance of the arts to the health of the community, and it’s becoming actively engaged in arts activities,” says Eloise Damrosch, executive director of RACC.
Spectrum of Tastes
According to Damrosch, the lion’s share of RACC’s $7 million annual budget comes from public partners led by the city of Portland and followed by three counties and Metro Regional Government. Most of this money goes out the door as grants to arts organizations and artists.
This lively culture of collaboration, fundraising and promotion has resulted in a region brimming with creativity and vitality that’s visible in its wealth of public art.
“I think it’s essential for us to have original artistic expression around us all the time, whether it’s at the swimming pool or city hall,” says Kristin Calhoun, public art manager for RACC. “A public art collection should represent a broad range of styles, media and voices, so it represents the work and thinking of many different artists as well as the spectrum of personal tastes of the citizens.”
One new piece of public art in the works is a 50,000-square-foot, wildlife-themed mural on the Portland Memorial Mausoleum in the city’s southeast quadrant. When completed, it will be the largest hand-painted outdoor mural in the country. “It will be a destination,” Damrosch says.
Public art has a way of drawing a community together and promoting a sense of pride, she adds. “It says to the community, ‘We want you to think about interesting ideas and encounter beautiful things.’ … It adds to the sophistication and the aesthetic well being of a community.”
Story by Rebecca Denton
Photo by Jeff Adkins
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