Oregon Contemporary

THANK YOU to all the organizations that have supported Oregon Contemporary & this year's biennial: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘵 🫶

The Artists’ Biennial 2026 is supported by The Ford Family Foundation, Sitka Center for Art and Ecology, The Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation, Autzen Foundation, Multnomah County Cultural Coalition and the Oregon Cultural Trust.

Oregon Contemporary is supported by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, the James F. & Marion L. Miller Foundation, Oregon Community Foundation, the City of Portland's Office of Arts & Culture, and the Oregon Arts Commission, a state agency funded by the State of Oregon and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Other businesses and individuals provide additional support.

Biennial Events in June 🔥 Check out the upcoming + ongoing programs⁠
⁠
First Saturday ✨ Saturday, June 6
🕔 5:00–8:00 PM⁠
Performance at 6:00 PM⁠ (RSVP link on website)
📍 Oregon Contemporary⁠
⁠
For this special First Saturday, musician and installation artist, Joe Kye, in collaboration with botanical artist, Theresa Bear, invites the Portland community to join them in creating Portal, a collective ritual to honor our ancestors. This seance event incorporates musical performance, storytelling, letter-writing, and collective making to inspire conversations with our ancestors, and hopefully, conversations between our ancestors.

KSMoCA Opening + Artist Talk 🕰️ Thursday, June 4
🕕 10:00-11:00 AM
📍 KSMoCA
All are invited as KSMoCA presents a forthcoming exhibition and programming with DeepTime Collective working directly with the elementary students of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School.

Hand2Mouth Theatre: HOME/7LAND 🌆 June 18-21 & 25-28th
🕕 7:00 PM
📍 Zydell Yards
🎟️ Ticket link on our website

HOME / LAND is an immersive journey along the paths of personal and collective memories. Within a context of critical instability, when displacement and forced migrations have caused many to leave their homes and everything they hold dear, audience members are each assigned a temporary unit in a fictional government-run shelter village called Lot 6B.

🖼️ Ongoing Programs 🖼️ ⁠
⁠
March 31 - January 31, 2027
Todd McGrain: Debut of York
📍 Portland Art Museum⁠
The Portland Art Museum debuts this bronze bust of York by artist Todd McGrain.⁠
⁠
April 3 - July 5th
Rememory: A Poem
📍 Ori Gallery⁠
Ebony Frison and Stephanie Adams-Santos present an exhibition grounded in memory as a living, persistent force.
⁠
April 4 - July 5th
Invite Hope: Marcelo Fontana + Wave Collective⁠
📍 Multnomah County Central Library⁠
Marcelo Fontana and Wave Contemporary transform the Multnomah County Central Library into a space for poetic resistance, inviting the viewer to see hope as an active power rather than a passive wish.

Have you checked out 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘵 yet? 🎟️✨

Our 2026 Artists’ Biennial is in full swing, and it’s one you won’t want to miss. Here’s a glimpse of the exhibition through a few detail shots. Stop by and experience the biennial in full this weekend!

2026 Artists’ Biennial: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘵 is on view through July 5.

Gallery hours:
Fri–Sun, 12–5 PM

📸 Mario Gallucci

Some amazing press about the 2026 Biennial 🔥✏️

We’re so grateful for the incredible reception to The Price of the Ticket this month. Huge thanks to our curator, TK Smith, whose vision for this biennial is thoughtful, expansive, and deeply resonant.

Read more on our press page — link in bio.

🗞️ “The Price of the Ticket is Cost-Conscious” — Portland Mercury

🗞️ “Oregon Contemporary Artists’ Biennial explores ‘The Price of the Ticket’ in 2026 art survey” — OPB

POETRY READING 📚️ Part of the 2026 Biennial

📅 May 17th / 4-6pm
📍Ori Gallery

All are invited to an afternoon poetry reading at Ori Gallery featuring the words of Portland-based poets Ebony Frison, Stephanie Adams-Santos, and Makayla Terrell. Rememory: A Poem is a focused exhibition that incorporates visual art and the written word to reflect on memory as something active and persistent that lingers in image, land, and the body. Join us in creating an open space to recall, reflect, and hold grief.

We will be open regular hours for viewing The Price of the Ticket, the Artists’ Biennial and a response to the 250-year anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Our courtyard is also a lovely space to gather, share, and plan your actions together. Stay safe and stay strong! 💪🇺🇸
Artwork by courtesy of

First Saturday with Jaleesa Johnston: 𝘞𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘈𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘴 🪑 ⁠
⁠
🔥 Saturday, May 2⁠
🕔 5:00–8:00 PM / Performance at 6:00 PM⁠
📍 Oregon Contemporary⁠
⁠
For this special Biennial First Saturday, interdisciplinary artist Jaleesa Johnston activates her installation 𝘊𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 with a performance titled 𝘞𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘈𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘴. ⁠
⁠
Created in reverence of Toni Morrison’s Beloved, the work draws on the moment when Baby Suggs gathers the newly emancipated in a clearing to preach love of one’s own flesh. Within the galleries of Oregon Contemporary, Johnston creates her own clearing, inviting us to return to our bodies and find love despite a world that may resist it.⁠
⁠
In addition to the Biennial, new exhibitions will open at our neighboring galleries, Well Well and Carnation Contemporary
⁠
📸 𝘊𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 (2022), Jaleesa Johnston | Photo by Sayward Schoonmaker

The 2026 Biennial is officially underway 🤩

Take a look at some highlights from our opening reception 📷️ More photos from the night are available on our Flickr.

Haven’t visited yet? There’s still time. Stop by during regular gallery hours through July 5 to experience it in person.

The 2026 Artists’ Biennial: The Price of the Ticket runs April 3–July 5.

📸 by Conner Enloe

Biennial Events 🔥 Check out the upcoming + ongoing events happening in May

First Saturday ✨ Saturday, May 2
🕔 5:00–8:00 PM
Performance at 6:00 PM
📍 Oregon Contemporary

For this special First Saturday, interdisciplinary artist Jaleesa Johnston activates her installation Clearing with a performance titled Waiting Amongst the Trees. Created in reverence of Toni Morrison’s Beloved, the work draws on the moment when Baby Suggs gathers the newly emancipated in a clearing to preach love of one’s own flesh. At Oregon Contemporary, Johnston creates her own clearing, inviting us to return to our bodies and find love despite a world that may resist it.

Poetry Reading 📖 Sunday, May 17th�
🕕 4:00–6:00 PM�
📍 Ori Gallery
All are invited to an afternoon poetry reading at Ori Gallery featuring the words of Portland-based poets Ebony Frison, Stephanie Adams-Santos, and Makayla Terrell. Rememory: A Poem is a focused exhibition that incorporates visual art and the written word to reflect on memory as something active and persistent that lingers in image, land, and the body. Join us in creating an open space to recall, reflect, and hold grief.

🖼️ Ongoing Programs 🖼️

March 31 - January 31, 2027�
Todd McGrain: Debut of York�
📍 Portland Art Museum
The Portland Art Museum debuts this bronze bust of York by artist Todd McGrain.

April 3 - July 5th�
Rememory: A Poem�
📍 Ori Gallery
Ebony Frison and Stephanie Adams-Santos present an exhibition grounded in memory as a living, persistent force.��

April 4 - July 5th�
Invite Hope: Marcelo Fontana + Wave Collective
📍 Multnomah County Central Library
Marcelo Fontana and Wave Contemporary transform the Multnomah County Central Library into a space for poetic resistance, inviting the viewer to see hope as an active power rather than a passive wish.

Art & Advocacy: A Conversation with TK Smith and Oregon Artists

📅 Wednesday, April 29th
🕕️ 6-8pm
📍 Soho House Portland
🎟️ Tickets on our site!

Come join us for a night of art and conversation at with TK Smith leading a talk with Lisa Jarrett, Patricia Vázquez Gómez , and Vo Vo. These Oregon artists will discuss advocacy within their artistic practices and the role of the Oregon Contemporary Artists' Biennial in supporting artists of this region.

A number of 2026 Artists' Biennial artists will be in attendance as well. So come enjoy a night filled with inspiration and community with delicious food and drinks for us in the beautiful Music Room. If you can’t attend the event, you can still show your support by purchasing a ticket for an artist to attend in your place.

This event is supported by The Ford Family Foundation and Soho House.