Skip to main content
The premiere First Thursday Street Gallery of the year kicks off tonight in Portland’s Pearl District. The outdoor festival will line Northwest 13th Avenue between Hoyt and Kearney streets and showcase original, handmade artwork by area artists.
While First Thursday gallery receptions and the like happen year-round, the street festival, organized by Urban Art Network, runs from April to October.
It’s also a handy jumping-off point to explore some of the brick-and-mortar art galleries in the neighborhood that, frankly, could use some love. First Thursday in the Pearl has been a fixture of the Portland visual art scene since its founding in 1986.
“Local galleries have continued to support this tradition and stay open, but we’ve yet to really see the numbers of people return for First Thursday like we did pre-pandemic,” says Kristin Solomon, executive director of Blue Sky Gallery. “Arts and culture are the heart of our city. If we want to see a revitalized Portland, that is dependent upon the support for the arts from the general public in our city.”
Tonight at Blue Sky, visitors can attend the opening reception of the 17th annual Pacific Northwest Drawers exhibit. Each year, Blue Sky invites artists in the region to submit photos for consideration. Of 200 submissions, this year’s juror, Aline Smithson (founder and editor-in-chief of the online publication Lenscratch), winnowed the group down to a cohort of 60 artists.
Each artist gets an actual drawer at Blue Sky, the nonprofit home of the Oregon Center for the Photographic Arts, where they can display 10 photos for visitors to sift through all year long until next spring’s cohort takes over. Prints range from about $75-$1,200.
Former WW creative director Mick Hangland-Skill makes his third consecutive appearance in the drawers this year with photographs documenting the Portland Association of Teachers strike. One photo depicts Portland Public Schools students sitting atop City Hall’s replica of the Liberty Bell in November, a fist in the air. Others are portraits of teachers holding signs on the picket lines.
In his artist’s statement, Hangland-Skill says his family history is built on a century of union labor in Portland, starting in the shipyards.
“While I have yet to know the honor of joining a union (such is the artist’s life), documenting the current wave of the labor movement is my attempt at connecting with my family’s past, and supporting my community’s future,” he wrote.
GO: The 17th annual Pacific Northwest Drawers exhibit, as well as works by Toni Pepe and André Ramos-Woodard, opens at Blue Sky Gallery, 122 NW 8th Ave., 503-225-0210, blueskygallery.org. 5-9 pm Thursday, April 4. Free.
A sampling of other First Thursday events:
The Black Gallery: Adriene Cruz “Power Prayer for the Community” on view through April 21. 916 NW Flanders St. theblackgallerypdx.com. First Thursday reception 5-7 pm Thursday, April 4. Free.
Elizabeth Leach Gallery: Lee Kelly “Bennington Suite & Color Studies” and Anna Von Mertens “Elements and Objects.” 417 NW 9th Ave., 503-224-0521, elizabethleach.com. Reception 5:30-7:30 pm Thursday, April 4. Exhibitions on view through April 27. Free.
Portland Art Museum: Free admission to the museum all day for First Thursday, including the new exhibition “Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks.” 1219 SW Park Ave., 503-276-4249, portlandartmuseum.org. 10 am-8 pm Thursday, April 4. Free.
Blackfish Gallery: Alice Christine Walker “Gilding the Lily” and Philip Stork “Reimagining” on view through April 27. 938 NW Everett St. 503-224-2634, blackfish.com. Opening reception 5-8 pm Thursday, April 4. Free.
Laura Vincent Design & Gallery: William Park “Retrospective Hiccup” on view through April 27. 824 NW Davis St.. 503-267-9225, lvdesignandgallery.com. Opening reception 5-8 pm Thursday, April 4. Free.
Waterstone Gallery: Ruth Armitage “Blame It on the Moon: Abstract Nocturnes” on view through April 28. 124 NW 9th Ave., 503-226-6196, waterstonegallery.com. Opening reception 5-8 pm Thursday, April 4. Free.