Portland Art Museum
Founded in 1892, the Portland Art Museum (PAM) in Portland, Oregon is the only major art museum between Seattle and San Francisco, showcasing the work of artists from across the Pacific Northwest and the globe. A vital cultural destination and educational resource serving audiences who live, work, and visit the region, PAM is internationally recognized for its special exhibitions and encyclopedic collection. Connecting audiences through the arts and engaging with the stories and ideas shaping our present day, the Museum’s diverse programming reflects the passions, values, and creativity of its community.
A cornerstone of the downtown Portland cultural district, PAM is in the midst of a $111M comprehensive campus transformation to expand and upgrade its public and gallery spaces, adding 95,000 square feet of new or renovated gallery space. Seamlessly connecting the Museum’s original building designed by Pietro Belluschi and the Mark Building, a former Masonic Temple, the new glass Mark Rothko Pavilion will create streamlined circulation across all four floors of gallery space and a transparent welcoming “front door” to the museum. Upon completion in late 2025, visitors will encounter an entirely reimagined, more accessible Museum experience with reinstalled galleries and more intuitive pathways to encounter its collection. The transformation project is among the most significant capital projects in the city, and a catalyzing force in revitalizing a downtown core that has been slow to recover after the pandemic. Additionally, the Museum’s film and new media center, PAM CUT // Center for an Untold Tomorrow opened The Tomorrow Theater on Portland’s Eastside in 2023, creating a new home for cinematic storytelling and extending PAM’s reach to another part of the city.
PAM is home to a collection of over 50,000 objects, including notable holdings of Pacific Northwest art, Native Northwest Coast, Plateau and Western Oregon art; post-WWII American photography; and more than 25,000 prints, drawings, posters, and books spanning 500 years. The collection has a strong sense of place, with art that reflects the regional landscape and culture and works created by generations of artists who have visited, lived, and worked in Oregon including C.E.S. Wood, Ray Atkeson, Carrie Mae Weems, Mickalene Thomas, and Marie Watt. In recent years, the Museum has significantly diversified its holdings, acquiring works by historically underrepresented artists.
Drawing on the strength of its collection and its community ties, PAM’s exhibition programming is created with a thoughtful, progressive curatorial lens to reflect a commitment to artists and to freedom of expression. In 2024, PAM served as co-commissioner for the United States Pavilion at the 60th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, featuring Jeffrey Gibson. Regionally, the Museum serves as an important educational resource, providing school programming and increasing access to its collections by reducing economic barriers to the arts.
Our mission is to engage diverse communities through art and film of enduring quality, and to collect, preserve, and educate for the enrichment of present and future generations.
Members & visitors
Annual membership consists of 23,000 member households, representing more than 96,000 individuals. More than 350,000 visitors are welcomed annually, including more than 50,000 schoolchildren.
Museum campus
Our 2.5-block campus, the cornerstone of Portland’s cultural district, includes the modernist-style Belluschi Building, the historic Mark Building, and an outdoor sculpture court. An underground gallery connects the two buildings.The Belluschi Building was completed in the 1930s, then expanded and renovated in 1969 and 2000.
The Mark Building was originally a Masonic temple built in 1925. The renovation of this building was completed in 2005. The Mark Building now contains curatorial and executive offices, the Crumpacker Family Library, holding 33,000 volumes, event rental space—including two ballrooms and a theater—and the Jubitz Center for Modern and Contemporary Art. In 2023 we began work on the Rothko Pavilion expansion and renovation project. [internal link]
Operations
Our annual operating budget is $22 million
Approximately 157 full-time staff members and 168 volunteers work here
The galleries are open five days a week (Wednesday through Sunday)
MEMBERSHIP
Do more as a member
Connect, reflect, and be inspired—all while supporting the arts in our community!
Membership includes FREE Museum admission and access to all things Museum and PAM CUT: special exhibitions, member events, ongoing programs, lectures, artist talks, camps, classes, film screenings, happenings at the Tomorrow Theater, and more!
Ways to support
Make a difference by giving to the Portland Art Museum
Every gift has the power to provide experiences that invite, inspire, and connect people with art and each other.
When you support the Portland Art Museum through a charitable donation, you help make the arts a vibrant, valued, and sustained part of our community.
Support: https://portlandartmuseum.org/ways-to-support/
VOLUNTEER
Join the Portland Art Museum (PAM) volunteer program and be part of our mission to engage and inspire. By volunteering, you’re connecting with others passionate about art, helping to create a remarkable experience, and sharing your knowledge with the community.
Volunteer opportunities for the Museum, PAM CUT, or the Rental Sales Gallery are a valuable part of our success.
Contact Portland Art Museum:
General information
Portland Art Museum
1219 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR 97205
info@pam.org
503-226-2811
PAM CUT // Center for an Untold Tomorrow
934 SW Salmon
Portland, OR 97205
info@pamcut.org
503-221-1156
