Oregon Cultural Trust

09/05/2026

National Endowment for the Arts data shows that arts and culture industries in Oregon contribute $11 billion and over 70,000 jobs to the economy!

Learn more about the sector's contributions in the latest Oregon Business Matters podcast by Oregon Business & Industry, featuring Amy Lewin, director of arts and culture for the Oregon Arts Commission and Oregon Cultural Trust. Amy converses about how the arts make an important contribution to Oregon's economy and the well-being of Oregonians.

Listen to the podcast here: https://bit.ly/4qLWV7X

09/01/2026

Heads up -- the deadline for 2026 Oregon Arts & Culture Awards nominations is approaching quickly!

This is your chance to recognize the people, organizations, communities and businesses shaping creative and cultural life across our state.

Nominations are open through September 4 across seven categories, from the Emerging Cultural Innovator Award to Lifetime Achievement, Youth Engagement, Business of the Year and more.

Winners will be celebrated December 1 at an evening event that also marks 25 years of the Oregon Cultural Trust, followed by a full-day Summit on December 2.

Nominate someone who makes Oregon's culture thrive at: https://bit.ly/3U9Eeie

Photo: Caro Building Mural, downtown Roseburg, Oregon.

08/29/2026

This month, Bend resident Ellen Waterston begins her second term as Oregon’s Poet Laureate!

Since starting the position in 2024, the author has visited 24 of Oregon's 36 counties. She plans to visit the remaining counties and encourage more poetry in public life. Her newest project, P!PP (Poetry in Public Places), is about encouraging poetry in everyday space, and she wants to create more opportunities for young poets to share their stories.

Learn more about Ellen on our website! https://www.culturaltrust.org/oregon-poet-laureate/

Her next scheduled appearances will be:

8/31-9/3: Lost in Place Writing Intensive, Summer Lake

9/19: Interview with Oregon ArtsWatch, Sunriver

9/25: Dedication of Spurs Sculpture, Prineville

10/28: Ellen Waterston in a reading with novelist Claudia Hinz, author of "Safekeeping," Broadway Books, Portland

11/5-11/7: "Writing around Harney County," workshop presented by Harney County Library and Malheur Wildlife Refuge

08/27/2026

Are you working in a creative field, whether as an independent artist or freelancer, for-profit or a nonprofit? We need to hear from you!

Oregon's Arts & Culture Program, which provides cultural infrastructure through the Oregon Arts Commission and the Oregon Cultural Trust, has launched a statewide survey to help define and measure our creative economy, in partnership with regional economics and policy firm ECOnorthwest.

Oregon's creative economy is a powerhouse, supporting thousands of jobs and fueling the identity, vibrancy and quality of life we love about this state. We want to see it more clearly, and we need your voice to do it.

It only takes about 5 minutes for individual creative workers, a bit more for organizations. Your input will help shape stronger policies, better planning and richer community conversations statewide.

Take the survey by September 11, 2026: https://bit.ly/4xwJ5sg

Photo: The Eugene Symphony plays an annual outdoor concert at the Cuthbert Amphitheater in Eugene.

08/22/2026

: We're accepting nominations now through September 4 for the Oregon Arts & Culture Awards! They will be presented December 1 at an Awards Celebration in Portland.

Learn more in this story from Oregon ArtsWatch!

Awards will be given in early December in categories ranging from traditional arts to cultural innovation, youth engagement, lifetime achievement and more.

08/19/2026

Save the dates! Join the Cultural Trust and the Oregon Arts Commission in December for the 2026 Arts & Culture Awards and Summit at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland.

✨ Tuesday, December 1: Arts & Culture Awards evening - We'll celebrate and recognize the cultural leaders, organizations, business and communities whose work advances innovation, access, artistic excellence and community impact.

✨ Wednesday, December 2: Arts & Culture Summit - Oregon’s cultural ecosystem is essential civic and economic infrastructure. The Summit will gather cultural organizations, funders, Tribal representatives, policymakers, and more for a day of learning, alignment and conversation.

Nominations are underway NOW for the Arts & Culture Awards! Share your nominations and learn more today! https://www.culturaltrust.org/summit/

08/16/2026

Through our Cultural Development Grant, the Cultural Trust helps support the rich storytelling of OPB's long-running TV program "Oregon Experience."

Co-produced with the Oregon Historical Society, the documentary series explores Oregon's history through deeply researched, complex narratives that take viewers all across the state. Now in its 20th season, "Oregon Experience" shares the the past in ways that inform our shared future.

Your support of the Trust provides funding for a variety of cultural nonprofits, including those that share and preserve the history of our state. Learn more! https://www.culturaltrust.org/

Image: From an episode featuring the Kam Wah Chung and Company Museum and Interpretive Center in John Day. Photo courtesy Oregon Historical Society.

08/13/2026

In this story, the Portland Business Journal shares why National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Mary Anne Carter prioritized visiting Oregon!

We were honored to join Carter's to Portland on Friday as part of her tour through several Western states to meet with local and state arts and culture leaders. Through multiple stops across the community, Chairman Carter spent the day seeing firsthand the work that public arts and culture funding makes possible across Oregon.

Over the past five years, the NEA has invested more than $18.5 million in our state, funding that reaches communities with limited access to private investment.

Learn more about Carter's thoughts in the story!

A Trump appointee charms Portland arts leaders >> See the full article below ⬇️

08/11/2026

Congratulations to the Portland Street Art Alliance, a Trust Cultural Development Grant recipient, on the vibrant artwork of the Clatskanie Mural Festival!

The town of Clatskanie, Oregon now has six new murals as part of the festival. And they are a part of the community that you can experience:

Hayden Senter painted "Bounty" at Clatskanie Farmer Collective and "Refuge" at Turning Point Community Center.

Matt Schlosky painted "Bird Song" at Checkmate Park and "A Slice of Logging History" at Colvin's Pub & Grill, with the background completed by youth volunteers during a Community Painting Day.

Julia Alexis Hunkler painted "Where the Wild Things Grow" at NW Connection Trading Post.

Local artists Tracy and Scott MacGregor unveiled "The Land Remembers And So Do We" at the Clatskanie Farmer Collective.

Dollars donated by Oregonians like you fund the Cultural Trust and efforts like the Mural Festival! When you give to a qualifying nonprofit and then the Cultural Trust, you multiply your impact AND receive a tax credit! Learn more: https://www.culturaltrust.org/donors/

08/04/2026

The Oregon Cultural Trust and Oregon Arts Commission gathered last week for an evening of conversation and connection in Coos Bay!

The convening brought together local creatives, community leaders and cultural champions to celebrate how arts, culture, heritage and humanities strengthen communities across the region. We shared ideas, forged new bonds and dreamed about what's next for Oregon. Thank you to everyone who joined us - we look forward to continuing the dialogue in the days to come!

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