Oregon Contemporary
Oregon Center for Contemporary Art, also known as Oregon Contemporary and formerly Disjecta, is an art center in Portland, Oregon. Since 2010 it has hosted the Portland Biennial, continuing the Oregon Biennial tradition from the Portland Art Museum. The center runs public programs including the Artists’ Biennial, the Curator-in-Residence program, a Special Art on Loan program, and various exhibitions beyond the residency seasons. It also runs the Site program, featuring site-specific installations by Pacific Northwest artists. The Platform resource helps subsidize space rental for local businesses and community projects to strengthen connections with the community.
The Curator-in-Residence program began in 2011 and is the region’s first of its kind. It curates three exhibitions in a year-long season, with each show running up to eight weeks. Curators have included Jenene Nagy, Josephine Zarkovich, Summer Guthery, Rachel Adams, Chiara Giovando, Michele Fiedler, Julia Greenway, Suzy Halajian, Justin Hoover, Lucy Cotter, and the 2022–23 season’s home school.
In visual arts, Oregon Contemporary has hosted solo exhibitions by Natalie Ball, Avantika Bawa, Karl Burkheimer, Tannaz Farsi, Anna Fidler, Chris Fraser, Dan Gilsdorf, Peter Halley, Mark Licari, and Jenene Nagy. The center launched the Portland Biennial in 2010. The Biennial is a major survey of Oregon artists shaping the state's contemporary art scene. The 2019 edition, curated by Yaelle S. Amir, Elisheba Johnson, and Ashley Stull-Meyers, was praised for including new voices and a broader curatorial scope. Past Biennial curators include Cris Moss, Prudence F. Roberts, Amanda Hunt, and Michelle Grabner; the 2024 edition was curated by Anuradha Vikram and Jackie Im, with TK Smith planned for 2026.
Oregon Contemporary began in 2005 as Disjecta, a non-profit aiming to move to a larger 20,000-square-foot space in the North Park Blocks. It opened with a high-profile launch and later moved to the Templeton Building at Burnside Bridgehead. In 2008, Disjecta opened a 20,000-square-foot facility at 8371 N Interstate in the Kenton neighborhood. The center now houses five artist studios, about 3,500 square feet of exhibition space, a 600-square-foot performance space, and open areas for performances and community events. In 2016, founder Bryan Suereth left amid controversy, and Blake Shell became executive director in 2017. On June 14, 2021, it officially renamed itself the Oregon Center for Contemporary Art, or Oregon Contemporary.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 20:35 (CET).