Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA)

Portland Institute for Contemporary Art acknowledges and advances new developments in contemporary art while fostering the creative explorations of artists and audiences.

PICA’s programming supports the experiments of the most vital and provocative artists of our time. Our vision is international, intergenerational, interdisciplinary, and decidedly forward thinking (even when those explorations look back in history). PICA is unique among institutions for working right alongside artists at the increasingly blurry boundaries between forms and at the edge of new ideas. Throughout the year, audiences have myriad opportunities to interact with artists, curators, critics, and cultural visionaries in a direct, in-depth way. From performances to exhibitions to lectures to the annual Time-Based Art Festival, our programs catalyze conversations about contemporary culture.

OUR HISTORY

Kristy Edmunds, a respected young artist and curator, founded PICA in 1995 in response to a widening gap in Portland between the established traditional institutions and emerging alternative spaces. She saw a need for contemporary art programs that would cross disciplines and engage a national group of artists with the existing local artistic dialogue. Without a dedicated exhibition or performance facility, Edmunds began an itinerant program in vacant warehouses and makeshift venues throughout the city. These early years established the adaptable and artist-centric DNA that continues to inform PICA’s practice to this day.