Founded in 1995 to bridge the gap between Portland’s traditional institutions and its emerging alternative spaces, the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA) has consistently innovated new forms for supporting local, national, and international artistic practices while engaging regional audiences.

PICA’s 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, its programs catalyze conversations about contemporary culture.