Cultural Heritage

In this lecture demonstration, members of Hung Dance will provide an introduction to Taiwanese dance company Hung Dance’s movement language, including how their acclaimed work Birdy blends traditional Chinese exercises and materials with contemporary dance. The company will also delve into the inspiration and concepts behind Birdy, followed by a short excerpt of the work. Guests will have the opportunity to have their questions about the dance answered by members of the company. This lecture demonstration will be delivered primarily in Mandarin, with live translation between Mandarin and English.

The Literary Arts Bookstore is pleased to welcome Kimberly Blaeser to celebrate her latest book Red Ants. Blaeser will be joined in conversation by Christopher Diaz.

About the book:

Join Israeli-American storyteller and public historian Yuval Malchi for a look at the lesser-known Americans who helped shape and defend the State of Israel. Through personal stories of nurses, social workers, intelligence operatives, and military leaders, Malchi explores the contributions of figures such as Rose Kaplan, David “Mickey” Marcus, Al Schwimmer, and Hank Greenspun, and their lasting impact on the relationship between the United States and Israel. In partnership with Jewish Federation of Greater Portland.

*The talk is geared toward adults, but welcoming participants ages 13 and up. *

MUST RSVP.

Portland Book Festival welcomes Molly and Meherwan Irani, the husband-and-wife team behind Asheville’s nationally celebrated Chai Pani Restaurant Group. Their flagship restaurant, Chai Pani, was named Outstanding Restaurant by the James Beard Foundation in 2022.

This year, Molly and Meherwan each bring a new book to the table. Meherwan has written No. 1 Best Indian Cookbook in the World: At-Home Recipes from the Streets, Truck Stops, Villages, and Palaces of India. Molly’s Service Ready: A Story of Love, Restaurants, and the Power of Hospitality was published earlier this year. Together, the books offer two very different—and deeply connected—perspectives on food, restaurants, and hospitality.

In celebration of Diwali—the Hindu festival of lights, marked by food, gathering, and celebration—Molly and Meherwan will join their longtime friend Chef Troy MacLarty at Bollywood Theater on Alberta Street for a collaboration. Bollywood Theater will serve a special menu inspired by recipes from Meherwan’s book alongside its own Diwali-inspired menu. It’s a gathering of longtime friends, great food, and two books that reflect different sides of a shared life in restaurants.

Both books will be featured at Portland Book Festival, and Molly and Meherwan will be on hand at Bollywood to meet guests and sign copies.

Poets Victoria Chang (Tree of Knowledge) and Beth Piatote (distant waters) sit down for a conversation on their recent publications andtheir evocative use of nature throughout their poems. Moderated by writer and editor Alyssa Ogi, this discussion promises a rumination on our shared home, oppressive efforts of erasure, and the art and language that we use to understand our world and ourselves.

FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD

A poet watches the limbs of a eucalyptus tree get sawed off: the image persists, refracting and recurring across poems of art, language, selfhood, memory, and loss.

Joan Mitchell said, When I talk about love, I mean loving a tree. When I talk about love, I mean loving where a tree used to be.

Men assess the eucalyptus tree growing on the poet’s street; a crane arrives. The sound of a chainsaw rings in the air and branches begin to fall. This tree-cutting haunts the poet and becomes the locus from which the rest of the collection spirals. It refracts across works by artists such as Pablo Picasso, Joan Mitchell, and Hilma af Klint, whose painting series lends the collection its title and who becomes a model for engaging with the world. At the core of the collection, the long poem “Eureka” examines the violent 1885 expulsion of Chinese Americans from the eponymous California town. Roving, evocative, and intricate, Tree of Knowledge is rooted in Victoria Chang’s crystalline voice and generous, probing gaze, and by certain images —trees, a hanging figure, a branch, fingertips, a briefcase—that resurface like apparitions.

As a scholar of Native American literature and law, Beth Piatote focuses on the endangerment of Indigenous languages. As an activist, she moves against the current of English-language colonization, working to rescue and revitalize the language of her people. Language, she posits, is an expression of land, a means through which we can travel great distances.

distant water brings the reader into the language of our shared home, North America, revealing a sonic world and grammar governed by rivers, kinship, and ancestral knowledge. “In our homes and homelands,” she writes, “we share the language with the plants and animals and waters and rocks and sky.” Inventive and playful, these poems explore the sounds, structure, and wisdom of the Nez Perce language, illuminating its vitality and capacity to organize relationships to time and place. Braiding aural, linguistic, and spiritual ecologies, distant water conveys an understanding that to be in language is to be in place. To be at home.

Join community artist, teacher, and storyteller Drea Robideau to learn Native Games and explore the healing power of play!

Made possible by The Library Foundation through support from The Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Fund.

Todd McGrain’s original bust of York, the enslaved man who was the only African American member of the Lewis and Clark expedition, was secretly installed on Mount Tabor Park in 2021. It was placed on the vacant pedestal where a statue of Oregonian editor Harvey Scott (1830-1910), a known racist, once stood. The surprising appearance of York, with no artist name attached to the work, is a local example of the protest art being created in the wake of political and social unrest. The unsanctioned installation of the original bust made a significant contribution to the spirited dialogues on American history, systemic inequality, and public monuments happening across the nation.

Made of mere plaster and paint, the original bust sustained damage from several acts of vandalism, inspiring McGrain to come forward and offer a bronze version of the bust to the city. This Spring, the Portland Art Museum debuted the bronze bust of York, temporarily, as a part of the 2026 Oregon Contemporary Artists’ Biennial: The Price of the Ticket. In collaboration with Oregon Contemporary and the City of Portland’s Office of Arts & Culture, Portland State University, a community survey was offered to give Portlanders the opportunity to share their thoughts on where the monument should be placed for the long term.

Join us for a thoughtful discussion around McGrain’s act of protest and York as a historical figure significant to the history of Portland and the wider nation. Led by biennial curator and historian TK Smith, the panelists will include: Todd McGrain, artist of the York portrait; Intisar Abioto, artist and curator who recently curated Black Artists of Oregon at the Portland Art Museum; Eric Fredericksen, the public art administrator of the City of Portland; and Zachary Stocks, historian and executive director of Oregon Black Pioneers.

TK Smith is an award-winning writer, curator, and cultural historian. He has over ten years of experience as an independent curator. Most recently, he served as Curator, Arts of Africa and the African Diaspora, Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University. Previously, Smith served as Assistant Curator: Art of the African Diaspora at the Barnes Foundation. Smith’s writing has been published in exhibition catalogues, academic journals, and periodicals, including Art Papers where he is a contributing editor. He has been a visiting lecturer at numerous academic and cultural institutions, including Cornell University. Smith is a doctoral candidate in the History of American Civilization program at the University of Delaware, where he is completing his dissertation entitled, “Granite, Power, and Piss: The Transformation of a Confederate Symbol.”

Intisar Abioto, born in Memphis, TN, is an explorer-artist working in dance, writing, photography, and curation. In long-form projects encompassing the visual, folkloric, documentary, and performing arts, her works consider the breath/ breadth of people of African descent against the expanse of their storied, imaginative, and geographic landscapes. She has produced The People Could Fly Project and The Black Portlanders, among others. In 2017 she began original research on the history and presence of Black artists in Oregon which led to the curation of the 2023 Black Artists of Oregon exhibition at the Portland Art Museum. Black Artists of Oregon: Continuum, an accompanying exhibition catalogue is forthcoming in 2026.

Eric Fredericksen is the public art administrator of the City of Portland, where he oversees the management of the City’s 1,700-piece collection and guides the Percent for Art program. From 2017 to 2025 he led the public art program at the City of Vancouver, BC, with a focus on artist-led approaches to public art: extending open invitations for artists to propose ideas outside the limits of a predetermined site, theme, or medium. He also worked with public and private partners to dramatically increase the visibility and voice of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations on their unceded territories through art commissions in traditional and contemporary forms. He was previously the Waterfront Art Program Manager for the City of Seattle, where he commissioned significant public artworks by Ann Hamilton, Qwalsius – Shaun Peterson, Norie Sato, Buster Simpson, Oscar Tuazon, and Stephen Vitiello. As the founding director of Western Bridge, Seattle, he organized exhibitions and commissions from 2004 to 2012, and he began his career as a writer and editor at Architecture magazine and The Stranger. As an independent curator, he has curated exhibitions at the Contemporary Art Gallery, Or Gallery, and Artspeak, all in Vancouver; the Noorderzon Festival, Groningen, the Netherlands; and Open Satellite, Bellevue, Washington.

Born in 1961, artist Todd McGrain’s early career as a sculptor involved apprenticing in bronze casting facilities, where he gained hands-on experience assisting prominent sculptors of the previous generation. In 1996, McGrain received a Guggenheim Fellowship, enabling him to study major art collections across the United States and Europe, with a focus on Italian Renaissance art. In 2000, his focus shifted to creating public memorials for bird species that have become extinct in the modern era, permanently installed at sites of historical significance to each species. This ongoing project has been widely exhibited at art centers, galleries, and public gardens, including the Smithsonian Institution, Cornell University, and Stanford University.

Zachary Stocks is a public historian, interpreter, and the Executive Director of Oregon Black Pioneers. Zachary previously served as Program Director of Historical Seaport and Visitor Services Manager of Northwest African American Museum. He is a former intern of Colonial Williamsburg and Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, and a former seasonal Park Ranger at Lewis & Clark National Historical Park. He holds a BA in History from the College of William & Mary with a certificate in Public History from the National Institute for American History and Democracy, and an MA in Museology from the University of Washington. Zachary is a 2025 graduate of the prestigious History Leadership Institute, sponsored by the American Association of State and Local History. Zachary lives in Astoria.

• Exhibitions Todd McGrain: Debut of York General accessibility

  Mar 31, 2026 – Jan 31, 2027

  1219 SW Park Ave

Traditional Okinawan Kenpo and Kobudo classes are taught in a small dojo with personalized instruction by Eric Sensei, a 9th dan Shihan. Classes are adult-oriented, and children are welcome when accompanied by a parent for each class, offering families a chance to participate. Remote classes are also available for those who are not local. Monthly rates are offered with no contracts, and the first month is free.

Create an edible sugar skull, or calavera de azúcar, a confection molded from sugar paste and decorated for the Mexican celebration for the Day of the Dead (Día de los muertos). Learn about the history and significance of sugar skulls while decorating your own pre-made calaverita to keep or honor a loved one!

Quantities are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis. For children ages 5 and up with adult supervision.

Japan Institute of Portland Japanese Garden’s Japanese Garden Training Center teaches the traditional skills and techniques for creating and fostering Japanese gardens, while acquainting learners with a garden’s cultural heart. The Training Center offers learners of all levels, from elementary school students to horticulture enthusiasts to seasoned professionals, the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the Japanese garden and its philosophies. It offers workshops, themed tours, school programs, lectures, professional seminars, and design intensives.

Alicia Jo Rabins reads from her new memoir When We’re Born We Forget Everythingat Portland Art Museum in the Asian Art gallery (Level 1, Room 108), paired with Watanabe Sadao, Adam and Eve.

From the creator of the internationally acclaimed singer-songwriter project Girls in Trouble, a memoir following her journey from a secular Jewish childhood to becoming a modern queer woman owning ancient teachings and finding her own meanings in them, refracted through feminist interpretations of the lives of Biblical women.

As a self-described ‘90s suburban high school weirdo, Alicia Jo Rabins spent her time practicing violin and smoking cigarettes behind the mall while secretly dreaming of setting out on a spiritual quest no one around her seemed to understand. She often found herself drawn to the more ritualistic and rigorous Judaism that her parents had abandoned to assimilate and “become American.” In college, a chance meeting led her on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to study rabbinical texts (and play bluegrass fiddle on the street for cash). But that two years of immersing herself in traditional observance was only the start of a journey full of twists and turns.

When We’re Born We Forget Everything follows Alicia’s relentless, often embarrassing, sometimes enlightening search for the sacred in everyday life as she tours America playing with a klezmer-punk band, falls in and out of love, scrapes through the initiations of motherhood, and witnesses the beauty—and danger—of mysticism. Rabins braids this personal narrative with the hidden stories of biblical women, uncovering a path of queer identity, feminist awakening, and spiritual self-invention. This lyrical, searching memoir is a meditation on longing, lineage, and what it takes to find meaning in a fractured world.

“Alicia Jo Rabins writes as if she’s in conversation with the divine itself. . . .This isn’t merely a book to be read—it’s a scripture for the searching heart, a reminder that the border between the human and the holy is, and always has been, porous.”
—Reza Aslan, author of Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth

S. A. Cosby’s All the Sinners Bleed meets Percival Everett’s Erasure in this literary thriller following the grandson of a famous Black actress from the 1920s to the 1940s, now a filmmaker himself, who returns to his grandmother’s cabin retreat in the California mountains only to encounter the legacy of her rage born in Old Hollywood. Interviewed by Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya (Helen House).

Award-winning author Tananarive Due returns with the follow-up to the multi-award-winning The Reformatory in this generational novel of rage. With flashbacks to Johnny’s grandmother—who brushed shoulders with giants like Lena Horne, Clark Gable, and Hattie McDaniel—this novel explores three generations, beginning with Mazelle Washington’s life as a young actress. Fifty years after Mazelle’s death, Johnny will discover the secret she kept and nurtured since she was a child, when she had a dark wish come true.

A monster lurks outside Mazywood, hidden for generations, and Johnny brought his family to its hunting grounds.

Choreographer Lai Hung-Chung makes dances of striking beauty and intention. “Birdy,” his captivating signature work for Hung Dance, moves between suspense and explosive energy, between the weight of tradition and the pull toward something new. Hung Dance blends traditional Chinese arts, including tai chi, Peking Opera, and classical Chinese music, with contemporary dance technique and driving electronic music, creating work that is poetic and rhythmic at once. What audiences see on stage is a world in constant transformation, where bodies bend and resist, images linger, and the tension between holding on and letting go becomes the dance itself.

TAIPEI CITY, TAIWAN

Birdy

“…a dreamy sensibility with astonishing athleticism in culturally sensitive modern dance performance.” —Charlie Smith, Pancouver

Sponsored by George & Nancy Thorn. White Bird’s Uncaged Series Sponsor: Ronni Lacroute

The Friday and Saturday performances will have pre-show talks. Come early to hear from the dancers from 6:15–6:45 PM. No ticket needed.

Join us November 3rd for the Hung Dance Lecture Demonstration, FREE with RSVP here .

Mikis Theodorakis, one of Greece's most treasured and prolific composers, was widely known for film scores, such as the iconic "Zorba the Greek". This concert pays tribute to Theodorakis prolific body of work, including some of his lesser-known pieces and compositions that highlight Theodorakis' role as a symbol of resistance.

Whether your taste runs to folk or classical music, this concert has something for you. The Kombos Collective (including artists from San Francisco, Washington, DC and local Portland artists) will perform a range of Theodorakis' most beloved songs — pieces as historically significant as they are musically beautiful. This includes "Ballad of Mauthausen," set to the poetry of Holocaust survivor Iakovos Kambanellis, and widely regarded as one of the most beautiful songs ever written about the Holocaust. In addition to live music, attendees will learn about the enduring cultural significance of Theodorakis' music.

This program is organized by the Hellenic-American Cultural Center & Museum, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of Greece and Greek Americans in the Pacific Northwest.

Interested in practicing a more sustainable gift-giving season? Join librarian Alicia Yokoyama and together learn from Creativebug's Megumi Inouye – runner-up in Scotch Brand’s national contest for America’s Most Gifted Wrapper – how to elegantly wrap tins and bottles with Furoshiki, a traditional Japanese cloth used to wrap and transport items. Megumi will teach you the traditional wrapping style, as well as a shortcut that will have you actually looking forward to wrapping.

This event is sponsored by the Friends of the Lake Oswego Public Library. Participation is free and all materials are provided, but registration is required, as the program is limited to 10 participants.

This event takes place in the Library Meeting Room on the 2nd floor.

Lake Oswego Public Library is located at 706 Fourth Street, Lake Oswego. For more information, contact Alicia Yokoyama at 503-534-4228 or ayokoyama@lakeoswego.city.

The videos shown in class can be accessed anytime by visiting https://www.creativebug.com/lib/oswegolibrary, creating an account, and typing in your Lake Oswego library card number. For more holiday sustainability tips, visit the City of Lake Oswego's sustainability website at https://www.ci.oswego.or.us/sustainability/holiday-sustainability-tips

Tina Chang reads from her new poetry collection Lion at Portland Art Museum in the Native American Art gallery (Level 2, Room 215), paired with Sara Siestreem, fastened to the rock (blood, sweat, and tears).

In Lion, Tina Chang mines personal and collective memory to explore safety and danger, visibility and invisibility as an Asian American woman. Throughout the collection, Chang responds to multi-hyphenate women artists, including Haena Yoo, Hồng-An Trương, Astria Suparak, and a collective whose work paid tribute to the life of Christina Yuna Lee, a young woman who was killed during the height of anti-Asian hate crimes. Responding to art across various media—text, illustration, painting, video, and sculpture—Lion sparks cross-disciplinary dialogue on Asian American perspectives, surveillance, and the myth of the model minority.

As the aftermath of the pandemic is examined, so too are the structures of bias, racism, and violence that continue. The collection’s title explores the word’s cultural history, composite Chinese iconography, and lion-centered explorations of strength and mastery. Lion traverses the closeness and distance between the racialized self the world views and the perceived self who endures and survives.

“An urgent exploration of Asian American identity from a poet with a ‘fearless imagination.’”–Tracy K. Smith, winner of the Pulitzer Prize

Pre-ball Workshops (3 pm–5 pm) In the Portland area, there will be three Sunday pre-ball workshop sessions: Oct 18: Caller: Lindsey Dono, Music: Erik Weberg, George Penk, Lisa Scott Oct 25: Caller: Lindsey Dono, Music: Erik Weberg, George Penk, Mark Douglass Nov 1: Caller: David Macemon, Music: Erik Weberg, George Penk, Lisa Scott At: A Renaissance School of Art and Science · 234 S Bancroft St, Portland, OR 97239 Suggested donation is $10 - $20. NOTE: We want to protect the floor, so please bring dancing shoes or warm socks. The ball workshops are designed for learning the dances on the ball program and are not intended to be an introduction to English country dance. Each of these workshops will focus on different ball dances and styling tips. Familiarity with English figures and geography will be assumed at the workshops. If you are new to English country dance, please attend the PCDC Friday Night English Dance as often as possible prior to participating in the workshops.

Sharon Gan, founder of Heart Strings Mandarin, will lead children and their parents as they sing, move, play instruments, and tell stories in Mandarin, English and American Sign Language. All levels of Mandarin fluency from absolute beginners to native Mandarin speakers are welcome.

Program presented in partnership with Friends of the Tigard Library.

A talk by Glynnis Fawkes.

How does a cartoonist go about adapting a work of history, specifically Eric H. Cline’s 1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed? In this talk Fawkes will describe the process of interpreting Cline’s text in comics, an exercise during which she repeatedly asked herself how she might tell this story visually. Through page compositions and dramatizations in which historical figures (such as Ramses III) speak, she imagined characters for whom we have no record offering commentary and opinions. To guide the narrative, she introduced two new young characters, Pel (of the Sea Peoples) and Shesha, (an Egyptian scribe) who ask the central question of the book: Why after three prosperous centuries did the civilizations of the Eastern Mediterranean Bronze Age suddenly come to an end?

Glynnis Fawkes is the co-author with Eric H Cline and illustrator of 1177 BC: A Graphic History of the Year Civilization Collapsed (Princeton University Press). She is also the author-illustrator of Charlotte Brontë before Jane Eyre (Little, Brown)and Persephone’s Garden (Secret Acres), among other books, and her comics have appeared on the website of The New Yorker. She has worked as an archaeological illustrator around the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean and teaches at the Center for Cartoon Studies in Vermont.

Sponsored by the Archaeological Institute of America and Reed's department of Greek, Latin, and Ancient Mediterranean Studies. Free and open to the public.

Join us for a talk with Dr. Nazanin Hedayat Munroe, Mary Ausplund Tooze Endowed Visiting Professor of Islamic + Ancient Art!

From luxury silks to patched wool, dress across the early modern Islamic world communicated the inner and outer states of its wearers through a shared language of regional and religious codes. In this lecture, Dr. Munroe examines how clothing and textiles expressed social status, political allegiance, spiritual devotion, and personal taste.

Nazanin Hedayat Munroe is Director of Textiles and Associate Professor of Fashion at City University of New York. An artist and art historian, she is author of several books and articles, including Sufi Lovers, Safavid Silks and Early Modern Identity (Amsterdam University Press, 2023/Routledge, 2025), winner of the R.L. Shep Award from Textile Society of America.

This talk is made possible by the generous support of the Mary Ausplund Tooze Endowed Visiting Professor of Islamic & Ancient Art fund.

Image: Man's Robe (Jama) with Poppies, 17th Century (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 29.135)

Diwali, “the festival of lights,” is a holiday celebrated all across India. In collaboration with the Indian-American community, NWCT is excited to bring the festivities back to The Judy. Create a beautiful rangoli, make a lantern, learn a diya (lamp) dance, and enjoy savory and sweet Indian treats.

Free to attend with a suggested donation of $10 per family.

RSVPs are strongly encouraged.
All ages welcome.

James Spooner joins PAM CUT for a screening of his film Afro-Punk, followed by an author talk for his new book It Starts With Anger. Books will be available for sale on site.

It Starts With Anger is a coming-of-age graphic memoir exploring race, identity, and rebellion through James Spooner’s teenage years in 1990s New York into his young adulthood in the early 2000s. Confronted with systemic racism, microaggressions, and Nazi extremism within punk spaces, Spooner traces how reactionary anger evolved into a creative force and a path to self-determination, along the way following the founding of the Afro-Punk movement, his eventual decision to leave the company, and an ongoing raw examination of the tensions between underground culture and mainstream success.

While not a traditional graphic memoir, It Starts With Anger combines black-and-white, zine-inspired visual elements including photos, illustrations, and cartoon panels with traditional narrative in a unique package that recounts the story behind Afro-Punk. James Spooner has not talked publicly about his reasons for quitting Afro-Punk previously, and the book is a damning indictment of its corporatization. But more importantly, it also offers a look at issues of Black identity, representation, and the lack thereof in a movement that had often prided itself on allyship, while being completely myopic to all the ways it fell short in that regard as a scene that was ironically both liberating and alienating for the Black people drawn to it.

ON SCREEN: Afro-Punk

2003. Directed by James Spooner. Runtime: 1 hour 6 minutes.

This film, which many may assume is a historical punk documentary, is actually an honest and needed treatment of race and identity. Punk and Hardcore music are simply the microcosm in which it is told. First-time director, James Spooner, in telling this story, has opened new dialogues on these crucial subjects both intra- and interracially. Many times funny, sometimes sobering, a wake-up call to America. An examination of the duality of racial identity that DuBois called “double consciousness.” What could have been “The Bad Brains Story” is a story about kids, alienated by two cultures and two communities. Many of these punk and hardcore kids have never questioned their role in the punk scene or the black community until their interviews, and it’s obvious as they struggle on camera to reconcile a fragmented self.

This program is co-presented by Literary Arts as part of the Cover-to-Cover program.

Lidong marks the beginning of winter on the traditional Chinese solar calendar. Before the cold settles in, give yourself one slow morning: warming teas brewed gongfu style, the garden turning gold outside the window, and 80 minutes that belong entirely to you.

Hosted in a private, hand-built teahouse in SE Portland, this small-group gathering (16 guests maximum) is led by Fengxia, a landscape architect who designed and built the teahouse and its Japanese-style garden herself. You will taste several seasonal teas, learn the basics of gongfu brewing, and leave with a quieter mind.

Advance booking required.

How We Show Up Closing Panel November 15, 2026 Admission: $10 general admission, $5 for members with code on back of membership card Location: Auditorium, OJMCHE Share × " class="share-btn"> Share on Facebook &text=How We Show Up Closing Panel" class="share-btn"> Share on Twitter Email Sunday, November 15 | 2-3:30pm What does civic participation look like? How has the Jewish community shaped Oregon throughout its history? Panelists will discuss these questions and more in a lively discussion exploring Jewish civic engagement in Oregon, from building towns and holding office to advocating for civil rights, immigrant communities, and social justice. Speakers include Ellen Eisenberg, lead advisor to the exhibition and preeminent Western Jewish scholar; Ellen Rosenblum, Oregon’s former attorney general and first woman elected to the role; Paul Solomon, criminal justice advocate and grandson of federal judge Gus J. Solomon; and Portland City Councilor Elana Pirtle-Guiney. This program is presented as part of How We Show Up: Oregon Jews in Civil Society, An America 250 Exhibition . About the Panelists Ellen Eisenberg holds the Dwight and Margaret Lear Professorship in American History at Willamette University. Her published work includes five books on American Jewish history and, particularly, the history of Jews in the American West, including National Jewish Book Award finalist The First to Cry Down Injustice? Western Jews and Japanese Removal during WWII and a two-volume history of Jews in Oregon, Embracing a Western Identity: Jewish Oregonians, 1849–1950 and The Jewish Oregon Story, 1950–2015. A former federal prosecutor and state trial and appellate judge, Ellen Rosenblum was first elected as Oregon’s 17th Attorney General in November 2012, and was reelected in November 2016. She is the first woman to serve as Oregon’s Attorney General. As Attorney General, Rosenblum has focused on standing up for the most vulnerable Oregonians. Her priorities included consumer protection and civil rights, as well as advocating for and protecting Oregon’s children, seniors, immigrants and crime victims, and those saddled with education-related debt. She currently leads Freshfields’ State Attorneys General (State AG) practice. Ellen and her husband have two children and live in Portland, Oregon. Elana Pirtle-Guiney was elected as a District 2 City Councilor in November 2024. She has spent her career standing up for working families – as a union organizer, a policy expert, an

One Nation brings together contemporary artists who explore the ideals and contradictions embedded in the American promise. Drawing on the national motto E Pluribus Unum — “Out of Many, One” — the exhibition reflects on how a diverse society strives toward unity while confronting social, political, and cultural divisions.

Across painting, photography, sculpture, textile, and mixed media, the artists consider themes central to American civic life: immigration and belonging, protest and dissent, labor and economic justice, religious freedom, racial inequality, and the enduring power of democratic ideals.

Personal histories and collective memory intersect throughout the exhibition. Portraits of leaders and everyday citizens appear alongside symbolic images of journeys, borders, and shared responsibility. Together, these works ask viewers to consider not only what unites Americans, but also what challenges the nation’s commitment to liberty and justice, and invites reflection on the role individuals and communities play in shaping the country’s future.

Join for a free guided tour on August 16. RSVP here.

This fall and winter, L’École Buissonnière invites you to a monthly Café Littéraire, a French conversation class rooted in literature, seasonal culture, and thoughtful exchange.
Inspired by French cafés as places of ideas, debate, and imagination, these gatherings offer a slow, intimate approach to the French language.
Each 90-minute session opens a thematic doorway through short literary texts, guided conversation, and gentle creative practices.
The focus is not performance or fluency at all costs, but presence, curiosity, and pleasure in thinking together.
Each month highlights a seasonal cultural moment in France, including traditions that shape language and collective imagination.

Toussaint: Memory & Invisible Connections
La Toussaint : honorer les absents
Explore French traditions of remembrance, the symbolism of flowers and cemeteries, and the ways literature, photography, and seasonal rituals keep memory alive across generations.

Portland Japanese Garden’s Tea Ceremony Workshop offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the traditional practice of Chanoyu, or the Way of Tea. Experience the art of tranquility, mindfulness, and omotenashi, whole-hearted hospitality.

It is not an exaggeration to say that through tea, one can understand much of Japanese culture. Tea’s influence can be found in many of the nation’s most beloved artforms, including arranging flowers, calligraphy, incense, ceramics and lacquerware. Japanese gardens are also deeply intertwined with tea ceremony. The four principles of tea, wa (harmony), kei (respect), sei (purity), and jaku (tranquility), are explored by the gardeners of Portland Japanese Garden in their work every day.

Guided by skilled instructor Jan Waldmann, Sosui, the focus of this workshop is to learn to be a guest in the tea ceremony, an important aspect to this historic tradition. Participants will learn the proper etiquette for attending a tea ceremony, including how to receive and consume sweets and matcha, and most importantly, the reasons behind each of the steps. Additionally, you will gain insight into what it entails to be a host— understanding the occasion and seasonality, attention to aesthetics, careful preparation, and the thoughtful gestures made toward the guests.

Participants will first attend a presentation of tea ceremony in our Cathy Rudd Cultural Corner alongside visitors to the Garden before they are taken into their exclusive workshop in the Yanai Classroom.

Participants will first attend a presentation of tea ceremony in our Cathy Rudd Cultural Corner alongside visitors to the Garden (2:00-2:30pm) before they are taken into their exclusive workshop in the Yanai Family Classroom (2:45-4:15pm).

No previous experience is needed. Students will sit in a chair at a table, not kneeling on a tatami mat.

Urasenke Konnichian of Kyoto is one of the major establishments within Japan that has preserved the tradition of Chado or the Way of Tea.  From the first Urasenke generation, Sen no Rikyu (1522-91) to the current headmaster Zabosai Genmoku Soshitsu XVI (b.1956 -), the Sen family lineage has devoted great effort to fostering the philosophy of Tea through the simple words of Wa – Harmony, Kei -Repect, Sei – Purity & Jaku – Tranquility. Over the years Urasenke has established connections in over 21 cities worldwide.

What can South Korea teach us about tradition and life in a global society?

Join us for a 12-day faculty-led program in Seoul, South Korea, exploring how cultural traditions, rapid modernization, and global influence shape everyday life. Discover how South Korea’s transformation from postwar recovery to a cultural and economic powerhouse reflects connections among collective identity, innovation, and global competitiveness.

Through museum visits, cultural experiences, and explorations of Seoul’s urban landscape, you’ll examine the intersection of history, technology, media, and society. Experiences include visiting Gyeongbokgung Palace in traditional Hanbok, the Samsung Innovation Museum, K-Pop media sites, and a professional KBO baseball game, alongside visits to traditional markets and the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

Open to students from all majors, this program is especially suited for students interested in global studies, business, media, sociology, anthropology, international relations, and the arts.

Program Dates: June 22–July 3, 2027
Course: KOR 330 U-Section
Prerequisite: None
Program Leader: Young-Ju Han, Korean Language Program

Information Session: November 9 at 11 a.m. — KMC 580
Education Abroad Fair: November 18, 11 a.m.–2 p.m. — SMSU 296/298. Explore the Fair
Prerequisite: CH 426

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'Who can be a Japanese Emperor?: Japan's Insistence on Male-Line Succession'
A Presentation by Prof. Thomas Naruse, Kokushikan University
Hosted by the Center for Japanese Studies

　The Japanese imperial system has been facing a declining number of imperial family members. Under the current system, only male members of imperial family are eligible for succession. However, at present, there is only one male member under the age of 50. While there are 5 female members under 50 years old, since current legislation stipulates that female members leave the imperial family upon their marriage, there are concerns about the shrinking number of imperial family members.

　Regarding this situation, the Japanese Diet and government are considering countermeasures. While there is strong public support for allowing a female emperor, the Diet and government continue to insist on succession through the male-line. As of June 2026, the government is drafting amendments for Imperial House Law to deal with the situation, but the policy of maintaining male-line succession remains unchanged.

　In this lecture, Prof. Naruse will examine why the Japanese Diet and government continue to adhere to male-line succession and what lies behind this policy. Beginning with the history of the emperor system and the rules governing imperial succession, he will discuss the current challenges facing the imperial system and the measures proposed to address them, how and why the Japanese Diet and government insist on male-line so strongly.

12:45 PM, Thursday, November 12, 2026
Fariborz Maseeh Hall Room 333
Free and Open to the Public
Please use the Broadway Entrance

For more information on the Center for Japanese Studies and our upcoming events, please visit: https://www.pdx.edu/japanese-studies

Join Chef Zach for an evening of crafting Chapathi and Paratha, two beloved traditional Indian flatbreads. These unleavened breads are flaky, buttery, and perfect for pairing with curries, dipping into hot chai, or even enjoying as a meal on their own when filled. In this class, we'll learn to make a single dough and transform it into both chapathi and paratha, with the paratha filled with flavorful curried potatoes. Dipping sauces covered too!

What to expect:

• Class will include all instruction, tools, recipes and ingredients.

• There will be some demo, and some time for hands-on cooking.

• Wine & beer available for purchase during class.

• Our breads will contain wheat flour, oil, butte and chili. Please inquire before registering if you are unsure if this class will be a good match for your dietary needs.

About our Instructor:

Zach Goldman came up in New York City kitchens, working from dishwasher to chef. Looking for more out of life, he sold everything and wandered the US on a motorcycle. He landed in Portland - because it's wonderful - and he likes foraging for Oregon Chanterelle mushrooms. Besides cooking at Cookshop, he teaches private cooking lessons, consults on home kitchen renovations, and works in wineries in the Willamette Valley. He lives in Northeast with his partner, Kayleigh, and their cat, Bren.

The whole family is invited for a joyful and informative discussion with picture book artist & author Michaela Goade. Michaela's beautiful, award-winning artwork for the picture book Berry Song inspired the immersive early childhood space at East County Library, merging literacy, play, art, and connection with nature.

Pruning pines to achieve the look they have in spaces like Portland Japanese Garden requires meticulous care and years of learning. In this demonstration, Pete Putnicki, Japanese Pruning Specialist and former Senior Gardener at Seattle Japanese Garden, will discuss the maintenance of pine trees.

This program will start with a tour of the Garden focusing on pine trees, followed by a lecture and demonstration. The demonstration will focus on candling, needling, growth regulation, and pruning techniques. Participants will have a chance to experience pine needling themselves with an instructor guiding them along the way.

• This one-day demonstration is limited to 15 participants.

• Participants should bring their own lunch, a reusable drinking cup or water bottle.

• Educational material will be provided.

• Event fees are non-refundable and this event takes place rain or shine, so please dress appropriately for the weather.

Step into autumn’s splendor as the garden transforms with the colors and textures of chrysanthemums, a flower of nobility and longevity in Chinese culture. Stroll among 81 mum varieties, cascading displays along the waterfall, and sweeping floral sculptures that transform the garden into a living gallery.

From dazzling floral artistry to hands-on learning opportunities, Chrysanthemum Festival is one of the garden's most anticipated annual celebrations—and an unforgettable way to experience Lan Su in fall. Explore this beautiful flower and time of year.

Nov. 5-8 — Nights of the Golden Flower: Immerse yourself in the illuminated works of 18 talented local floral artists and featured designer Toni Tibbits as they interpret this year’s theme, Golden Blooms Upon Autumn Waters. Plus, enjoy gentle music by Lulu Guzheng Studio, dance performances by YZ Dance Academy, floral jewelry-making, and all-ages fun as you wander among glowing lanterns and vote for your favorite designs of the showcase. Sensory Night November 14.

Join Repair PDX for a hands-on workshop where you will learn to repair your ceramics with a modern take on an ancient art form. Limited seats!

Learn the history of how the Kalapuyans and Chinookans signed treaties, were placed on temporary reserves and then removed to Grand Ronde. David G. Lewis, PhD and member of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, is a recognized researcher, scholar, writer and assistant professor of anthropology and Indigenous studies at Oregon State University.

Join Portland Japanese Garden to connect with the culture of Japan through the nation’s signature beverage: sake!  This exciting and exclusive afternoon tasting will feature products from Joto Sake, our official sake partner. Founded in 2005, Joto is one of the leading artisanal portfolios of its kind in the U.S. They represent ten multi-generational, family-owned jizake (local) breweries located throughout Japan.

A representative from Joto Sake will present special sake offerings paired with small bites and will walk guests through the structure, history, and brewing process of a variety of sakes that are deeply connected to Japanese culture.

Sake is a drink that pairs well with virtually any food. During the event, you will have the opportunity to mix and match different pairings with each sake that is offered, featuring food prepared by Ippai, so you can take what you learned and experiment with your own sake and food pairings at home!

More details, such as the sake that will be presented, are coming soon!

Calling all lindy hoppers, balboa-heads, Charleston nuts, and shag enthusiasts! Come on out to Portland's longest-running swing dance, bringing you fantastic live jazz music on Norse Hall's magnificent floor.

Be ready for a night of four-to-the-bar swing tonight with Portland's own Rhythm Wrecker Dance Band!! ​ The band is formed by dancers for dancers, and they know a thing or two about music. ​ Known for their solid swing sound, this band is committed to making danceable music for all you swing dancers. ​ The band is inspired by vintage sounds with an emphasis on 1940's "transition era" sound that blends swing, jump blues, and vintage rock n' roll. ​ The band loves to play tribute to the Black and African American bandleaders and musicians of the time with adapted arrangements of well-known classics and lesser-known cuts during this masterful era of jazz music.
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Our Foundations Lesson is an hour-long beginner lesson from 6:45PM-7:45PM (and is included with the dance cover!). ​The lesson is great for folks who are new to dancing, curious about dancing, or just love dancing! ​Topics will lean more towards Lindy Hop or Charleston depending on the band playing each Thursday night. ​We hope to see you there before the dance starts at 8pm and we kick off another fun night!

Cover $20 | All Ages
Beginning swing dance lesson included in dance cover

*Schedule*
6:30 Doors open
6:45 - 7:45 Beginning swing dance lesson w/ Dianne and Dan
8 - 9 Rhythm Wrecker Dance Band
9 - 9:30 DJ Break w/ Dianne
9:30 - 10:30 Rhythm Wrecker Dance Band

The downstairs bar and lounge will be open. You may bring your drinks upstairs into the ballroom.

If you have accessibility concerns, please contact PLS.

Learn about and discuss Afrofuturism with author and scholar Walidah Imarisha. Whenever we try to envision a world without war, without violence, without prisons, without capitalism, we are engaging in an exercise of speculative fiction. Walidah Imarisha will uncover the truths buried in the fantastical – and inject a healthy dose of the fantastical into our search for truth.

Join Rabbi Cantor Eyal Bitton for a musical journey through Moroccan and Sephardic synagogue traditions. Through live demonstration, audio and video examples, we will explore the distinctive sounds of nusach, tefillah, Torah reading, and Haftarah chanting, comparing Moroccan and Sephardic traditions with Ashkenazi ones. Come listen, learn, and discover the sacred logic behind the melody.

Questions? Email Mel!

Portland Mezzo-Soprano and Composer Dr. Lisa Neher launches Pacific Art Song, a concert series dedicated to Western Classical Art Song, with a program titled Summer Nights. A celebration of French song, the program transports audiences to the era of intimate salons, where friends gathered in living rooms to enjoy music shared up close. The centerpiece of the program, Hector Berlioz’s Les Nuits d'été (Summer Nights), explores longing, loss, and love across five songs that set vibrant poetry with closely interwoven parts for the voice and the piano. The work is the first major song cycle written by a French composer. Complementing Berlioz’s groundbreaking piece are masterworks by Pauline Viardot and protégé Lili Boulanger, brilliant French women composers long marginalized because of their gender. Completing the program are two world premieres composed by Neher herself. Chanson d’automne (Song of Autumn) and L’heure du berger (The Hour of the Shepherd) set poetry of Paul Verlaine. Dubbed “Prince of Poets” by his peers, Verlaine’s name is synonymous with French song.

Why art song now? “We’re living in an era of 15-second TikTok videos and the constant dopamine rush of notifications on our devices,” says Neher. “But what we’re all longing for is something real and embodied. This concert is an invitation to slow down and connect with your senses, to hear and see and feel the music in a community.”

Performers:
Dr. Lisa Neher, mezzo-soprano and composer
Hannah Early, piano
Susan McBerry, guest lecturer

There will be a pre-concert talk by Susan McBerry at 2:40 p.m.

Portland Art Museum celebrates the Deaf Community with Art in ASL on the 3rd Sunday of every month. Deaf Community members and their companions enjoy complimentary admission all day and are invited to participate in guided Look with Me sessions in the galleries between 12-3pm. Visitors of all ages are welcome.

Some Look with Me sessions will be led in ASL and some will be led in English. All sessions will have interpretation. Look for signs in the galleries to find locations of each session.

Join us for slow looking sessions from 12-3 pm then come to the Finley Studio for artmaking and social time from 3-5 pm.

Look With Me does not require special tickets. Museum tickets can be purchased online or at the box office.

Accessibility:
The museum galleries are wheelchair, mobility device, and stroller accessible. Complimentary stools, folding chairs, manual wheelchairs, and assistive technology are available upon request. All museum accessibility info is available here. Please contact us with any additional access needs at [email protected] or leave a videophone message at 503-420-3169.

Art in ASL is presented in partnership with the Deaf Look Club, a program of Bridge City Montessori.

Are you feeling the call to slow down, honor your roots, and align your life with the changing seasons? Join Finnish author, storyteller, and coach Reetta Ranta for an inspiring, guest lecture on her U.S. tour this November.

Visit Portland Japanese Garden to learn a method of ikebana that takes the beauty of this Japanese artform and puts it into a tiny form! Nana Goto Bellerud, Branch Director of Sogetsu Portland, will teach a basic introduction to ikebana, a Japanese and unique approach to flower arrangement that translates to “living flowers” or “giving life to flowers.” She will be focusing on miniature arrangements. No previous experience is needed.

The Sogetsu School of Ikebana believes ikebana can be practiced anytime, anywhere, by anyone. The three main elements designers use are line, color, and mass, with an emphasis on the designer’s individual artistic expression and creativity. Miniature ikebana adds an additional layer of nuance.

“When making the miniature ikebana of Sogetsu, we first look for small, used items such as shot glasses or seashells,” Bellerud shares. “Original vessels can be made of soft metals or clay. After the container has been chosen, we consider the plant materials. We carefully observe the different parts–petals, pistils, stamens, fruits, leaves, branches, and stems—to make new discoveries of their distinctive appearance.  Then we combine the containers with plant parts to create a unique micro-world.”

Participants will first attend a public ikebana demonstration at 1:15pm in the Cathy Rudd Cultural Corner alongside visitors to the Garden. The demonstration will cover the basic concepts, techniques, and tools of ikebana.

Following the demonstration, workshop participants will be taken into their exclusive workshop in the Yanai Family Classroom. Beyond simply producing a beautiful work of art with flowers and natural objects, Bellerud will show you how ikebana explores artistic concepts such as balance, contrast, and negative space. During the workshop, participants will create three basic miniature arrangements in very small vessels, which will be provided by the instructor.

Space is limited to 18 participants. All tools will be provided. The workshop fee includes a set of three unique mini vases and the plant materials used in the workshop, which participants will take home after the workshop. Registration fees are non-refundable.

The Sogetsu School is known for its willingness to explore new ideas and materials. The founder, Sofu Teshigahara, broke away from tradition in 1927 to establish his new school based on the belief that anyone can create ikebana anywhere, and with almost anything. The Sogetsu philosophy advocates that ikebana should be part of a lifestyle, appreciated by many people from all over the world, rather than being considered an exclusive aspect of Japanese culture to be enjoyed by a limited number of people.

Friday, November 6, 2026
6:00-8:30pm
with Elsy

Why Do Haitians Eat Pumpkin Soup (Soup Joumou)?

Soup Joumou is much more than a delicious Haitian pumpkin soup. It is a powerful symbol of freedom.

During the colonial era in Saint-Domingue, now Haiti, enslaved Haitians prepared elaborate foods for their French colonizers while living under a brutal system of slavery that denied them freedom and dignity. Soup Joumou was one of the dishes the slaves were not permitted to enjoy.

After Haitians defeated the French and declared their independence in 1804, this pumpkin soup (Soup Joumou) became a symbol of their newly won freedom. Today, Haitians around the world continue the tradition of eating Soup Joumou on January 1st to celebrate Haiti’s Independence Day and honor the courage, resilience, and freedom of their ancestors.

In this hands-on class, we’ll explore the history and cultural significance of Soup Joumou while learning different ways to prepare this delicious Haitian soup.

We’ll also make French baguette and Haitian bread from scratch to enjoy alongside our Soup Joumou.

• Students may choose to use beef in their Soup Joumou or keep it vegan.

• Registration for this class will close on Wednesday, November 4 at 6pm, so we have time to shop for ingredients and prep class materials.

Please view our FAQs before registering.

Join us to discover and celebrate Día de los Muertos, an important Mexican holiday honoring loved ones.

We will tell stories, create block print artwork, and experience a vibrant performance by Folkloric Ballet of SW Washington. We’ll also share traditional pan de muerto and other festive treats. Come explore, create, and celebrate together!

Events are offered in partnership with La Casita Art Gallery & Cultural Center.

Participe con nosotros para descubrir y celebrar el Día de los Muertos, un importante día festivo mexicano que honra a los seres queridos.

Contaremos historias, crearemos grabados en bloque y presenciaremos una interpretación vibrante del Ballet Folklórico del Sudoeste de Washington. También compartiremos el tradicional pan de muerto y otras delicias festivas. ¡Venga a conocer, crear y celebrar junto con nosotros!

Los eventos se ofrecen en colaboración con La Casita Art Gallery & Cultural Center.

Black Arts PDX is a display of ephemera and an extended documentary trailer that foregrounds the history of the Black visual arts community in Northeast Portland. Curated by Dr. Kiara Hill, this rotating installation sheds light on the practices of key figures who were instrumental in shaping the perception of Black arts and culture in Portland. Whether utilitarian or decorative, these materials highlight ways Black artists sought to beautify the city and utilize their technical skills to address the needs of Black people. Black Arts PDX stems from a collaboration between Dr. Hill and Cultural Bearers Archive, Inc., on an archival project dedicated to preserving the unique lived experiences of Black artists and cultural workers in Portland.

CREATE SPACE is an interactive environment within the Black Art & Experiences (BAE) galleries that invites visitors to slow down, reflect, and respond. Designed as a rest area, reading room, art studio, and community gathering space, it supports connection, creativity, and dialogue. Through artist-led programs, hands-on activities, and quiet areas for reading or reflection, visitors can engage with the Black Art and Experiences gallery in a personal, generative way. This first year, CREATE SPACE is activated alongside Conductions: Black Imaginings II, which centers Black performance art and its archives. Both spaces emphasize process — research, writing, improvisation, and experimentation — as essential to the creative journey.