Portland Art Museum. The Portland Art Museum in Portland, Oregon, United States, was founded in 1892, making it the oldest art museum on the West Coast and seventh oldest in the US. Upon completion of the most recent renovations, the Portland Art Museum became one of the 25 largest art museums in the US, at a total of 240,000 square feet, with more than 112,000 square feet of gallery space.
The permanent collection has more than 42,000 works of art, and at least one major traveling exhibition is usually on show. The Portland Art Museum features a center for Native American art, a center for Northwest art, a center for modern and contemporary art, permanent exhibitions of Asian art, and an outdoor public sculpture garden.
The Northwest Film Center is also a component of Portland Art Museum. The mission of the Portland Art Museum is to serve the public by providing access to art of enduring quality, by educating a diverse audience about art and by collecting and preserving a wide range of art for the enrichment of present and future generations.
The museum is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, with accreditation through 2024. Originally incorporated as the Portland Art Association, the museum's roots date to 1892.
Late that year seven prominent business and cultural leaders in the city created the association so as to start a high-quality art museum for a city approaching 50,000 resident