Oregon Cultural Trust

10/23/2026

We were honored to be a part of celebrating Oregon businesses showing up for Oregonians during the Portland Business Journal’s Corporate Philanthropy Awards!

As the Cultural Trust enters its 25th year, we’re sharing the word about how culture is vital to strong economies. In fact, the creative economy supports roughly 70,000 jobs in the state.

Congratulations to all the amazing businesses recognized! Thank you for supporting Oregon.

Learn more about the Cultural Trust: https://www.culturaltrust.org/donors

10/20/2026

The Oregon Cultural Trust has 1,700 reasons to celebrate. Here are five. 🎉

From the coast in Bay City to Baker City, Salem, Southern Oregon and Portland, these Cultural Development grantees are creating new stages, stories and gathering spaces for their communities.

Give to the organization you love, then match your gift through the Oregon Cultural Trust to help culture flourish across the state.

Find your reason 👉 heyor.ca/HFXNCL

10/19/2026

-- Every year, a portion of Cultural Trust funding contributed by donors goes toward supporting five organizations that ensure arts, cultural, heritage and humanities is accessible across the state?

One is the Oregon Arts Commission! The Arts Commission provides leadership, programs and grant opportunities for cultural nonprofits and artists. It's one more way the Trust invests in the vitality of Oregon.

Images: Works by artist Nancy Watterson Scharf, who just opened her her exhibition "Convergence: Our World Through Nature's Eye" in the state Capitol as part of the Arts Commission program Art in the Governor's Office. You can see her artworks now through February 26!

10/14/2026

There’s still time to register for the Oregon Arts & Culture Awards and Summit, Dec. 1-2 at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland!

Policymakers, business leaders and cultural entrepreneurs from every region of Oregon will spend two days together exploring what comes next for our creative sector. Make sure you have a seat at the table.

Dec. 1 | Arts & Culture Awards Celebration, 5:30-8:30 p.m.
Kick off Giving Tuesday by honoring the remarkable people behind Oregon’s creative landscape. We’ll also mark 25 years of the Oregon Cultural Trust and look ahead to the next 25.

Dec. 2 | Arts & Culture Summit, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
Be among the first to see the new Creative Economy Report. Then join breakout sessions designed to build shared understanding and a stronger path forward for arts and culture statewide.

Register now 👉🏻 https://bit.ly/4BghvSL

Thank you to our event partners: Oregon Community Foundation, Oregon Humanities, Oregon Heritage, Oregon Historical Society, M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust

Awards and Summit possible with support from: The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, The Ford Family Foundation, Roundhouse Foundation, Travel Oregon

10/08/2026

Today we celebrate 25 years of the Oregon Cultural Trust. 🎉

Since 2001, Oregonians have funded the Cultural Trust to support the museums, theaters, libraries, festivals, and artists that make Oregon, Oregon. Almost 1,700 cultural nonprofits are part of that network now.

Thank you to every donor, partner, and artist who got us here.

The next 25 years start with you. 1,700 reasons to give. Find yours: heyor.ca/HFXNCL

10/01/2026

Congratulations to the World Forestry Center, which recently received a Cultural Trust grant to support its new exhibition "Lookout Landscape."

The exhibition explores the iconic lookout tower, trail culture and backcountry gear through installation art, architectural design, material culture and forest ecology. It features the work of David Buckley Borden and an interdisciplinary, collaborative team of scientists, artists and designers. "Lookout Landscape" is open through February 28, 2027.

When you support the Cultural Trust, you invest in arts, culture, heritage and humanities in every corner of Oregon! Learn more: https://www.culturaltrust.org/donors/

Photos: Sarah Marks

09/24/2026

Here's a great new tool available from our friends at Oregon Heritage to make it easier to access assistance in preserving and rehabilitating historic properties: the Historic Tax Credit Readiness Toolkit.

Check it out!

NEW OREGON HERITAGE RESOURCE!

The federal Historic Tax Credit supports projects that preserve, adaptively reuse and rehabilitate historic properties with a 20% tax credit for work on historic properties. From 2016-2026 rehabilitation projects using the HTC have generated $446 million in investment across 53 projects in Oregon.

Oregon Heritage has a new Historic Tax Credit Readiness Toolkit to help more historic property owners take advantage of the program and improve historic properties in Oregon.

Check it out here: https://www.oregon.gov/oprd/OH/Pages/Tax-Incentives.aspx

09/23/2026

Make your perspective count for arts, culture and tourism!

Right now, our partners at Travel Oregon are gathering input through the Oregon Tourism Industry Partner Survey, conducted with the state’s seven regional destination management organizations.

If your work connects to Oregon’s tourism economy—and for many arts and cultural organizations it does,—this is a chance to weigh in. Responses help guide Travel Oregon’s 10-Year Strategic Vision and inform decisions on grants, marketing, infrastructure and visitor management statewide.

Take the survey 👉🏻 https://bit.ly/4ixTQGo

09/22/2026

Cultural Trust grantee Ballet Bend takes the stage for the first time this Friday and Saturday, September 25 and 26, at the Tower Theatre!

The inaugural program brings together artists from the San Francisco Ballet, Charlotte Ballet and Portland’s Open Space Dance for two nights of classical and contemporary ballet in Bend.

When you support the Cultural Trust, your funding helps grow new cultural endeavors like Ballet Bend in every corner of the state.

Learn more + tickets: https://balletbend.org/september-ballet-bend-presents/

09/16/2026

Registration is officially open for the Oregon Arts & Culture Awards and Summit, returning to the Oregon Convention Center in Portland December 1 and 2.

This two-day gathering brings together artists, cultural organizations, funders, Tribal representatives, policymakers and statewide partners to celebrate excellence across Oregon's arts, culture, heritage and humanities and to strengthen the cultural infrastructure our communities rely on.

The evening of December 1 honors cultural leaders, organizations and communities at the Arts & Culture Awards Celebration, which also marks 25 years of the Cultural Trust.

December 2 brings a full day of learning and connection at the Summit, featuring the release of a new Creative Economy Report and breakout sessions on education and cross-sector collaboration.

Register today: https://vivaevents.regfox.com/2026-oregon-governors-arts-culture-awards--summit

We look forward to seeing you there!