Portland Street Art Loop Hike

The Collector by Josh Keyes, 13th & Morrison, SE Portland (bobcat)

River of Time by Celeste Byers and Aaron Glasson, MLK & Morrison, SE Portland (bobcat)

Alexis wall 1 by Kango, Joins, Giver et al., 2nd & Stark, SE Portland (bobcat)

Questions for Humans by Gary Hirsch, 11th & Ash, SE Portland (bobcat)

Ship of dreams by J.Shea & Yoskay Yamamoto, 9th & Sandy, SE Portland (bobcat)

Smoking dog by Jack Graydon, 9th & Stark, SE Portland (bobcat)

Cheshire Cat by Yoshi47, 11th & Stark, SE Portland (bobcat)

Fox and birds by Apeseven, 10th & Taylor, SE Portland (bobcat)

Flying boats by J. Shea, Grand & Madison, SE Portland (bobcat)

Boy and tiger by Andrew Hem, 13th & Ankeny, SE Portland (bobcat)

Connect the dots! Find some of Portland's best street art - X marks the spot! (bobcat) Courtesy: Google Maps

Start point: Water Avenue Trailhead
End point: 11th and Stark
Hike Type: Loop
Distance: 3.5 miles
Elevation gain: 110 feet
High Point: 125 feet
Difficulty: Easy
Seasons: All
Family Friendly: Yes
Backpackable: No
Crowded: No (best day is Sunday, when it's not crowded)

Portland is just coming into its own regarding street art. The shift in attitude comes with a bureaucratic relaxation of strict ordinances against illegal graffiti to accommodate “legal” street artists under the auspices of organizations like the Portland Street Art Alliance and Forest for the Trees. The latter has had an annual event since 2013 when select artists from all over the world as well as local talent are invited to paint murals on local businesses (with the full agreement of the businesses themselves, of course). Generally, the art is non-controversial in the sense that it fits what may be perceived as the city’s quirky ‘persona.’ The loop laid out here fits within a rectangle of streets, with Water Avenue to the west, 14th Avenue to the east, Ankeny Street to the north, and Madison Street to the south. While there are many murals in other parts of the city, this part of the inner Southeast has the highest density of wall art. Feel free to wander outside the parameters of this walk and discover other works. Note also that some street art is quite transient: a business may decide that it wants something else in its wall, and some ‘canvases’ are designated ‘rotating walls’ that see new creations every year. The best time to do this walk is on a Sunday morning, when there is little traffic and few parked cars to block views of the murals.

You can park almost anywhere for this excursion, but the list below follows a sequence that begins with Hair of the Dog Brewing. On the north wall is a huge tiger, Ernesto Maranje’s Guardian, striding through a garden of messages preceded by a fluttering bird. From the tiger, continue north on a convoluted clockwise loop that takes in more than 50 examples of street art. Here is some of the wall art to check out (as of early 2018; displays may change or be painted over in time!):

2nd & Belmont: Magic snail by NoseGo; giant eagles by Yatika Fields
MLK & Morrison: River of Time by Celeste Byers & Aaron Glasson (on River City Bicycles)
MLK & Stark: Mural by Joram Roukes, a Dutch artist
2nd & Stark: Greek urns by Guams, Humen & Clamo; around the corner is a large piece by Kango, Joins, giver, and other artists (on the Alexis warehouse)
3rd & Oak: Ice cream! at Ice Cream Express
2nd & Ash: Sun by Souther
MLK & Pine: Icons by Michael Salter (on Miller Paint)
Grand & Oak: Andy & Bax store mural
Grand & Ash: Woman and bird by Jade Rivera, a Peruvian artist; Nothing Good Comes Easy by Ola Volo & Zach Yarrington
8th & Ash: sunflowers by José Solis
8th & Ankeny: Mural on KBOO Community Radio
Sandy & Ash: Let Go!
11th & Ash: Questions for Humans by Gary Hirsch
12th & Ankeny: It’s Lillard Time by Aaron Chapman & Andrea Glaser (on a garage door); Claire by Skye Walker (the Brim Apartments)
13th & Ankeny: Boy and tiger by Andrew Hem
9th & Sandy: Large mural by Seher One; night ship by J. Shea & Yoskay Yamamoto
10th & Oak: Gear mural at Base Camp Brewing
10th & Oak: Wall art
11th & Oak: Goats, OR-7, etc. by David Rice & Blaine Fontana; tentacled man by David Rice & Blaine Fontana
11th & Stark: Snake by Spencer Keeton Cunningham; Cheshire Cat smile by Yoshi47
10th & Stark: Kalief Browder memorial; Yo yo by Nina Chanel Abney; 3D wall art by Meredith Ditmar (on the ANX Gallery)
9th & Stark: Hummingbird by Apeseven & PlasticBirdie; collaborative mural by Jack Graydon, Kanga, Derek Yost, Toiletsnake, etc.
9th between Stark & Washington: Wall art by various artists
11th & Alder: Birds by Klutch (opposite the old Carnegie library); cat mural above
14th & Alder: Cycles of by Shawna X; mural by Laura Berger
13th & Morrison: The Collector rhinoceros mural by Josh Keyes (behind Zell’s)
12th & Morrison: Buckman Community mural by Joe Cotter; moon squabble mural
12th between Belmont and Yamhill: fence art at empty lot; ‘’Decolonize’’ by Derek Yost; on Taylor – Freedom Ship by Dominic Sigari
10th & Taylor: Fox and birds by Apeseven; wall art by Dominic Sigari, Rupeezy, Klutch and others; Bird in the Hand by Apeseven; feathered bear and owl; ABZs by Derek Yost
8th & Taylor: Hey! You’re Part of It by David Rice & Zach Yarrington; opposite is a cubist-type mural by Erik Marinovich
9th & Main: Alley art
Grand & Madison: 2014 mural by J. Shea
Railroad tracks & Yamhill: Large mural by Ashley Montague & Joshua Mays

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Dogs on leash
Best on Sunday mornings, when there is little traffic and few parked cars screening the art.

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Portland Street Art Walk 12-17-17

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Portland Street Art Loop Hike

Portland Street Art Loop Hike

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