Calls for Art
MAC Youth Art Biennial 2026
We want to celebrate you. Artists age 18 and under who have taken classes at the Multnomah Arts Center or been a part of our Community Engagement program in the past 3 years are invited to participate. The show will be on display in MAC’s Front & Center Galleries July 3 – August 1, 2026. There will be a fun reception with snacks and activities on Saturday, July 18 from 1-3 p.m.
All the arts are welcome here:
- Visual Arts – drawing, painting, printmaking, textiles, ceramics, jewelry, short films, photography, etc
- Literary Arts – poetry, stories, zines
- Theatre Arts & Dance – video recordings or photos of a performance, costume designs from a play, etc.
- Music – recordings & compositions
How to participate:
- Read the participation guidelines.
- Fill out a submission form for each piece of art.
Deadline: Bring your art and submission forms to MAC by June 5, 2026.
Questions: Please contact your MAC teacher, call MAC at 503-823-2787 or email MAC’s Arts Coordinator at: Nicole.Rawlins@portlandoregon.gov.
Annual Call for Art
Shows in the Front & Center Galleries are scheduled via an annual Call for Art. The next Call for Art will occur during the summer of 2026 for exhibitions that will be scheduled in 2027 and early 2028. To be notified when future calls happen, sign up for MAC’s electronic newsletter here.
2025 Call for Art – These application guidelines are provided for reference only. This Call is now closed.
Additional information:
The selection committee for MAC’s annual Call for Art includes two guest curators and MAC’s gallerist, Megan Hatch. The 2025 guest curators are:
Melanie Stevens is an artist, illustrator and writer. She is the creator of the graphic novel series, WaterShed, and the founder and director of black whole Press, a printmaking studio that hosts free workshops and provides resources, funding and residency programming for artists from marginalized communities. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree for Political Science from Yale University and her Master’s of Fine Arts degree for Visual Studies at Pacific Northwest College of Art, where she currently teaches.
Celeste Noche (she/her) is a Filipino American editorial and documentary photographer based between Portland, Oregon and San Francisco, California specializing in food, travel, and portraiture. Her work is rooted in the narrative; exploring memory, displacement, and identity. She is the founder of Portland in Color, an arts nonprofit highlighting BIPOC creatives in Portland, and just opened her first photo studio this year.
Kanani Miyamoto is an artist, curator, and educator. She is originally from Honolulu, Hawai`i, and is currently living in Portland, Oregon. Kanani holds an MFA in Print Media from the Pacific Northwest College of Art, and a BFA in Art Practices from Portland State University. Her artwork has been shown nationally. As an individual of mixed heritage who identifies most with her Hawaiian and Japanese roots. she uses traditional printmaking techniques to create large-scale print installations. Important to her work as an artist is “sharing and celebrating her unique mixed background in our contemporary art world in hopes of representing her community and the beauty of intersectional identities.” Kanani is also an advocate for art education and a passionate community worker. She works at p:ear as the Art Coordinator.
Pablo V. Cazares is an artist, curator, and community organizer in Portland, Oregon. In 2022, he created the t4t Art Collective, an art group focused on giving transgender artists opportunities to show work and build resilient community. In his own art he explores memory and self-creation through the lens of his overlapping neurodivergent, mixed-race, and transgender identities. Pablo holds a BFA in Art Practice from Portland State University, as well as an associate degree in Apparel Design. He’ll be attending the Rhode Island School of Design to begin his MFA in Sculpture this fall.
(photograph at top) Solo exhibition by Tatyana Ostapenko, 2023.
Calls for Art
Shows in the Front & Center Galleries are scheduled via an annual Call for Art. The next Call for Art will be open August 1-31, 2025. To be notified when future calls happen, sign up for MAC’s electronic newsletter here.
2025 Call for Art – These guidelines are for reference only. This Call is now closed.
Online application – will be available August 1 – 31, 2025.
Additional information:
The selection committee for the annual Call for Art includes two guest curators and MAC’s gallerist, Megan Hatch. The 2025 guest curators are:
Melanie Stevens is an artist, illustrator and writer. She is the creator of the graphic novel series, WaterShed, and the founder and director of black whole Press, a printmaking studio that hosts free workshops and provides resources, funding and residency programming for artists from marginalized communities. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree for Political Science from Yale University and her Master’s of Fine Arts degree for Visual Studies at Pacific Northwest College of Art, where she currently teaches.
Celeste Noche (she/her) is a Filipino American editorial and documentary photographer based between Portland, Oregon and San Francisco, California specializing in food, travel, and portraiture. Her work is rooted in the narrative; exploring memory, displacement, and identity. She is the founder of Portland in Color, an arts nonprofit highlighting BIPOC creatives in Portland, and just opened her first photo studio this year.
Kanani Miyamoto is an artist, curator, and educator. She is originally from Honolulu, Hawai`i, and is currently living in Portland, Oregon. Kanani holds an MFA in Print Media from the Pacific Northwest College of Art, and a BFA in Art Practices from Portland State University. Her artwork has been shown nationally. As an individual of mixed heritage who identifies most with her Hawaiian and Japanese roots. she uses traditional printmaking techniques to create large-scale print installations. Important to her work as an artist is “sharing and celebrating her unique mixed background in our contemporary art world in hopes of representing her community and the beauty of intersectional identities.” Kanani is also an advocate for art education and a passionate community worker. She works at p:ear as the Art Coordinator.
Pablo V. Cazares is an artist, curator, and community organizer in Portland, Oregon. In 2022, he created the t4t Art Collective, an art group focused on giving transgender artists opportunities to show work and build resilient community. In his own art he explores memory and self-creation through the lens of his overlapping neurodivergent, mixed-race, and transgender identities. Pablo holds a BFA in Art Practice from Portland State University, as well as an associate degree in Apparel Design. He’ll be attending the Rhode Island School of Design to begin his MFA in Sculpture this fall.