Indigenous art partnership receives Metro Community Placemaking grant!
In an exciting new installment of Depave’s ongoing work in creating a community plaza in the street in Central Southeast Portland, the organization has received funding to uplift and strengthen the growing partnership with the Portland Indigenous Marketplace (PIM). The funding will support the painting and installation of a mural with original art by Rowena Jackson, a member of the Klamath Tribe. Depave, in partnership with Jackson, applied for and received the Community Placemaking grant from Metro for $15,000 to support an indigenous mural project at the future plaza at SE 7th Avenue and Sandy Boulevard. This project merges and connects the plaza with the future site of the Portland Indigenous Marketplace, adjacent to the plaza on the east side of the space at 737 SE Sandy.
The c'waam fish (Deltistes luxatus), OPB 2021.
The mural project will display Rowena Jackson’s beautiful, culturally meaningful artistic design of a c'waam fish. The c'waam fish (Deltistes luxatus), is a fish found only within the Upper Klamath Basin and is a federally recognized endangered species. These fish hold cultural significance to the Klamath Tribes, are a vital part of the ecosystem, once a key part of the Klamath Tribes’ diet (Klamath Tribes News). Jackson’s art “truly reflects her vision and journey to protect and preserve our fish relatives. The Klamath Tribe maintains a strong presence in the Portland area today, with tribal members holding leading positions throughout the region. Rowena is a shining example of the great work the Klamath tribal members are doing in Portland,” said PIM Executive Director Lluvia Merello and Rowena Jackson.
The developing plazas in inner southeast Portland represent a thrilling next step for the Portland Indigenous Marketplace and Depave’s long, ongoing work at the site. For more than seven years, PIM has existed without a home base and staff and community members have hauled tables, tents, and inventory across dozens of pop-up locations, despite limited resources, and delivered many incredible Indigenous-run community market events. The future marketplace and plaza space represents an opportunity for PIM to exist permanently, creating a strong presence in southeast Portland where their existence will be “impossible to ignore,” creating a plaza where “our (PIM) community finally gets a home. It’s not just a venue; it is a 24/7 cultural space where anyone, at any time of day, can encounter Indigenous and Black art, plants, stories, and educational installations,” stated Merello and Jackson.
Stay tuned for more information about this project and the community mural painting project event at the site, slated for May 9!
