Cultural Exhibits
Opened July 2025
The stories of early LGBTQ+ activists for historic preservation are being given greater recognition locally and nationally, including recent National Register designated buildings and research by the City of Portland.
The Architectural Heritage Center's new exhibit, “When Doors Open: Places of Pride”, examines the importance of identity and place.
Celebrate important people, places and pride with our new exhibit highlighting preservation and perseverance of Portland's LGBTQ+ community.
When Doors Open: Places of Pride
Preserving LGBTQ+ Portland
The Advocate: Fighting for Equity and Equality
Beatrice Morrow Cannady and her long history of Black activism in Oregon
Opened June 2025
Beatrice Morrow Cannady was a prominent Civil Rights activist during the 1910s through the 1930s. The early 1900’s in Portland was a time of resurgence of the Klu Klux Klan, racism in Portland establishments, racist laws in Oregon, and segregation in Portland Public Schools. Cannady advocated for the Black community in Portland, Oregon through her newspaper The Advocate, her NAACP chapter, her law degree, her interracial teas, and her lectures at predominately white churches. Cannady’s ideology was that “knowledge begets understanding” and “if white and Black people could get in a room and discuss race it would cause goodwill and love between the two races”
A Forgotten Community
A Tour of Portland's Lost Japanese American Community
Opened February 2023
This interactive digital Story Map, accessible online and created by the Japanese American Museum of Oregon & Architectural Heritage Center, highlights 20 different locations that were core to the establishment of Portland’s Japanese community, especially in the area of Northwest Portland known as Japantown—Nihonmachi, in Japanese—in the early 1900s. This area was home to hundreds of Japanese-owned shops, restaurants, hotels and services until the Japanese community was imprisoned during World War II. These 20 stories include key people and buildings that helped anchor Nihonmachi, some of which still exist today elsewhere in Portland.
Black Domain by Intisar Abioto
June 2, 2022 - October 14, 2022
Black Domain presented photographs by artist Intisar Abioto that examine the lived history of Black place. Through portraits of Black Portlanders in their homes, at work, in creativity, at worship, the exhibit captures places of architectural, cultural, and historical significance to the city’s Black community. The AHC exhibit was the artist’s largest solo exhibition to date.
Portland Indigenous Marketplace
September 16, 2021 - December 24, 2021
The Architectural Heritage Center gave back space to the indigenous artists and entrepreneurs who comprise Portland Indigenous Marketplace.
Portland Indigenous Marketplace is a nonprofit that supports indigenous artists and entrepreneurs by providing barrier-free, culturally respectful spaces that encourage cultural resilience and economic sustainability by promoting public education through cultural arts. This exhibit featured artistsa.c .ramirez de arellano, Astrid Beatriz Furstner, and Adrian Larvie along with select goods from Indigenous Come Up.