The Oregon Cultural Trust announced a record $4.5 million in grants to more than 600 organizations across the state for fiscal year 2027. Thanks to the support of more than 10,000 Oregonians, over 600 organizations will be directly impacted by the generous donations of our community. Oregonians have always shown a willingness to fund and support the arts, especially when that funding goes directly to other Oregonians.
“Oregon’s big idea of funding arts, heritage and humanities, established a generation ago, continues to sustain the core components of community vitality and resilience – and yet as we have received an increase in donations, so have the requests for support increased,” said Amy Lewin, Oregon’s director of arts and culture. “This unique funding model is becoming a critical resource for supporting learning, historic preservation and valued engagement for communities large and small and in every corner of the state.”
One such funded project is Associate Research Professor David Buckley Borden's Lookout Landscape. Exploring the iconic lookout tower, trail culture, and backcountry gear as a means to explore the rich (and sometimes conflicting) relationships between the “working forests” and the people that call them home, the work will feature a mix of both David and his collaborative team of scientists, artists, and designers, including students. The exhibition is being developed in partnership with the Center for the Future of Forests and Society at Oregon State University.