First Friday PDX

Due to the 4th of July holiday, many galleries that are regularly open for First Friday will be hosting openings on a different day

All events listed occur on the first Friday of the month and are free and open to all visitors unless otherwise specified.

ARTISTs’ OPEN STUDIOS | EAST CREATIVE COLLECTIVE

Come by the East Creative building to discover new art this July 4th! Meet local artists in their studios as you wander the art filled hallways of the building. The perfect stop before fireworks on the Eastbank Esplanade.

6 PM – 9 PM @ 211 SE Madison St., Portland, OR

Trash Party | Portal Arts Collective

Instead of getting trashed this 4th of July, come PLAY with trash and get creative with Portal Arts Collective! We’re making recycledelic art panels and pieces to decorate our Oregon Country Fair sculpture!

Eat your dogs, piss in the pool, and swing by for some Manifesting before the fireworks pop off.

Our trash goblin Nova Avon (@skydmarque ) has been collecting all sorts of bits and bobs, but feel free to being your own *washed* trash and recycling!

6 PM – Late @ 2020 SE Bush St., Portland, OR

FIRST FRIDAY | MANIFESTATION

Join us for a special edition of First

Friday, happening during the day on July 4th!

This month, we’re celebrating with a potluck barbecue and creative crafts that allow us to express and process the challenges we’re facing in these times. Art, community, and joy are powerful acts of resistance, and your presence makes it even more meaningful.

By hosting earlier, everyone can join in and still enjoy their evening plans-whether it’s fireworks or comforting your furry friends at home like I will be.

We’d love for you to be involved! Whether you’d like to share your art, play a DJ set, lead a craft, or bring some food, let us know. I’ll be bringing my famous American Southern classic spoon bread to share!

Looking forward to co-creating and celebrating with all of you. Let’s make this First Friday unforgettable!

2 PM – 6 PM @ 2020 SE Bush St., Portland, OR

Anatomy of Armor | JaJa PDX

An art & fashion show created and curated by Joseph Lanker at JaJa PDX for the 4th of July first friday, 2025.
Showcasing works inspired by the glamorization of war, duality, history  anarchy, and the couture of armor.

feat. works & performance by 
@orkis_music 
@thebonegoddess 
@tori.lewii 
@luyah.art
@crimnll 
@jajawoods 
and more..

gallery doors 7-12
show 9:30-10:30
free admission
donations accepted

7 PM – 12 AM @ 819 SE Taylor St., Portland, OR

Contact Us

We do our best to make the list as complete as possible, if you have an event or correction you would like to see listed please send show details to Info@FirstFridayPDX.org or use our easy online event submission form.

Events listed occur throughout the month are free and open to all visitors unless otherwise specified.

SATURDAY 07.05.25

In Form-A nature inspired art show | Sidestreet Arts

Join Sidestreet Arts on Sat. July 5th, at 140 SE 28th Ave for our July opening from 5pm to 7pm . Immerse yourself in the beauty of nature-inspired artworks created by our 2 talented guest artists, Jennifer Kapnek and Denise Krueger. From serene botanical paintings to vibrant ceramic sea pods, this show will captivate your senses and inspire your love for the natural world. Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to experience the wonders of mother nature through the eyes of artists. See you there!

5 PM – 7 PM @ 140 SE 28th Ave., Portland, OR

Maria Lux: Heart and Mind, Blood and Nerves | Carnation Contemporary

This installation of new work by Maria Lux looks at venomous snakes—bringers of health and death, and linking our distant past with modern knowledge.

Snakes have a persistent association with both healing and harm. Their venom contains risk and remedy, pain and potential. From antidotes made out of venom itself, to modern bioprospectors searching for the next billion-dollar drug—snakes and their venom have been used as healing agents for millenia—and cause hundreds of thousands of human deaths each year. Since the beginning, our intertwined relationship with snakes has been marked by a quest for knowledge, whether it’s the evolutionary theory that the avoidance of venomous snakes was instrumental in the development of human intelligence itself, or studies that show our fears and preconscious reactions to snakes are uniquely built into our very DNA. Recently, news outlets reported on the promising story of a snake-enthusiast who methodically allowed himself to be bitten by venomous snakes over 200 times in the hope that his own blood would create a universal anti-venom, but he is just one person in a long line who have sought invincibility to venoms through self-immunization. Whether these sacrifices and experiments lead to life-saving drugs or not, scientists all over the world look to the complexity and mystery of venom to unlock new understandings of medicine, immunology, physiology, and pharmacology. True to their many legends, snakes today can still be seen as guardians of ancient knowledge as well as yet-undiscovered secrets, and teach us things about who they and we are. Heart and Mind, Blood and Nerves considers the convergence of myth and medicine, storytelling and science, and caution and curiosity coiled around snakes.

About the Artist: 
Maria Lux is a research-driven artist who makes installation-based works centering on the way animals are used to generate human knowledge and understanding. She earned her BFA from Iowa State University in 2006 and her MFA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2012. As a cross-disciplinary artist, she also regularly presents her work at academic conferences. She is currently an associate professor of art at Whitman College in Walla Wall, WA.  |  www.marialux.net

5 PM – 8 PM @ 8371 N Interstate Ave Portland, OR

Grayscale: A Picture Show | Sidestreet Arts

Juried by: Todd Johnson

3 PM – 5 PM @ 811 East Burnside St. #212
Portland, OR

Monthly art openings and participating galleries