For Artists of Color: Opening Reception at The BLACK Gallery

An Unaffiliated Exhibition of Student artwork, By and for Students of Color 

Hosted by The Black Gallery 

Exhibition Dates: February 22nd, 2026 - March 7th, 2026

Opening Reception: First Thursday, March 5th 2026 6pm - 9pm 

What is art without activism? What is art without resistance? What is art without protest?

For Artists of Color is an exhibition showcasing artwork from local Portland-Based artists. This exhibition is curated exclusively by and for students of color. On February 14th, 2025 a letter was sent out by the United States Department of Education. This letter imposed a view of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion as being discriminatory towards white students because they cannot "equally benefit” from race and ethnicity based measures that intended to create a more equitable playing field for students of color. 

Many universities and arts organizations pushed back and fought against this letter, suing the Department of Education. The students in this exhibition were told that their institution wasn't fighting for them. Rather than support their community of student artists and defend their right to hold exhibitions solely for the Black, Indigenous and community of color they were told they couldn't. This exhibition stands as a counter, a push back against them, if you don’t want our community then you won't have us.