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22/08/2025

Friendly reminder: The Purple Door Gallery has teamed up with our neighbor Better Days Café to bring you MORE ART! Nathan McKee’s spectacular, awe-inspiring paper-cut creations are now on display at Better Days, each one worthy of your coffee-fueled attention. So stop by this weekend and treat both your eyes and your tastebuds.

See something you love but already have the perfect frame? Head over to The Purple Door Gallery/Dreamer to browse our collection of Nathan’s prints, then frame them your own way.

This show is up for just two more weeks—do NOT hit snooze on this one. Everything is available through the gallery web shop so head to the cafe or peek what’s available online. Link in bio 🔗
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17/08/2025

Meet Dusty ❤️‍🔥
33” x 48” x .5” — wood, acrylic, oil, and ink. A hand-painted, hand-jigsawed tour de force that commands attention from every angle.

For anyone seeking a definitive Wesley James piece, Dusty stands as both a singular statement piece and a cornerstone for any collection.
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“1997” on display through Aug 31

07/08/2025

WES, 36x48”

A vividly mythic, transcendentally winged Wesley James stares back from his formidable self-portrait — softened by smiley-face plugs, cheerful caterpillars on his chest (perhaps a nod to early transformation), and the grinning monkey on his shoulder. That monkey, I’m told, is a symbolic stand-in for his childhood dachshund — a loyal sidekick who once rode with him on his motorcycle, snug in a backpack, chin resting on his shoulder.

It’s no secret that Wes’s solo show “1997” is a dialogue on the artist’s later teenage year, exploring everything under the sun — psychedelics included. What’s left for the viewer to discover is how his visual language might stir their own nostalgia, spark self-discovery, and raise questions about who they were — and who they’ve become.

This show is up all August but time flies! Do not miss it!!
3557 SE Division
W/Th 2-6pm
F/Sa 2-8pm
Sun 2-6pm

01/08/2025

Wow wow wow. Thanks to everyone who rolled through for the opening of 1997, Wesley James’ solo show of bright, raw, raucous paintings—with a few sculptures looming large. Each piece, most aptly titled after the friends of Wesley’s youth, holds coded secrets only Wesley could really divulge, should he choose to. But they so perfectly tease and tempt the imagination, packed with nostalgic winks that anyone who survived the ’90s (or barely did) will totally appreciate. Mickey Mouse tramp stamp? See if you can spot it. Blacklight illuminations? Flip the switch and see what glows. So If you haven’t been in yet, what are you waiting for? And even if you have, you know these pieces reveal something new the second, third—even fourth—time around.

25/07/2025

IT’S 1997.
Wesley James and the friends of his youth are pushing every limit — drugs, booze, ci******es, s*x, art, music — the whole reckless recipe. Relatable? Hell yes. But how many of us have a body of work that abstracts the chaos into something you can stand in front of and feel all over again?
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Join us TONIGHT! Friday, July 25th 6-9pm for a grand opening of “1997” a solo exhibition by
🎶 by
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3557 SE Division // see you tonight

21/07/2025

THIS FRIDAY — Wesley James brings us back to “1997”…
Portland artist and illustrator Wesley James unleashes his bold, unruly world at the Purple Door Gallery starting Friday, June 25.
Raised in small-town Alaska and steeped in 70s nostalgia and outsider traditions, Wesley takes an unapologetic dive into the wild subconscious — where the hyper-imaginary collides with offbeat pop culture relics. And you’re invited to take the plunge too.
From acrylic on canvas to crayon on cardboard, his street-punk aesthetic brims with electrifying detail, neon colors, and a sense of reckless fun that sparks the imagination and stays true to itself in every way. Each piece is raw, honest, and intuitive — a direct line from mind to material — with every little detail daring you to look closer and linger longer.
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Opening reception:
“1997” a Wesley James solo exhbition
Friday June 25th, 6-9pm
3557 SE Division St, PDX
See you there!

14/07/2025

A few incredible glimpses of NIGHT LIFE, the solo exhibition by Bend artist Jake Kenobi () — an intimate, deeply personal look inside the mind of a (former) insomniac.

This is your final week to catch it — don’t sleep on this one!

Gallery hours:
Wed/Thurs 2–6pm
Fri/Sat 2–8pm
Sun 2–6pm (show comes down and raffle is drawn)

You can browse the full collection (and more) in our online shop — link in bio. And don’t forget: our one-year anniversary raffle ends this Sunday, June 20th! Proceeds help us keep doing what we do best — bringing you great art. We’ll draw three lucky winners, so check out the prizes and grab your tickets in the gallery or online while you still can!
📸:

09/07/2025

This is your reminder that you have just two more weeks to view .jake ‘s NIGHT LIFE in the gallery, and jump in our our super birthday all-star art raffle (click the shop link in bio). Both end Sunday July 20th, don’t sleep on it! Plus the very coolest is here today and tomorrow to talk art with you! Step out of the heat and come in for a treat!

05/07/2025

Last Friday we hosted a very special artist talk with .jake, who chose to be interviewed by someone who knows him better than most — his therapist. We’re truly grateful to both of them for opening up so honestly about how Jake’s struggles with insomnia shaped his current series, NIGHT LIFE, and for making the trip from Bend to Portland to share this conversation in person.

If you missed this unique and insightful talk, our friends captured most it on video — keep an eye out, we expect some of it will be available soon.

There’s still time to catch NIGHT LIFE before it closes on July 20th — come experience it while you can 🌝

22/06/2025

What!?! Time flies! Come celebrate a wild, art-filled year with us! We’re throwing down a full day of sparkle, ink, tunes, and creative chaos. Here’s whats in store:

💫 1–3PM
HAIR GLITTER by .salon – FREE
✨ Come early to get glittered with our girl Rachael (and her amazing pup Ute. 10 strands in 10 minutes sessions! Wowwww

🎨 2–4PM
FACE PAINTING by Laurel Pearcy of .ones – FREE
For your inner and outer child. We’ll have juice boxes to really get the kids amped up.

⚡️ 4PM – Close
FLASH TATTOOS by – $80–130
Designs by Oliver Fischer, inspired by some of our favorite resident artists (flash page to follow). Cash preferred. Sign up sheet at event, first come first served

🎶 6PM
LIVE MUSIC by
Jamie and Victor are gonna get your toes tapping! If you haven’t caught their live sets yet you’re in for a treat. And If the vibes hit maximum level… karaoke might break out. You’ve been warned.

🎟️ ALL-DAY RAFFLE
Win a killer lineup of art swag from our past-year all-stars:
, , , , , , , .peace.love.yes, and more…..
💥 Three lucky winners walk away with a mini-collection of greatness.

🍸 CRAFT COCKTAILS by Graham Hogan
With the triumphant return of Hornswaggler – non-profit mixology who buys original art with your drink tips. Sip and support something beautiful.

17/06/2025

“A Vast Emptiness Vastly Filled” (60x48” acrylic, mixed media on wood) + “corners of the room: reaching leaves/ house plant” (8x10” acrylic)

These gorgeously haunting paintings are just a taste of the solo show, NIGHT LIFE, brought to you by .jake 🌴 on view now through July 20th.
Come see these and more, Wednesday through Sunday, normal hours.

13/06/2025

It’s Friday the 13th… and what better night to open NIGHT LIFE, the latest from Jake Jerome Kenobi — aka Spring Break Jake .jake 🌗
All the way from Bend, OR, Jake brings us a body of work shaped by over two decades of insomnia. His paintings invite the viewer to peer over the edge of sleep and into a world of restlessness — where the bedroom is quiet, but the mind refuses to rest.
NIGHT LIFE is raw, macabre, and deeply human — capturing that familiar anxiety of sleepless nights… but with flickers of hope, too. It dives into the dynamic between mental health and slumber, allowing space for the ache of loneliness and, ultimately, the hope of healing. A quiet reminder that even the longest night is temporary.
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See you TONIGHT — and you know it wouldn’t be a Purple Door opening without the usual shenanigans!

🎶 Live tunes from
🍹 Bevys for all
📸 Photo booth magic
🎨 Incredible art
👯‍♀️ All the friends
🚽 And a shameless plug for the wildest bathroom in town — curated by Chelsea and .pearcy.

Don’t miss it!

Opening: Tonight, Friday the 13th 👻
📍Purple Door Gallery, 3557 SE Division
⏰ 6–9 PM

Address

3557 SE Division Street
OR
97202

Opening Hours

Thursday	16:00 - 19:00
Friday	16:00 - 19:00
Saturday	16:00 - 19:00
Sunday	14:00 - 17:00

Telephone

+15034513265

Website

facebook.com

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