By Nancy Tannler
If you are driving on I-5 through downtown, you can’t help but notice the towering, colorful boxcar mural painted on the side of the Eastbank Commerce Center, 1001 SE Water Ave. The artist/muralist, Alicia Schultz, collaborated with the Central Eastside Industrial Council (CEIC), Central Eastside Together, Venture Portland, Portland Street Art Alliance (PSAA) and Bridgid Blackburn from Cargo to come up with the design. It is titled “Discover the Central Eastside: Built to Last.”
“We wanted to communicate the history and grittiness of the neighborhood in the mural,” Schultz said. The image of boxcars is definitely a fitting representation of this concept and this building in particular. Built in 1924, this building was used as a shipping terminal with docks that extended into the Willamette River—originally called the Auto Freight Transport Building of Oregon and Washington.
The Central Eastside Industrial District (CEID) was once known as “Produce Row.” Italian immigrants began wholesaling their fruits and vegetables from this area in 1913. Eventually warehouses and storage facilities were built, providing blue-collar jobs and adding to the development of this industrial riverside area.
In 1981 the “industrial sanctuary” status was included in the Comprehensive Plan for the area. This was meant to preserve the land for manufacturing and to maintain the character of the area. Since then, the increasing land values as well as traffic congestion have caused some businesses to move away to more accessible and affordable locations while new tech-oriented businesses moved in. There’s a new look to the area as these old buildings are repurposed into office spaces, retail, restaurants and housing.
In order to preserve the CEID history, the PSAA has used many blank walls throughout the area as an opportunity to employ artists to capture place-based murals. PSAA Executive Director, Tiffany Conklin, founded the organization in 2012 along with the President of the Board of Directors, Tomás Valladares. “Portland’s Central Eastside Industrial District has always been our unofficial public art hub (it is where cheap artist studios used to be),” she said.
Back then Portland had an incredible underground street art culture operating, but they faced a lot of indifference and hostility from businesses and the police. PSAA saw the need to bridge this creative energy and channel it into community-building projects everyone can enjoy. The overall plan was to seed a world-class mural district that becomes a defining cultural destination for street art.
PSAA has completed 40 murals in the CEID. “Each piece is carefully curated to reflect both the district’s industrial character and Portland’s maker communities,” Conklin said.
This summer’s completion of “Discover the Central Eastside: Built to Last,” painted by Schultz, adds to that number. Schultz was chosen from hundreds of applicants to paint the mural in the CEID. “This mural was the biggest wall I had ever done and it was scary but, I’ve always liked to challenge myself just to find out what I know.”
After graduating from college, Schultz taught elementary school in New York City. Her teacher’s schedule gave her time to explore and photograph the street art New York is so famous for. “I always admired these murals and was inspired by them,” she said.
In 2012 Schultz and her husband decided to move to Portland. Along with that decision, they had a couple of kids so she gave up her teaching job to focus full time on promoting her artistic endeavors. Her early love of plant life was instrumental in developing her unique style that includes botanicals, unusual color combinations and a freehand approach. Her wall murals are featured in many different businesses and public places throughout Portland. Schultz also carries a line of cards, posters and stationary.
It’s hard for most of us to imagine how a small image can be projected onto such a massive wall. Schultz’s response was that she worked with a VR headset and then her husband would help by taking photos and sending them up to her. “I used a roller to be able to cover the space and also built the design from the bottom up,” she said, “which made it easier to see.” Working on a 60-foot lift navigating around electrical wires meant she had to go carefully up and down a lot to see the big picture.
The murals being painted throughout the City are a part of PSAA’s Community Art Program. They have supported over 500 paintings and installations throughout the metro area. PSAA serves hundreds of community members each year through educational programming, tours and community events “I am in awe of everything the Portland Street Art Alliance has done to promote artists and businesses in the city,” Schultz said.
For a guided tour of the murals, visit pdxstreetart.org/tour and to check out other work by Schultz, see vineandthistle.com.
“Discover the Central Eastside” mural. Photo by PSAA.
