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Join us for a celebration of Oregon's living traditions featuring performances and demonstrations from master artists. Pack a picnic and your lawn chair and grab a friend to enjoy a night of heritage performances in the museum courtyard.

Oregon Culture Nights are included with regular admission. Show your Oregon Trail or other EBT card for an admission discount. Free admission for museum members and UO ID card holders.  

 

 

Thursday, August 4 | 6:00 p.m.

Brian O hAirt headshot. Brian is a white man with light brown hair and a good mustache.

Irish Music with Brian Ó hAirt

Irish singer, musician, and Gaelic instructor Brian Ó hAirt has been featured on radio programs and festivals across the United States, Canada, and Ireland. His artistry draws from his many experiences growing up among the Irish diaspora of the upper Midwest and his coming of age in the vibrant Gaelic communities of Ireland’s west coast. He is an all-Ireland champion singer since 2002 and Apprenticeship master recognized in Oregon and Ohio.

Thursday, August 11 | 6:00 p.m.

Sepia-toned headshot of Mic Crenshaw, a Black man with a goatee, a dark denim jacket, and a hat.

The Poetry of Hip-hop with Mic Crenshaw

Mic Crenshaw is a world-class emcee and former member of the Portland-based group Hungry Mob; a 2001 Portland Poetry slam champion and national finalist; and one of the most respected hip-hop artists in the northwest. His albums top the College Radio Hip Hop Charts, and he has performed with internationally-acclaimed acts such as the Fugees, Outkast, and Wu-Tang Clan.

Thursday, August 18 | 6:00 p.m.

Photo of Nisha Joshi, an Indian woman seated with a sitar.

Rajasthani and Hindusthani Music with Nisha Joshi

Nisha Joshi is a master artist in Rajasthani folk and Hindustani classical musical traditions. In India, she regularly performed both styles on Delhi radio and television. Her first apprenticeship award in Oregon was in 1997, but she also runs the Portland-based Swaranjali Academy of Indian Music, and teaches vocal, harmonium, sitar, and tabla lessons from her home.

Thursday, August 25 | 6:00 p.m.

Photo of Marjan Anvari, a Persian woman with brown hair and glasses pushed up on her head. She is pointing at a paper with calligraphy on it.

Persian Calligraphy with Marjan Anvari

Marjan Anvari is a master artist and art conservator of tazhib, a traditional Persian form of gold illumination dating back to the 3rd Century. Mathematically precise and aesthetically ornate, tazhib, along with calligraphy and miniature, is foundational to Iranian architecture, handcrafts, rugs, silverwares, and manuscripts.​ Since founding Negahreh Art+ Design in 2014, Anvari was a 2016 Apprenticeship awardee, and 2022 Traditional Arts Recovery Program awardee.