METRO GARAGE MURAL
PORTLAND, OREGON
As pedestrians and cyclists cross the newly opened Blumenauer Bridge, they will be treated to a striking tableau.
Renowned Portland muralist Jeremy Nichols has transformed Metro’s parking garage with a mural featuring various modes of transit, interspersed with local flowers and pollinators a plenty. The mural wraps around two sides of the building and is dotted with wildflowers that pop between bikes and scooters as butterflies and bees flutter throughout. This mural project was sponsored by the Lloyd Community Association.
Local flora depicted in the mural include: Trillium Flowers, Doug Fir, Blanket Flowers, Camas Flowers, Oregon grape Flowers, western blue flax, dandelions. These beautiful plants are paired with local fauna including: Monarch Butterfly, Oregon SilverSpot Butterfly, Bumble Bees, Honey Bees, and a Rufous Hummingbird. All of which are representative of the Pollination Corridor that surrounds the mural.
Along with nature inspired elements, Nichols also included his signature bold graphic lines and elements which bind his compositions together. One of graphic elements in this work, a stylized bow-tie, is a subtle nod to Congressman Earl Blumenauer, who can always be seen wearing his trademark bicycle lapel pin and a bow-tie. Other elements include a TriMet MAX line map, Railroad I-Beam Tracks, and a silhouette of both a bicycle and an adaptive bicycle.
“It’s fitting that the Metro Regional Center can be a canvas for a mural that resonates with our goals and values of conserving natural areas and planning for the region's long-term transportation needs! With this new mural, we look forward to inviting our communities across the Blumenauer Bridge, into the Lloyd District and their Metro Regional Center.”
– Ryan Kinsella (he/him), Metro’s Capital Asset Management Director
“Lloyd Community Association is excited there is a new beautiful mural welcoming people as they enter our neighborhood! This project is just one of many that local businesses, residents, and groups are working on to improve Lloyd. We invite community members to attend our October Coffee Chat and Mural Opening Celebration on Thursday, October 6th from 8:00 to 10:00 at the mural site. Swing by to start your day with free coffee, meet your neighbors and Lloyd Community Association members, and learn about the details of Lloyd's newest public art from the muralist.”
– Keith Jones (he/him), Lloyd Community Association’s President
“I wanted to create a timeless, hip, energetic mural that grabs the public attention, creates a conversation, and ultimately creates a public landmark/ point of interest. Given the location of the mural, the primary focus of these designs is movement, alternative means of transit, pollinators, and a subtle nod to Earl Blumenauer.”
– Jeremy Nichols, Muralist
BEHIND THE SCENES
IN THE NEWS
Click here to read about the Lloyd Center mural on Bike Portland.
Photography: Sara Sjol, for PSAA.