Oregon ArtsWatch

Arts & Culture News
Independent. Insightful. Inspiring.

Yamhill County

This coverage is made possible in part by a grant from the Yamhill County Cultural Coalition.

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Not McMinnville’s Gallery Theatre

The Yamhill County theater takes on the challenge of Edward Albee's great and gritty American drama, and photographer Dee Moore follows the process from beginning of rehearsal to final preview performance.

Richard Cutshall’s ‘Return to the Fool’s Garden’ at Linfield is a delightfully surreal and sensuous feast

September 3, 2025David Bates

Each piece in the Portland artist’s show, which runs through Sept. 26 at the McMinnville university, is a snapshot of a fever dream. Sometimes, he says, making them “almost feels like a fight.”

The best birthday present: Willamette Valley Chamber Music Festival turns ten

July 29, 2025Angela Allen

WVCFM celebrates its 10th season with commissioned work from this year’s composer-in-residence, Akshaya Tucker, alongside music by Caroline Shaw, Kian Ravaei, plus Beethoven, Mozart, Mendelssohn, and Schubert.

Astro-Zombie Bio-Labs: In McMinnville, a place to practice weird and wacky art

July 25, 2025Andrew Beauchamp

Mental-health therapist Matthew Taylor, who designed the makerspace for neurodivergent people, says it is based around inclusivity. “I would almost say we’re neurotypical inclusive.”

In the heart of Oregon wine country, a hotel gathers Northwest writers for residencies

June 30, 2025David Bates

McMinnville's Atticus Hotel, in partnership with Linfield University's Creative Writing Department, gives Northwest authors time and space to meet, mix, and work on their book projects.

Melding media: Professor William Campbell guides Linfield University students in writing musical scores for animated short films

June 4, 2025David Bates

Seminar students combine synthesized and acoustic music to accompany stories ranging from a rite of spring to a rocket-piloting dog.

McMinnville’s out-of-this-world parade

May 20, 2025Dee Moore

In 1950 a photo of a possible UFO hovering in the Yamhill County sky swept the nation. In the 21st century, space-visitor wannabes strut their stuff once a year in celebration.

In Yamhill County, poetry and prose bloom in annual ‘Paper Gardens’ anthology

May 17, 2025David Bates

More than 200 people gathered at the Chehalem Cultural Center in Newberg to hear writers read their work appearing in the 32nd annual anthology.

‘Solito’ author Javier Zamora will speak Wednesday at Linfield University on migration, identity, and memory

May 5, 2025David Bates

The appearance by the poet and memoirist is part of the school's “Learning Across Boundaries” program, which also includes a literary and visual art display.

‘Hands of the Ancestors’: Kalapuya artist Stephanie Craig’s mix of past and present

April 15, 2025Dee Moore

Craig's woven basketry at the Linfield Art Gallery rekindles a fading heritage, blending contemporary methods with the traditions and meanings of ancestral ways.

Poet Q&A: Jennifer Perrine on formalism in poetry, finding inspiration in grief, and writing as healing

April 6, 2025David Bates

The Portland poet will read Thursday at the McMinnville Public Library, in advance of their new collection, "Beautiful Outlaw."

Inaugural Newgrass Festival brings bluegrass bands, including Broken Compass and Never Come Down, to Newberg

March 10, 2025David Bates

The festival, on Saturday in the Chehalem Cultural Center, grew out of popular jam sessions at Wolves & People Farmhouse Brewery.

Celebrating the small has become a big deal at the McMinnville Short Film Festival

March 8, 2025David Bates

About 1,600 tickets were sold for the recent independent film festival, which instead of superheroes and explosions, offers an expansive view of what it’s like to be a human in this world.

Artist Travis Johnson brings ‘Toxic Gods & Black Fairy Tales’ to Linfield University

March 6, 2025David Bates

Johnson's paintings resonate with images whose sources are as diverse as the Middle Passage and childhood memories of rabbits.

Four-day McMinnville Short Film Festival starts Thursday with 107 films from 15 countries

February 24, 2025David Bates

The festival provides access to independent storytellers and voices from around the world in categories that include environmental, Native American, animation, local filmmakers, horror, and documentary.

Gender Revolution, Zoë Bossiere and ‘Cactus Country’

February 24, 2025David Bates

The Portland author, who will speak Feb. 27 in McMinnville, talks about the fluidity of gender, the everyday realities of being trans, and growing up in an Arizona trailer park.

Chehalem Cultural Center goes for ‘A Walk in the Woods’

February 16, 2025David Bates

The show, at the Newberg center through March 13, features tree-themed art by Tabby Ivy, Rebecca Kiser, Elena and Trifon Markova, Karin Carter, and Linda Workman-Morelli.

Chehalem Cultural Center celebrates MLK Jr. Day with music, film, and a call to action

January 21, 2025David Bates

Roughly 300 people gathered at Monday’s event in Newberg for a multi-media production by Denver’s Mizel Museum.

Yamhill County art galleries offer a bounty of gift ideas

December 3, 2024David Bates

From pastel drawings to ceramics to metal crafts, artsy options are plentiful in wine country.

Joe Wilkins, Bethany Lee, Nicholas D. Kristof, Hannah Grace Spenner: New books by a quartet of Yamhill County writers

November 23, 2024David Bates

The 2024 releases include a novel, poetry, nonfiction, and memoir.

A new chapel at Newberg’s George Fox University, filled with art

November 12, 2024David Bates

Murals by professor Tim Timmerman and stained glass by Bryant Stanton add color to the graceful space, where an open house on Thursday will welcome visitors.

‘A Democracy of Multiples’:  Linfield University displays political works by Mullowney Printing

November 7, 2024David Bates

The show, running through Nov. 22, is a tribute to the power of ink on paper and how that power has functioned as a political tool — and still can.

Transformations: The A to Z of wine and art

October 7, 2024David Bates

Time, talent, and a fertile soil for nourishing creativity: At Yamhill County's A to Z Wineworks, artists in residence help produce the wine as they create their art.

From barns to studios, Yamhill artists open their doors

October 1, 2024David Bates

For two weekends, more than 60 wine country artists will open their work spaces to visitors for the 30th annual Art Harvest Studio Tour of Yamhill County.

LaJoie Theatre adds new jewel to the Chehalem Cultural Center crown

September 26, 2024David Bates

This month’s opening of the 250-seat theater makes the Newberg cultural hub one of the largest in the state, as well as an example of the “everything-for-everyone” center that thrives in smaller Oregon cities.

McMinnville’s Art Alley turns blank walls into colorful murals

September 22, 2024David Bates

A summer project adds seven works of art to a downtown alley between Davis and Evans streets.

In the footsteps of the Impressionists: McMinnville’s Erin Hanson Gallery unveils paintings inspired by the artist’s visit to France

September 5, 2024David Bates

The gallery, in an industrial park, is a sprawling nexus of beautiful, high-end art, savvy entrepreneurship, state-of-the-art technology, and light industry.

Fall theater in wine country ranges from ‘Grease’ and ‘Putnam County Spelling Bee’ to ‘Footloose’ and ‘Death by Design’

September 5, 2024David Bates

Drama, comedy, and music take center stage at Gallery Theater, Linfield University, Struts & Frets Theatre Company, Gather Repertory, and Pentacle Theatre.

Yamhill County gallery scene: Paintings by James Frey, clocks by Ann Durley, and art by art teachers

July 30, 2024David Bates

August shows also include a family of ceramicists at Linfield University and stories from the forest at the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde's cultural center.

Cherie Savoie Tintary’s collages at Chehalem Cultural Center turn old magazines into nostalgic whimsy

June 5, 2024David Bates

The Forest Grove artist uses images from old maps and nearly a century's worth of American magazines to create pieces that range from overstuffed to exuberantly symbolist.