This article is the second in our series on the 14 capital projects that failed to get funded by the Oregon Legislature in 2023. Only two were funded at $4 million, both in Portland. The 14 smaller projects total $7.8 million and are spread throughout the state, mostly in rural areas.
Living in Portland or other Oregon cities, it’s easy for residents to immerse themselves in the arts. But Grant County is an hour and a half from the nearest movie theater. You’d have to travel over three hours to Boise or The Gorge if you want to see a big-name band. And the nearest art museum is in Boise. Several years ago, Grant County was an arts and cultural desert in the desert.
One day painter Kim Randleas realized how many artists were scattered around the county without an arts & culture community. She floated the idea of creating an arts center, and 250 people showed up to the first open house. Funded by the $1,200 raised at that first gathering, the Painted Sky Center for the Arts (PSCA) was born in 2018. As the only first and only brick-and-mortar arts organization in Grant County, the center’s yearly revenue is now $400,000 five years later. Until July of this year, PSCA was mostly run by volunteers.
PSCA now operates the county’s first and only after-school art program, along with many other classes such as visual arts, leather working, ceramics, photography, fiber arts, literary arts, and many more to come. The art center’s executive director, board members, staff, and volunteers are committed to developing an art-centric, equitable community focused on healthy living through the arts. PSCA offers a neutral place where everybody can leave their politics behind and just have fun. Residents might find themselves participating in a pottery throw-down or learning about writing, drawing, or making a leather bracelet.
After years of being spread out in three different locations in Canyon City and John Day, the arts center needs a multi-use permanent space to continue thriving and expanding. They currently operate next to the Kam Wah Chung State Heritage Site, offering opportunities for cultural partnerships.
PSCA is growing quickly and busting at the seams of their current space. For example, the leather department and visual arts department have to share a classroom, the children’s classroom has limited space, and the center lacks room for large events. The small space limits what they can offer to the community.
“Our dream is to have a dedicated space for each art medium, space to hold public art exhibits, and eventually a performing arts department. Our goal is to someday purchase our own building. Unfortunately that goal is on hold because of the failed CREF funding from the Oregon Legislature,” says Valerie Munyon, the center’s first executive director. “Meanwhile, we are doing our best to raise funds and keeping our fingers crossed for the fall legislative session.”
A new building will offer opportunities for year-round livability and economic benefits to the whole area as a community hub. PSCA would be able to expand cultural offerings in the area by hosting conferences, exhibits, and performances. They expect a new center to increase their visitors by 250% in the first year and by 100% each year thereafter.
A thriving arts & culture community give people another reason to travel to eastern Oregon and invest tourist dollars there. Rural counties with arts organizations experience population growth three times higher than counties without arts institutions, according to “Rural Prosperity through the Arts & Creative Sector: A Rural Action Guide for Governors and States.” Arts-focused counties also have up to $6,000 higher incomes than rural counties that lack performing arts organizations.
See a video showing PSCA in action and learn why it’s so important to the health of Grant County. The center works with community counseling solutions and veteran services to offer art therapy. The county has a 16 percent poverty rate and high drug epidemic, and art has been proven to increase well-being, confidence, and hopes for the future; reduce isolation; and even open up career pathways for youth.
When one of our rural counties thrives, the whole state of Oregon thrives. We need to continue to invest in Grant County through PSCA.