After building a seventy-year legacy of contemporary craft at its original site, Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery has officially closed the doors of its 3934 Southwest Corbett Avenue location as preparations continue for the Grand Opening of its downtown Portland home. A new future for the organization will emerge on July 22nd, 2007, when it reopens as Museum of Contemporary Craft at 724 Northwest Davis on the North Park Blocks.

While other institutions move away from the word, this Museum boldly embraces “craft.” As a center for dialogue and inquiry, the Museum of Contemporary Craft pushes the boundaries of what defines craft and how we experience it. Dynamic exhibitions, thoughtful publications, provocative programs and events, and exceptional hand-crafted objects that one can hold and take home from The Gallery, work together to inspire an ongoing conversation in which expert, novice and curious visitor can all participate.

The new Museum of Contemporary Craft will double its former size, providing generous space for the Museum’s exhibitions, collection, Gallery, programs, events and staff. The exhibition galleries will now be able to support the visions of artists and curators, hosting significant traveling exhibitions, large-scale installations, and an ongoing selection of objects from the permanent collection and archive. Of critical importance, the new space will have ample professional storage to maintain and preserve the Museum’s growing permanent collection.

Located in a bustling shopping district, the Museum’s Gallery will become a primary destination in the Pacific Northwest for purchasing the best examples of contemporary craft. The Museum also will have flexible, dedicated space for educational and community programs like lectures, artist demonstrations, tours, special events, and hands-on art classes for adults and children.

Museum of Contemporary Craft is one of the city’s oldest cultural institutions, and the patina of its rich history colors its exciting present. Founded in 1937 be dedicated, forward-thinking artists and volunteers, it was originally housed in a building constructed with WPA funds in Portland’s historic Lair Hill neighborhood. From the beginning, this vital, dynamic organization has regularly shown and promoted the work of artists of the Pacific Northwest as well as those of national acclaim.

For 70 continuous years, the Museum of Contemporary Craft has been a hub where people connect creatively, professionally and socially through craft. As work on the building continues, so does the work of developing a vibrant and memorable experience for visitors. Far from being simply a container, the Museum of Contemporary Craft will be a laboratory for direct exploration and investigation.