Photo: Portland Trail Blazers

The Portland Trail Blazers announced the addition of several new art pieces to the Rose Quarter campus today. Throughout the summer, the organization worked with eight local artists to create stunning murals on the Rose Quarter campus and within the Moda Center 100-Level concourse.

"The Roots to Roses project was years in the making, and we are incredibly proud to bring together so many local artists to bring new life to the Rose Quarter campus,” said Kevin Kinghorn, Chief Marketing Officer, Portland Trail Blazers. “We know that Portlander’s passion for our city, our community, and the Trail Blazers runs deep and inspires so much of the creative energy that flows across the city. Between the new neighborhood-focused artwork and design inside the arena and the amazing ARA and Roots to Roses murals on the Rose Quarter commons, these artists did an incredible job bringing that passion to life.”

Roots to Roses

On the Rose Quarter Commons between Moda Center’s North and South Entrances, a beautiful wall has taken shape with six distinct murals representing the idea of ‘Roots to Roses’. Roots to Roses came to life to celebrate the rich diversity and resilience of Portland’s communities, highlighting their historical roots and cultural blossoms like vibrant roses.

The series of murals weaves together images of ancestral stories, local traditions, and natural landscapes. Illustrating the deep connection between community identity and the breathtaking Pacific Northwest scenery. The murals stand as a symbol to inspire pride, unity, and an appreciation for the city’s ever-growing tapestry of cultures intertwined with its iconic Rose City beauty.

Each mural comes to life beyond the wall – reimagined as a special-edition retail item available during select Celebration Nights. Fans can take home a piece of the art that celebrates the artists, cultures, and communities that make Rip City thrive, with proceeds supporting local nonprofit partners. Keep an eye out throughout the season as a new retail item drops every month.

Albina Rose Alliance Mural

As part of the Albina Rose Alliance, the Trail Blazers worked with Albina Vision Trust to tap local artist Sharita Towne to bring life to the area outside the Rose Quarter Box Office with a beautiful circular mural. Towne used the neighbor of Albina for inspiration for the piece – “Neighborhood kids who invited newcomers to play outside—no matter their country of origin; elders who planted cherry blossom trees to honor their Japanese neighbors incarcerated during WWII; and folks like Paul Knauls and Geneva Knauls, who shuttled folks to ball games, and had the whole town stepping out in 1977 when Portland took the championship. It's a tribute to Black neighbors' collectivity, care, and celebration in Albina—an enduring love yesterday, today, and tomorrow.”

Moda Center Concourse Neighborhood Upgrades

Within the Moda Center 100-Level Concourse, work has been done to bring new life to spaces and bring a taste of the Portland community into the building. The organization tapped local artist Darren Todd to create two beautiful murals representing two iconic Portland neighborhoods – Hawthorne and Alberta. The Alberta mural honors the rich legacy of Portland’s Black community, highlighting merchants, musicians, creatives, and the lasting spirit of literacy and cultural empowerment that continues to thrive there. The Hawthorne piece pays tribute to the city’s beloved food scene and rainy-day charm, capturing the social energy that makes Portland unique. Additionally, two other Just Walk Out stands have been updated with unique designs connected to distinct neighborhoods – the Northwest Nob Hill neighborhood, and the Southeast Laurelhurst neighborhood.

Below, read more about the artists who created the beautiful murals, their inspirations, backstories, and other work, in their own words.

Sharita Towne – “Towne is a multidisciplinary arts worker based in Portland, born and raised on the West Coast of the U.S. along Interstate 5 from Salem, OR, to Tacoma, WA, and down to Sacramento, CA. She is most interested in engaging local and global Black geographies, histories, and possibilities. In her work, a shared art penetrates and binds people–artists, audience, organizers, civic structures, sisters, cousins, and landscape–in collective catharsis, grief, and joy. Towne holds a BA from UC Berkeley and an MFA from Portland State University.”

Darren Todd (@thedailydaren) – “Todd is an artist, muralist, illustrator, teacher, podcaster and curator in and around Portland. He draws inspiration for his work from his surroundings as well as his experiences, and focuses on developing the building blocks of his visual language to tell stories about his life and emotions. He likes funky abstract designs, is drawn to bright street-art-based color palettes, and enjoys making larger-than-life-sized artworks and installations designed to inspire."

Christian “Wesi” Téllez García (@wesimurals) – “García is a Mexican immigrant artist and architect based in Portland. Working at the intersection of design and large-scale public art, he creates murals, interiors, and custom commissions that transform spaces into meaningful, story-driven environments. With a background in architecture and nearly a decade of experience, Christian blends technical expertise with bold, expressive vision, crafting work that connects people, place, and culture.”

Lettie Jane Rennekamp (she/they) (@lettiejanemakes) – “Rennekamp is an artist, muralist, and teacher based in Portland, Oregon. Her work is bold and tender at the same time, depicting motherhood, varying versions of gender expression, community, and nature. They teach art at Ulna Art Studio, which they co-own with two partners. They are the creator of Many Queens, a gender-inclusive tarot deck, and The Listening Oracle, a card deck that offers support to creatives.”

Alex Chiu (@artbyalexchiu) – “Chiu is a Chinese-American muralist and painter based in Portland. With a background in illustration and comics, he approaches public artwork as a form of visual storytelling. His art practice is an exploration of community, cultural identity, and the history and culture of the Pacific Northwest. Over the past few years, he has worked with schools, businesses, and community organizations to design, organize, and paint public murals. His creative process typically involves directly engaging with community members in designing and painting these murals.”

Malcohm Pascua-Weaselboy (@creeture90) – “Pascua-Weaselboy is an interdisciplinary artist and enrolled member of the Chippewa Cree Tribe and based out of Portland. His work is driven by the belief that art is a bridge between cultures, emotions, and elements. As an Indigenous artist, his creative practice is deeply rooted in his heritage as a Chippewa Cree tribal member, and shaped by the landscapes of Montana and the visual energy of life in the Rose City. Seeing beauty in movement, in the way messages travel across land, whether through train cars or traditional stories, and aims to carry that sense of flow and rhythm into his pieces.”

Latoya Lovely (@llovely01) – “Lovely is a muck-grown, self-taught artist from Belle Glade, Florida, who creates so that her community and her son can explode triumphantly from a society which chooses not to see their magic, so that they can see their beautiful brown faces and hear their rich, powerful voices forever. Lovely is a professional dancer and educator and has known since she was a child that she wanted to color for the rest of her life. Lovely’s practice speaks to the atrophy of the family unit due to capitalism which forces society to push families to the side to show themselves as valuable and hardworking citizens. She does so by sharing her career with her son, who is ever-present on mural projects, residencies, and workshops where he is welcomed to create within the beauty of intergenerational spaces.”

Saphya Razaqi Lones (@saphyalones) – “Razaqi Lones is a fine artist, designer, and waggish eldest daughter. Born from the fusion of Afghan and West Coast culture, she dreams of designing optimal conditions for hanging out. She believes that the most important art serves those moments- whether through everyday objects, public spaces, or sharing stories- deep peace and connection happens when you are relishing magic in the mundane. Saphya is currently a paint covered senior at Portland State for Graphic Design + Advertising with an approach that is multidisciplinary, a little messy, and always driven by meaning.”

The Rose Quarters invites all guests to explore the campus to take in the beauty of these amazing murals during their next visit for an event.

Source: Portland Trail Blazers

Mike Jones