MUSEUM FREE DAY: Community Celebration: A Black Art Ecology of Portland and AUX/MUTE

September 17 is a Museum Free Day as part of Museum Day, organized by Smithsonian Magazine with 450 participating cultural organizations nationwide. Advance ticket reservations begin online Wednesday, September 14. A free community gathering (noon to 4 p.m.) in the Museum’s outdoor courtyards celebrates the past year’s work of APEX: A Black Art Ecology of Portland (BAEP) by Sharita Towne and AUX/MUTE by The Numberz FM. Join the artists and collaborators from both exhibitions for an afternoon of music, ice cream, and a free BAEP riso poster giveaway in the Museum’s Upper and Lower Courtyards.

Art Unveiling: Keaton Otis Memorial (September 12, 5 p.m., NE 6th and Halsey)— Conceptualized and led by artist Sharita Towne, whos current APEX exhibition at PAM includes her memorial work with Justice for Keaton Otis. In this tribute to a young Black man killed by Portland police in 2010, Towne and her collaborators use a Japanese art form for mending and repairing broken ceramics, to fill the cracks in the street with gold.