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Current Exhibits
The Architectural Heritage Center mounts rotating gallery exhibits drawn from the Bosco-Milligan Foundation’s renowned collection of architectural artifacts, one of the largest in the United States.
Members: Free General Public: $5
 Artifacts + ArchivesOpens Friday, January 15th, 2010 Reception – 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. Meyer Memorial Trust Gallery Special Thanks to: Joanne Carlson, Gina Drew, Bo Sullivan, Meg Talbott, & Bill Welch Not only did our founders Jerry Bosco and Ben Milligan leave us a wonderful collection of building artifacts, they also left us books, catalogs, photographs, drawings, and other materials that are tremendously valuable for understanding the Portland region’s architectural heritage. In recent years, the Bosco-Milligan Foundation has received additional generous donations, including the libraries of the late architects George McMath and Richard Ritz, as well as other longtime friends of the organization. The BMF archives have become a significant resource for researchers and for the development of our own education programs at the AHC. Nearly every artifact – or building – started with a drawing, whether conceptual, rudimentary, or detailed, intended for the craftsperson or builder to construct it. In a century before computers, the documents such as descriptive letters, catalogs, and eventually entire “mail order houses” were the means of acquiring materials and achieving artistry in the crafting of artifacts. Artifacts + Archives will illustrate the essential connection between paper-based archival materials in our collections and the artifacts themselves. This exhibit draws upon the Foundation’s ever-expanding artifacts and archives collections, with emphasis on items that have not been seen by the public, including photographs, architectural drawings, maps, personal papers, and rare books. |
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Wonders in WoodLiz’s Antique Hardware Gallery On Exhibit through Winter 2010 Sponsored by: Signature Hardware Supported by: Maud Eastwood and Precision Images Special Thanks to: Joanne Carlson, Gina Drew, Bo Sullivan, Meg Talbott, & Bill Welch Wood is not exactly a material that comes to mind when you think of hardware in all of its metallic history. But "Wonders in Wood" demonstrates that quite a bit of innovation went into using this natural material for a wide variety of wooden doorknobs, in every species available in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. Some woods proved to be surprisingly durable and survive today in the many rare hardware elements displayed throughout this exhibit. |
Historically, wood served as the original material for fashioning door handles, whether elongated or round, affixed or movable, domestic or foreign. Few examples of these earliest of the early handmade types survived. However, a wide variety of 1800s wooden knobs, reflecting the technical and artistic progression of the 19th century, do exist and it is from these specimens that collections have been and will continue to be supplied. Serious collectors should take note of this minority among American doorknobs.