• Dr Martin Luther King Jr School Museum of Contemporary Art (KSMoCA)

  • About KSMoCA

    KSMoCA Wall with logo

    KSMoCA, Dr Martin Luther King Jr School Museum of Contemporary Art, is a contemporary art museum inside of Dr. MLK Jr. School in northeast Portland, Oregon. Founded in 2014 by Portland State University professors Lisa Jarrett and Harrell Fletcher, the project creates an unusual pairing between public school students and internationally renowned artists and their work. KSMoCA’s programs are collaboratively developed with the Dr. MLK Jr. School community, PSU students, and volunteers.

    Students learn through experience about museum practice and careers in the arts by participating as curators, preparators, artists, gallerists, writers, and docents. KSMoCA reimagines the way museums, public schools, and universities can affect people, culture, and perspectives by creating radical intersections and sharing resources across organizations.

    For more information, visit www.ksmoca.com and Instagram.

    Exhibitions

    KSMoCA hosts three main exhibitions throughout the course of the school year (Fall, Winter and Spring). Each exhibition features the artwork of a world-renowned contemporary artist, and work made by Dr MLK Jr school students who met the artist and participated in a workshop. This artwork is displayed in the hallway between the cafeteria and the gym.

    KSMoCA also hosts three exhibitions annually in the MLK Jr. Gallery. This space is curated by the Student Curatorial Committee, a group of 4th and 5th grade students who meet with and select artists for this space. This gallery is located in the hallway between the office and the cafeteria.

    To learn more about these exhibitions, please visit the exhibitions page on their website. 
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  • Upcoming Events

    teacher demonstating art rpocess to young students in a classroom

    Artist Talk and Exhibition Opening with Mr. Xavier Pierce, KSMoCA’s Spring 2025 Artist in Residence

    THURSDAY, JUNE 5, 2025
    10 — 11 AM
    SCHOOL LIBRARY and CAFETORIUM

    Mr. Xavier Pierce is a multidisciplinary artist whose work explores memory, emotion, and the act of being present. He draws inspiration from his lived experience, using art as a tool to navigate life’s emotional currents. What began as a personal process to make sense of change and growth has become a practice rooted in his belief that creativity is essential to the human experience.

    As a first grade teacher at Dr. MLK Jr. School and now visiting artist at KSMoCA, Mr. Pierce continues to develop a body of work that invites reflection, vulnerability, and emotional clarity. Students from class will join him in answering questions during this event.

    During his Spring 2025 artist residency at KSMoCA, Mr. Pierce led over five workshops on color and painting with his first grade class. He collaborated with his first grade students on mixing and naming unique paint colors based on their emotions, dreams, and interests. Then they painted their colors onto a canvas divided into three sections: walls and a floor. This created a “room” that students filled with drawings of subjects that are important to them. These collaborative rooms became a symbolic safe space for expression, reflection, and taking up space. Each student was paired with a PSU student and KSMoCA mentor who supported them individually—helping mix colors, spread paint across the canvas, and draw their chosen subjects. The resulting student artwork will be exhibited at KSMoCA alongside Mr. Pierce’s paintings. 

    Mr. Pierce is an artist who grew up in Northeast Portland down the street from Dr. MLK Jr. School where he is a first grade teacher. He received his undergraduate degree in Liberal Studies and a master’s in Education, both from Portland State University.

    KSMoCA hosts many projects, activities, and artist talks throughout the school year. Stay up to date on upcoming activities by visiting their events calendar or by following their Instagram page.
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