Nate Orton
nateorton.com
nateorton@gmail.com
Instagram

SELECTED SOLO SHOWS

2024 Recent Paintings. Lake Oswego Library. Lake Oswego, OR

2023 New Light. One Wall Gallery. Eugene, OR                       

2017 My Day 1-42 Installation. Passages Bookshop. Portland, OR

2016 Look left: walk towards the river. RCCO. Portland, OR

2015 My Day, the first 10 years. Glyph. Portland, OR

2015 The Child. Multnomah Arts Center. Portland, OR

2011 Recent Drawings. The Firehouse Gallery. Grants Pass, OR

2011 Nate Orton draws the Portland Art Museum. Reading Frenzy. Portland, OR

2011 Recent Sculptures and Drawings. Olympic Mills Gallery. Portland, OR

2009 Drawings of Idaho. The Half and Half. Portland, OR

2006 New Work. Fix Gallery and Boutique. Portland, OR

2005 Untitled. Hippo Schemes Gallery. Seattle, WA

SELECTED GROUP SHOWS

2024 OAEA Art Educator’s Show. Maryhill Museum. Goldendale, WA. Awarded Honorable Mention.   

2023 OAEA Art Educator’s Show. Maryhill Museum. Goldendale, WA. Awarded Curator’s Choice.   

2022 OAEA Art Educator’s Show. Maryhill Museum. Goldendale, WA         

2021 Instructors show. Multnomah Arts Center. Portland, OR                       

2021 OAEA Art Educator’s Show. Maryhill Museum. Goldendale, WA         

2019 OAEA Art Educator’s Show. Maryhill Museum. Goldendale, WA     

2018 Wood Would. Katterskill Fine Arts Gallery. Hunter, NY                      

2018 Ink + Press. ANX Gallery. Portland, OR

2017 Nate Orton/Cynthia Lahti. Littman Gallery. Portland State University. Portland, OR

2016 Ray Trayle Print Show. Multnomah Arts Center. Portland, OR

2016 Instructors show. Multnomah Arts Center. Portland, OR

2016 (con)Sequence. Art Center East. La Grande, OR

2016 Suddenly Entire. Cannon Gallery, Western Oregon University. Monmouth, OR

2015 Instructors show. Multnomah Arts Center. Portland, OR

2014 Instructors show. Multnomah Arts Center. Portland, OR

2013 Quietude. Eastern Oregon University Gallery. La Grande, OR

2012 Trees of Oregon Park. PDX Gallery Window Project. Portland, OR

2012 N. Orton and Cynthia Lahti. North Coast Seed Building. Portland, OR

2010 Annual Juried Show. Center for Contemporary Art. Seattle, WA

2010 Mystic Sons of Morris Graves Tribute. TK Building Gallery. Seattle, WA

2010 I want to feel at home here. MP5 Gallery. Portland, OR

2009 Multicultural Symposium. Lewis Clark College. Portland, OR

2009 N. Orton and M. Kondratiev. Satellite Art Gallery. La Grande, OR

2008 Touch group show. Show and Tell Gallery, Everett Lofts. Portland, OR

2007 N. Orton and B. Stallman. Flight 64 Printmaking Co-op. Portland, OR

2006 Alien/Sedition. Mark Woolley Gallery. Portland, OR

2005 The Cash and Carry. Portland Art Center. Portland, OR

SELECTED COLLECTIONS

Museum of Modern Art Library. New York, New York
Spencer Collection, New York Public Library. New York, New York
Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley. Berkeley, California
Haas Family Arts Library, Yale University. Newhaven, Connecticut
Green Library, Stanford University. Stanford, California
University of Oregon Library. Eugene, Oregon
Brown University Library. Providence, Rhode Island
University of Delaware Library. Newark, Delaware
Kohler Art Library, University of Wisconsin. Madison, Wisconsin

BIO: 

Born and raised in North Central Idaho, Nate Orton now lives in Milwaukie, Oregon and is best known for his self-published book series, MY DAY, established in 2005. MY DAY explores the people and landscapes of the Pacific Northwest through drawing, writing and traditional as well as non-traditional printmaking techniques. Nate regularly walks his city with sketchbook in tow, documenting the common yet sometimes surreal scenes and situations he stumbles upon. Nate’s work lives in collections as small as Portland’s local independent book shops and as large as the Metropolitan Museum of Art Library in New York City.

STATEMENT:

I carry a sketchbook wherever I go, allowing me to capture witnessed scenes and ideas by making quick drawings, watercolor paintings and notes. Mostly, events and pictures unfold during daily routines, allowing me to keep detailed records on all the interesting, beautiful and surreal things that I experience. 

Once back in the studio, these notes turn into paintings, prints and zines that show a sort of visual map, or narration, of my interactions from day to day. This open air-to-studio process of record keeping helps me create a more intimate relationship with my surroundings so I can make accurate representations of the places to which I am connected throughout the Pacific and Inland Northwest. 

Paying homage to regional artists of the 20th century such as Amanda Snyder, Morris Graves and Charles Heaney, I want to continue their legacy of creating visual time capsules for our region and be a part of the story of the Northwest.

TEACHING
2018 – Present: High school visual arts teacher. Riverdale High School. Portland OR

2011 – 2020: Adult printmaking, drawing and youth arts instructor. Multnomah Arts Center. Portland OR

2015 – 2017: Visual Arts Teacher in residence. Cottonwood School of Civics and Science, K-8. Portland OR

2013 – 2015: Teen and adult letterpress instructor. Independent Publishing Resource Center. Portland OR