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Mission Statement

Arts Central, the regional arts and culture council of Central Oregon, builds an appreciation of the arts through education and advocacy and encourages the inclusion of the arts in all aspects of community life.

We provide arts education at Arts Central Station and through our Artists in Schools (AIS) residency program in five rural counties.  VanGo serves rural areas and youth-at-risk.

Arts Central provides assistance and support to many regional arts and culture organizations and manages cultural planning and public art projects for communities in Jefferson, Crook and Deschutes counties.

What is the History of Arts Central?

Arts Central was founded in 1976. Program development began in 1994, when the organization saved and restored the 1904 Craftsman bungalow home of Bend’s first mayor. Mirror Pond Gallery came into being as a result, with the goal of providing showcase opportunities for the region’s emerging artists in a professional gallery setting.  For 15 years, approximately 23,000 locals and tourists visited the gallery annually to view 100 consigned artists. 

The historic home was placed on the National Registry of Historic Places in 2007.  During the application process it was discovered that the home had been built for Bend's first Mayor, Arthur Goodwillie, and further, the house was constructed in 1904, several years earlier than previously thought.  The Goodwillie-Allen-Rademacher House became the second oldest Craftsman bungalow-style home in Oregon. 

In 2008, the Deschutes County tax assessor determined that the art sales use of the building made it liable for property taxes.  As Arts Central's primary mission is arts education, the organization worked to change the use of the building to an educational use that qualifies for tax exemption.  Re-named Arts Central: education + resource center, the renovated building is now open to the public (Wed-Sat, 10am-4) with a full complement of adult classes for the serious artist, for those who just want to have fun, and everyone in between.

In 1997, Arts Central assumed management of the Regional Arts and Culture Council for Central Oregon. Arts Central continued its growth efforts in 2000 by helping to save and restore the 1911 Bend’s historic train depot in partnership with William Smith Properties.

Arts Central founded the region’s first and only arts school, Arts Central Station, which today offers an annual average of 220 classes in visual art media to 1,955 community members, 1,400 of whom are children.

In 2000, Arts Central was also asked to take over the management of an Artists in Schools residency program. From its education headquarters at Arts Central Station, Arts Central manages artist residencies in Deschutes, Jefferson, Crook, Lake and Klamath counties covering 22,250 square miles and serving 8,000 children.

As the youth-at-risk population continued to grow, Arts Central felt an increasing need to provide the benefits of the arts to the kids that need it most. In 2006, VanGo, our mobile art classroom, hit the road to bring arts instruction to youth treatment centers, social service groups, and afterschool facilities throughout Central Oregon.

What is the future of Arts Central?

As the Central Oregon regional arts and culture council, Arts Central has assumed leadership in public art, leading the charge last year to establish a 1% for Art program in Bend and to launch a new public art initiative for Bend called ArtMatch. Arts Central is working with Sisters, Madras, Redmond, Prineville and Warm Springs on a variety of subjects such as public art management and cultural planning. Arts Central is the lead partner for implementation of arts and culture planning for Bend 2030, the city’s visioning process and serves as the manager of the Deschutes Cultural Coalition. The region’s need for arts and culture resources in the fields of education, social services, beautification, planning and tourism are immense.  Arts Central continues to expand its services to meet as many of these needs as possible.