Beginning in October, a new specialty license plate will be available for Oregon cars that reflects the state’s ever-growing culture.
Since the early 2000s, the Oregon Cultural Trust license plate has featured an abstract color field created by Northwest artist Kelly Kievit to represent the vibrancy of the state’s culture. Over the years, the specialty plate has generated $5.2 million in revenue for the Trust, with nearly 60,000 plates sold.
This year, the Trust’s Board of Directors set out to do something different to showcase the diversity of the state. A revamped Cultural Trust plate goes on sale Oct. 1 in recognition of the Oregon Cultural Trust’s 20th anniversary. The design was unveiled Wednesday.
The new plate features artwork by Eugene artist Liza Burns. It focuses on the landscape of the state from land to sea, with the incorporation of a symbol overlay of 127 symbols detailing history. The 33-year-old artist has captured an overall panorama of Oregon diversity and traditions.
“When I was tooling around with what I wanted to do, I thought to myself, ‘How do you answer the question of what is Oregon culture?’ Then I asked myself, ‘How do I think of culture?’” Burns said.
Thirty-six artists submitted statements of interest and work samples, however, after a few rounds of evaluations, the Cultural Trust Board of Directors unanimously recommended Burns’ design. From there, Burns and other team members met with the Governor’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion to finalize symbols.
“My vision [of culture] is based on who I am,” Burns said. “We need a coalition of people who can provide for symbols and images that will cast a wider net.”
An interactive virtual key has also been created to explain the symbols and the connections to Oregon culture.
Executive Director of Oregon Cultural Trust Brian Rogers said that the celebration of the cultural trust through the license plate was so unique to the state.
“I love that it represents the landscape of the state and all the different cultures to it,” Rogers said. “That is a really powerful message.”
A new Oregon license plate created by Northwest artist Liza Burns.
Alongside the virtual key, full-scale murals of the plate are being painted by Burns in the Eugene, Medford, Portland and Redmond airports through a partnership with Greencars.com.
Events celebrating the unveiling of the murals are scheduled for Sept. 21 at the Rogue International-Medford Airport; Oct. 15 at the FlyRedmond; Oct. 28 at the Eugene Airport; and tentatively for mid-November at the Portland International Airport. The artwork will also be available as a poster and a limited-edition print. Details will be posted on the Cultural Trust website.
The plate can be purchased beginning Oct. 1 on the Oregon DMV website at DMV field offices and at car dealerships across the state.
“[Oregon culture] is going to change in five to 10 years — and it should,” Burns said. “But these symbols that fit together depict the current culture.”
-- Alexandra Skores
askores@oregonian.com; 503-221-8073; @AlexandraSkores