What is your first memory of Portland?
I came to visit my girlfriend, now my wife, in 2013, when I was living in LA. The first thing I noticed was how good it smelled. She took me to the waterfalls outside of town, and I could not believe how green it was: plants growing on plants growing on trees growing on cliff edges. So much life, so much air.
Why did you choose Portland as your home?
I could see having a really beautiful life here.
What is the mark of a true Portlander?
Loving the rain. Which I do not. I love everything it grows, but I complain about the grey, and I am often met with surprise by people who genuinely love it.
How does the city inspire you?
My studio runs down to a creek and a protected wildlife area, and deer are always in the yard eating from my apple trees. At the bottom of my hill is Leach Botanical Garden, where I used to be the maintenance man. This is a city that gives you access to incredible nature.
Which one of your works or series is most connected to your life in the city?
I have been making paintings of the cherry tree in my backyard. Ten days a year it explodes into pink and white 30 feet in the air, and those 10 days are my anchor to this city. I am painting five canopies of it, 30 feet wide together, for P·P·O·W next year, each with a different diagram of esoteric knowledge hovering above the blooms.
What does it mean for you to show your work at the 2026 Converge 45 Triennale?
It is an honor, and a good excuse to get out of my little corner of Portland. The show includes 22 small paintings of the Fool from the tarot. In Chittagong, Bangladesh where my father's family is from, phool means flower, so ‘the fool’ and ‘the flower’ have always been the same word to me. I am excited to show my foolish explorations of the tarot in my city.
What are you most looking forward to seeing at the Triennale?
Sidony O'Neal and Keyon Gaskin at Barn Radio.
A performance by Keyon at Yale Union, which no longer exists, was the first and possibly greatest art I saw in Portland: Keyon approached every audience member, asked when they were last scared, applied black lipstick, and asked if they could kiss the person and where, then stripped nude, climbed the beams, climbed back down, and tap-danced out of there.
Which artwork best represents Portland?
I want to say that piece by Keyon, but also Leach Botanical Garden, started by the botanist Lilla Leach and her husband. They built a stone cabin, traveled Oregon with pack burros collecting plant specimens, and built a beautiful life devoted to nature.
Which Portland neighborhood should visitors stay in to feel like a local?
Mt. Tabor. Get a coffee and a chocolate chip cookie at Coquine, then walk to the top of Mt. Tabor Park and look at the whole city.
What is the craziest thing you have seen or heard in Portland?
It is pretty crazy seeing people openly smoking fentanyl downtown. But something a little more unique is that during COVID-19 lockdowns, I would take my kids on long drives for their naps. One day I was on the outskirts of Portland, just weaving through rural neighborhoods, and when I got to the end of this very normal road, there was standing this huge sculpture of Anubis, beyond a massive stone arched gateway.
What do you miss most when you are far away?
My kids.
What is your best advice for visitors?
Come in the spring to see the cherry blossoms along the waterfront. Drive the Historic Columbia River Highway and stop at every waterfall. Go to all the gardens. Get a Bryan's Bowl at ¿Por Qué No?
Credits and captions
Srijon Chowdhury lives and works in Portland, Oregon. His work will be presented as part of the 2026 edition of Converge 45 Triennial, open across various venues on August 27, 2026 in Portland.
Srijon Chowdhury is represented by P·P·O·W (New York). All photographs and videos by Daniel Fickle for Art Basel.