It’s been a while since the Belmont Goats delighted people of all ages as they grazed on the grass in inner Southeast Portland. But come this summer, in the development named for those adorable hoofed lawnmowers, family entertainment will be back in the neighborhood.
Hopscotch, an immersive art experience that started in Texas, is scheduled to open a second location in Portland early in June. The gallery is using 23,000 square feet of the former Orchard Supply Hardware at 1020 S.E. 10th Ave. Orchard’s parent company Lowes announced it would close all Orchard stores in 2018.
What exactly is an “immersive art experience”? In this case, it starts by creating 10 separate “gallery” spaces inside the huge space.
But don’t think small, museum-style rooms with white walls. These rooms are massive, with ceilings that appear in places not to exist. All windows will be blacked out, to control where and when there is light. Inside these rooms, and in the halls, lobby and lounge, there will be more than 50 large-scale installations created by artists from all over the world.
These installations use light, sound and technology to build an experience. Sometimes, emotional, in the case of a room where people can tell their secrets and hear a sound wash of other people’s secrets. Sometimes joyful, in the case of a huge room filled with an LED ball pit.
While the project started in Texas and has its other permanent location in San Antonio, the move to Portland hasn’t been just another opening of a franchise. Nicole Jensen, who started Hopscotch with Hunter Inman, moved her family to Portland six months ago, in advance of opening the Portland outpost.
Hopscotch has a 10-year lease on the space and Jensen has long-term plans to stay, too.
“My wife and I were like, ‘We’ll come up for six months to open it and just see,’” Jensen said Tuesday during a tour of the former hardware store. “And then within two months, we were like, ‘All right, we’re not going back.’”
While some of the experiences at the Portland Hopscotch will be similar to those in San Antonio, there will also be key differences. Take what is sure to be a crowd-pleaser: “Quantum Trampoline.”
“The one we have in San Antonio is just one wall, normal floor, and it’s really cool,” Jensen said.
The Portland version will be magnitudes cooler, with a bounce-house-style floor and projections on three walls which, according to a press release, allow “visitors to play amongst millions of particles of light and sound while drawing pictures of the universe with their body movements.”
Hopscotch is working with Portland Street Art Alliance on “Walls Within,” which will feature large-scale murals on four walls.
And the local difference will also be apparent at the first real stop: A lounge, with a bar and food. The food and beverage program is being created by local Top Chef contestant Sara Hauman.
Visitors will be able to take food and drinks throughout the gallery, which will have timed entry, to keep crowds manageable and the experience positive. People of all ages are allowed, Jensen said, but all kids under 16 need to be accompanied by an adult.
Basically: Bring your family but don’t plan a toddler birthday party for that LED ball pit.
Hopscotch isn’t the only all-ages entertainment, food and drink space that is opening for Portlanders this summer. The People’s Courts, a pickleball, bocce, cornhole and more facility with two restaurants and bars is also set to open its doors in the coming months.
— Lizzy Acker
503-221-8052; lacker@oregonian.com; @lizzzyacker
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