I like to judge a city by its art bookstores, and on a recent trip to Portland, Oregon, everyone was telling me, "you have to visit Ampersand."
So I took the advice of Currie Pearson (of Beam & Anchor, a recent Austin, Texas, transplant) and Giovanna Parolari (of Luce and Una) and went to Portland's Northeast neighborhood to search out the black-painted store front. A gallery, specialty bookstore, and retail archive, Ampersand focuses on visual content, buying and selling vintage photography, art, design, and photography books. The store carries a mix of new and used titles, along with a rotating gallery of vintage photography. Their intent, as Ampersand says, is to "investigate the colliding point between now and then, past and present, vintage and contemporary."
For more, visit Ampersand Bookshop and Gallery online and in person at 2916 NE Alberta Street.
Above: Vintage prints in protective plastic sheaths next to typography and photography books. Photograph via Edwin Himself.
Above: A minimalist display of black and white crates on top of a small industrial shelving unit. Photograph via Edwin Himself.
Above: Vintage prints hang in silver frames. Photograph via Edwin Himself.
Above: Wide library drawers house art and design books. Photograph via Cool Hunting.
Above: Ampersand's black-painted exterior gives way to a brightly lit store inside.
N.B.: Traveling to Portland, Oregon? Visit 29 shops, hotels, and restaurants in our Portland City Guide.