Mike Bennett Studios

Mike Bennett Studios
Logo
The studio's exterior in 2026
Interactive map of Mike Bennett Studios
Address707 Northeast Fremont Street
Portland, Oregon
United States
Coordinates45°32′55″N 122°39′30″W / 45.5485°N 122.6584°W / 45.5485; -122.6584
Type

Mike Bennett Studios is a maker space and studio for American artist Mike Bennett in Portland, Oregon. It operates in northeast Portland's Irvington neighborhood. Historically, "Mike Bennett Studios" has also been used as the presenting organization of works by Bennett, including Wonderwood and Portland Aquarium (2025–2026). The current studio has handicraft as well as various installations associated with PDX Sidewalk Joy.

Description

The studio's interior (2026)

Mike Bennett's maker space and studio operates on Fremont Street in northeast Portland's Irvington neighborhood. The space has handicraft and hosts classes, parties, and other events. Outside the studio are various installations associated with PDX Sidewalk Joy, including exchanges for keychains, Pokémon trading cards, and stickers. There is also a dog library with tennis balls.

Historically, "Mike Bennett Studios" has also been used as the presenting organization of works by Bennett, including Wonderwood and Portland Aquarium (2025–2026), which had a Mike Bennett Studios gift shop and museum.

History

The studio has hosted various activities, events, and installations. The Portland Keychain Library is a keychain exchange operated by Bennett at the studio. The keychain library was refurbished and relocated to the studio in 2025. Previously, Bennett operated the exchange in the St. Johns neighborhood. The keychain library has inspired similar exchanges in Baltimore, Greencastle, Indiana, and dozens of other cities in the United States, as well as in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

In November 2025, Bennett organized an event at the studio to create the "world's largest dachshund" to raise funds for a local organization that provides food and other services to pets. Members of the public who assisted with the project received custom paintbrushes and stickers. The event raised approximately $5,000.

In June 2026, the studio hosted Mr. Chip, a vending machine with approximately 25 varieties of chips. Options rotated and the machine also stocked chip-themed art as well as Mr. Chip merchandise such as chip clips, embroidered patches, and stickers. The owner of Mr. Chip, Keith Dickerson, offered samples during the machine's "grand opening".

In October 2026, the studio began hosting Dead Media Video Rentals, described by KOIN as an "immersive, walk-through haunted attraction featuring famous movie monsters". The exhibit has 26 illustrations of monsters representing letters of the Latin alphabet, including characters from traditional horror films. The studio also hosted "The Spooktacular", a series of family-friendly block parties with music and other activities. The events collected food donations for the Q Center, a local LGBTQ community center. In late October 2026, hundreds of parents gathered at the studio to participate in a letter-writing campaign directed at Portland Public Schools regarding a plan to close as many as 14 schools.

Reception

Mike Bennett Studios won in the Best Community Arts Space category of Willamette Week's annual 'Best of Portland' readers' poll in 2026.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Gallup, Kate Hagan (2026-04-30). "Experience the World of Mike Bennett in Portland, Oregon". ParentMap. OCLC 52150073. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  2. 1 2 Hamilton, Katherine Chew (2026-06-27). "Mr. Chip Will Sell Hard-to-Find Snacks Out of an Art Studio". Portland Mercury. Archived from the original on 2026-06-29. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  3. ↑ "Mike Bennett Studios to move to downtown Portland". Portland Business Journal. American City Business Journals. 2025-03-10. Archived from the original on 2025-03-11. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  4. ↑ Connor, Vickie. "The Portland Aquarium: Presented by Mike Bennett Studios". The Oregonian. Advance Publications. ISSN 8750-1317. OCLC 985410693. Archived from the original on 2025-10-04. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  5. ↑ "Mike Bennett's Portland Aquarium!". Portland Observer. 2025-06-23. ISSN 2997-3910. OCLC 9286929. Archived from the original on 2026-04-14. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  6. ↑ Sandlin, Jennifer (2025-11-07). "Portland's most unusual library trades keychains instead of books". Boing Boing. Archived from the original on 2025-11-11. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  7. ↑ "Finding 'Sidewalk Joy' around Portland and beyond". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on 2026-06-03. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  8. ↑ "Kohr Explores: Mike Bennett's keychain libraries spark international movement". KOIN. 2025-09-01. Archived from the original on 2025-09-29. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  9. ↑ "The Baltimore Keychain Library Upcycles Small Toys and Trinkets in Hampden". Baltimore. 2025-08-11. ISSN 0005-4453. Archived from the original on 2026-02-10. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  10. ↑ Knight, Megan (2025-09-24). "Little Free Keychain Libraries popping up around town, bringing whimsy and joy". WMAR-TV. Archived from the original on 2025-10-21. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  11. ↑ Szpak, Katy (2025-05-26). "Greencastle keychain library creates community connection". Indiana Public Media. Archived from the original on 2026-04-12. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  12. ↑ "Nov 2024: 'Love art, take art, leave art'". Winnipeg Free Press. 2024-11-06. ISSN 0828-1785. OCLC 1607085. Archived from the original on 2024-11-06. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  13. ↑ Seibold, Hannah (2025-11-12). "Portland artist Mike Bennett paints 'world's longest dachshund' to help feed pets in need". Portland Tribune. Carpenter Media Group. OCLC 46708462. Archived from the original on 2025-11-23. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  14. ↑ "Portland artist, community to paint world's longest dachshund to help pet owners during SNAP cuts". KGW.
  15. ↑ "Portland vending machine to offer rare chips". Vending Times. 2026-06-26. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  16. ↑ "Local artist spooks Portland with free Haunted House". KOIN.
  17. ↑ "The Mercury's Do This, Do That: Your Top Events for Oct 5-11". Portland Mercury. 2026-10-05. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  18. ↑ "'Dead Media Video Rentals' is a new movie-themed haunted house by a Portland artist". KPTV. 2026-10-03. Archived from the original on 2026-10-04. Retrieved 2026-10-04.
  19. ↑ Seibold, Hannah (2026-10-01). "Here are spooky things to do around Portland this Halloween". The Portland Tribune. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  20. ↑ Schacht, Spencer (2026-10-31). "Portland Public Schools families launch letter-writing campaign against school closures". KPTV. Retrieved 2026-11-03.
  21. ↑ "2026 Best of Portland Readers' Poll: Arts & Entertainment". Willamette Week. 2026-07-22. Retrieved 2026-07-22.