Portraits of Hope Announces Exhibition Partnership, to Launch in Washington, D.C.

By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor

The work of one Palisadian artist will be on display in the future in Washington, D.C. alongside pieces by children from each state.

Portraits of Hope—co-founded by El Medio Bluffs resident and artist Ed Massey—is partnering with National Park Service, National Mall and Memorial Parks for an artwork exhibition commemorating the 250th anniversary of American Independence in 2026.

The anticipated collaboration is said to feature a signature artwork exhibit at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C.

“We appreciate the expertise and vision demonstrated by POH in curating and organizing captivating public art exhibitions,” the U.S. Department of the Interior wrote in a letter to founders Bernie and Ed Massey. “We anticipate close alignment between the NPS goals for the 250th Independence Day celebrations, and POH’s work on public art and civic collaborations to highlight artwork from children from each of the 50 states.”

Founded in 1995, Portraits of Hope is a nonprofit program aimed at conceiving and developing “one-of-a-kind motivational art projects that merge the production of dynamic public art works with creative therapy for hospitalized children and civic education for students of all ages.”

Portraits of Hope projects have involved tens of thousands of youth and adults in high-profile civic collaborations—from airplanes, buildings, NASCAR racecars and more.

Ed said to the Palisadian-Post that many Pacific Palisades students and former students have worked on different Portraits of Hope projects, and the team anticipates many more will work with them on the latest project.

The team is currently laying the groundwork for what they believe will be a “wondrous and absolutely terrific project.”

“This is an extremely exciting project, and we’re thrilled to begin,” Ed said.

Because of the setting and year in which the project will culminate, the team anticipates a significant civic education component for students in grades three through 12, as part of the all-inclusive Portraits of Hope initiative, which will involve all 50 states, as well as tribal and U.S. territories.

“We anticipate 20,000 youth will directly participate in the project, and the initiative will involve and serve children in schools, hospitals, social service and civic programs,” Portraits of Hope shared with the Post. “Additionally, the public art work itself will imaginatively showcase the beauty of renewable energy.

“The exhibition will be in 2026, and we anticipate that millions of viewers will see the finished public work directly and/or through traditional and social media.”

Portraits of Hope has had a number of local installations, including Shaping LA in 2019, which adorned the top of the Los Angeles Convention Center, as well as The Spheres at MacArthur Park, a project that featured thousands of floating, hand-painted spheres in the park’s lake.

In a 2022 PBS’ “For The Arts” segment, Ed said that he was born and raised in Los Angeles, and hoped to make an impact by “adding some vibrancy and color to this incredible city.”

“We have so many potential areas that can be brightened up, and in my field, where public art is taken front seat really, I just see opportunities there,” Ed said in the episode. “With Portraits of Hope, the beauty is that the community does the artwork, we can all transform something that becomes very tangible, and can be seen and appreciated by so many.”

For more information, visit portraitsofhope.org.