homeWelcome, sign in or click here to subscribe.login
     


 

 

Architecture & Engineering


print  email to a friend  reprints add to mydjc  

August 19, 2026

PSU architecture students unveil Pickathon 2026 stage

By NINA MILLIGAN
Journal Staff Reporter

Photo by Andy Meeks [enlarge]
PSU architecture students construct the Pickathon stage, a frame to hold old fishing nets, some posts reaching 44 feet high.

As is their tradition, students at Portland State University (PSU) School of Architecture spent several weeks this summer at Pendarvis Farm in Oregon creating an original, temporary performance venue at Cherry Hill for the annual Pickathon music festival. This year’s concept also resulted in a gift to Ukraine aimed at protecting its people against drone attacks.

Photo by Brooke Hoyer [enlarge]
PSU architecture students work on the Pickathon stage construction.

Photo by Mark Stein [enlarge]
Pickathon’s Cherry Hill stage at night with one of a variety of colored lights.

Photo courtesy Ground Squirrel Ventures [enlarge]
Soldiers in Ukraine in a trench protected by fishing nets.

More than 60 students, faculty, alumni and volunteers designed and built the Cherry Hill stage.

With a staggered footprint, the structure consisted of nine rectangular frames made from about 225 pieces of 2x6 dimensional lumber which were set vertically, some reaching 44 feet into the sky. The frames held disused industrial fishing nets, installed vertically to allow them to sway in the breeze. The designers wanted the audience to engage with the nets swaying in the weather, and sound waves from the music performed on the stage; the movement recalling how they would act in the ocean.

After the festival, the nets were shipped to Ukraine where they will be used to protect soldiers and civilians against drone attacks. A nonprofit called Net Your Problem collects nets from fishing towns across the country to send to Ukraine in support of the war effort.

Pickathon has been running since 1999. Pickathon 2026 took place July 30 to Aug. 2.


 

Nina Milligan can be reached by email or by phone at (206) 219-6482.




Email or user name:
Password:
 
Forgot password? Click here.