Source Fountain

The Source Fountain sits as a concrete basin in the middle of a plaza, defined by water that pours over jagged, dark aggregate rocks rather than a traditional sculpted figure. Commissioned for the nineteen seventy-five renovation of the Portland Transit Mall, the fountain exists to muffle the sound of city traffic with the constant rush of water. During its first summer, a local man famously stripped off his clothes and bathed in the basin, setting a precedent for Portlanders treating the fountain like a public swimming hole.