After years of fighting, provocative art added to Bend pub
Published 2:21 pm Tuesday, August 11, 2026
Roger Worthington, who owns Worthy Brewing in east Bend and a NW Brooks Street pub downtown, installed a vinyl piece of artwork to the wall of his Brooks Street building Friday.
After nearly three years of back-and-forth with the city and neighbors about what artwork was allowed at that location, he put up a piece called “The Avengers” by artist Matthias Petsche. It features a depiction of Mother Earth’s revenge on an American robber baron with a “mystic, fantasy” vibe, Worthington told The Bulletin on Friday. Mother Earth rides a bison and is joined by various animals, including bald eagles and a bear. She holds a spear aloft.
Worthington has been at odds with the city and a neighbor for over two years about art that would adorn the space. His first mural, titled “ReWild,” featured a spotted owl, timber wolf, bald eagle, beaver and salmon. A neighbor objected, he said, and he was forced to take it down. A second mural, called “Cultivate Your Garden,” featured hummingbirds, native wildflowers and butterflies. His neighbor again objected. The second mural was an artistic wooden sign, which the city said encroached into his neighbor’s airspace, according to previous Bulletin reporting.
In late 2025, Worthington decided to shelve plans for art on that wall, but he changed his mind and decided to put art up this summer because of the wildfires plaguing Central Oregon. The bare wall was a “contrast to the beauty of Bend,” he said, and he wanted to fill it.
“If not now, when?” Worthington said of his decision to hang the art. “The (federal) government has been ignoring the fires, but nature always wins. If the art can change one mind at a time, then mission accomplished.”
It has taken more than two years to put art on his own building, he said. People who walked by Friday morning congratulated him on the piece, he said.
“I tried to work every option (with the city),” Worthington said. “I’m not backing down.”
The city of Bend said it is aware of the art and had not received any complaints about it as of Tuesday afternoon.
“Generally speaking, sign code violations are evaluated on a complaint basis,” wrote Jacob Larsen, city communications manager, in an email. “At this time, there have been no formal complaints on this sign.”
Worthington took previous pieces of art that he had planned for the downtown pub to his east Bend building.