A new photography exhibit of Oregon foster children is raising local interest in adoptions.

At least five children have found adoptive homes since Heart Gallery of Oregon has been on display at the Rogue Valley Mall, said Deborah Collins, local adoption certifier for the Department of Human Services. Child welfare workers also received 23 inquiries about adopting foster children, Collins said.

The exhibit will remain through April 26 on the mall's lower level in front of Macy's, then move to Portland.

Formed last year, the nonprofit Heart Gallery features about 40 photos of foster children who need permanent homes, said Rolanne Stafford, co-founder and art director. Professional photographers volunteered their time to create images such as the portrait of three siblings, 9-year-old Courtney, 7-year-old Misty and 5-year-old Jacob.

"The bottom line is the children want to be adopted," said Patricia Feeny, spokeswoman for DHS.

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The child welfare division of DHS finalized 1,095 adoptions last fiscal year, a 6 percent increase over the previous year, but hundreds of Oregon children still need an adoptive home. In some cases, parents relinquished legal rights to their children. In others, DHS terminated those rights, Feeny said.

"Technically, in this scenario, DHS is the parent," Feeny said.

No Southern Oregon foster children appear in the Medford exhibit for reasons of privacy, Collins said. Some will be pictured, however, when the exhibit moves elsewhere. Most Heart Gallery children are school age, Feeny said.

The exhibit does not feature any DHS wards who could be reunited with their parents, Feeny said, adding that children in temporary foster care have more rights to confidentiality than those pictured in Heart Gallery.

Forty-five other states host Heart Galleries, an idea Stafford said she gleaned in 2005 from an article published in Parade magazine. The country's first Heart Gallery was mounted in 2001 in New Mexico.

"Really the only way to get a child adopted is to have people see and get to know the child," Feeny said.

The volunteer-run Heart Gallery also encourages interest in foster parenting, mentoring or working as a court-appointed special advocate, Stafford said. During the exhibit's run in Medford, DHS has received six inquiries from prospective foster parents, Collins said.

The Heart Gallery exhibit opened Feb. 14 at the State Capitol in Salem, and is scheduled to run at Portland City Hall, May 3-17. Locations have not been established for the gallery's showing in Klamath Falls, Aug. 25 to Sept. 21, or in Grants Pass, Sept. 21-30, said spokeswoman Lana Stachlowski.

That information will become available on Heart Gallery's Web site, www.heartgalleryoregon.org.

For more information or to donate, visit the Web site or call 800-331-0503.

Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail slemon@mailtribune.com.