The portal exhibition, juried by Ann Jastrab, was in the online gallery from November 21, 2025 to January 1, 2026. The juror selected forty seven images from thirty four artist for the exhibition. Kari Bishop’s Eighth Door received the Juror’s Award and the Visitors’ Award. Jessica Wascak’s image Points of Light: “Veil” received the Director’s Award. (pardon the geographical misstep…Buenos Aires is in Argentina)
Juror’s Statement
These photographers…they took me on a journey, to places, through spaces, across borders and distances and landscapes, some familiar, some foreign, some mysterious, some unbelievable. And I went willingly.
To be with the juror award winner, Kari Bishop, is to know magic and breathe water. Her image, Eighth Door, really took the idea of “portal” to a new realm for me. The suspense of what will happen next and where her subject will go after they break through to the other side is everything for me. And really, all the images selected for this exhibition have that mystery and wonder, the question of what next, where next, what happened and what will happen…? It’s how the images can make us feel full of uncertainty and expectation at the same time, that is what makes them extraordinary. To be put on edge and then to be fulfilled. To be curious and trepidatious simultaneously. To be scared and also excited. And ultimately to be thrilled at the sight of something, some view, some discovery, some moment, that moment often akin to a miracle.
It wasn’t easy to whittle down the work, so many beautifully seen photographs, so many choices of how to put a show together. But one thing that all these pictures did was to remind me of one of my favorite quotes by Constantin Brancusi:
“To see far is one thing, going there is another.”
And these photographers went there.
Thank you for sharing your work with me and taking me with you.
Ann Jastrab
November, 2025
Directors’ Statement
“Portal” can be represented by amazing variations and interpretations of the theme, from the front door of a home to gateways to another dimension and even an avenue into the workings of our mind.
The Juror’s Award image Eighth Door by Kari Bishop is one of the most intriguing, compelling images we have ever had in a Portal exhibition. Drawing from the visual language of literature and cinema, the work engages the enduring archetype of the portal as imagined in science fiction and fantasy, presenting the portal as a threshold that invites projection, reflection, and passage.
Jessica Wascak’s Points of Light: “Veil”, recipient of the Directors’ Award, suggests an other worldly presence, hovering between illumination and concealment. Lawrence Manning’s Searching situates the viewer at a point of decision, foregrounding the uncertainty inherent in transition. In Lucca, IT 12, Tyler Boley renders a familiar doorway ripe with interpretation and shades of emotion, while Elizabeth Sanjuan’s Where to? prompts reflection on memory, direction, and intent. Wright Schickli’s Recoleta #1 gestures toward finality and transformation, evoking the notion of an ultimate threshold or maybe the prelude to one.
We extend our sincere appreciation to all participating artists for their thoughtful engagement with the theme, and to Ann for her discerning and insightful selections
Amanda Smith and Kevin Tully
January, 2026