The distinction between the tangible and the abstract is constantly moving, blurring, tricking us into seeing what's never been there. Or making invisible what we know to be right in front of us. On the Verge of Recognition seeks work that plays in the strange space between the knowable and the impossible, between truth and fiction, between the banality and wonder of the everyday. We want the surreal feeling of the mundane turned magical, of seeing a pattern in the scattered leaves of a tall shrub, of repeating a word to the point that it loses all meaning and becomes a strange aural rhythm. Works can be riffs on the strangeness of our fleshy forms, the absurdity and limitation of language, the way a simple change of color can turn a mundane object into a beautiful fascination. Be poetic, brutal, obtuse, ham-fisted, stoned but articulate, curious and confused, and on the nose.

Application Requirements

Please submit a brief statement and up to 3 images. All mediums accepted. Video is restricted to work that can be shown on a monitor, and, for video, please submit a link to YouTube, Vimeo, etc. 

Exhibit dates: March 5 - March 27, 2022 at Well Well Projects, a gallery in North Portland, Oregon (in the building of Oregon Contemporary)

Call close date: January 28, 2022

Drop-off/delivery time: If shipped or delivered, must be ready to hang, and arrive by February 28, 2022 (details will be sent to those selected). 

Artists get 100% from work sold, and they’re responsible for shipping and for providing a return shipping label. 

Eligibility Criteria

Open to all artists 18 years of age or older.