PROSPECTUS
"Thresholds" is a Juried art show to be held at Ardest Gallery in The Woodlands, Texas, just North of Houston between April 30th-May 30th.
The Opening Reception will be held on Saturday, May 2nd between 6-8 p.m. with a presentation by the Juror at 7 p.m.
The Deadline to apply is Saturday, April 4th 11:59 PM.
Thresholds is a curated exhibition exploring glass as a material of transition, mediation, and connection. Fragile yet resilient, glass occupies a unique position between separation and permeability. It creates boundaries while allowing light, vision, and presence to pass through—acting as both barrier and bridge.
This exhibition invites artists working with glass to consider thresholds in their broadest sense: physical, emotional, architectural, perceptual, or conceptual. Glass has long shaped how we inhabit and understand space—framing views, filtering light, enclosing interiors, and mediating relationships between inside and outside. In this context, thresholds are not fixed lines, but active zones where meanings shift and qualities coexist.
Artists are encouraged to submit work that engages glass as a mediator—between protection and exposure, clarity and diffusion, solidity and fragility. Submissions may address themes such as boundaries, containment, passage, reflection, transparency, or transformation, whether through sculptural, installation-based, functional, or experimental approaches.
Thresholds seeks work that embraces layered meanings and coexisting states, highlighting glass not only as a material but as a conceptual lens through which we experience separation, connection, and the spaces in between.
GUEST JUROR- Malina Cipleu
Malina Cipleu is a Romanian-born, Austin-based visual artist working primarily in kiln-formed glass. She grew up in Transylvania, surrounded by forests, mountains, and shifting light, where early
observations of natural patterns—branching roots, riverbeds, drifting clouds—shaped her visual language. At the same time, her experiences in her father’s physiology lab introduced her to microscopic structures that mirrored these larger systems, fostering an enduring interest in the parallels between visible and hidden worlds.
Her later studies in psychology deepened this inquiry, informing an ongoing exploration of perception, memory, and how subtle shifts in light, texture, and space influence emotional experience. Cipleu is
drawn to quiet systems—how materials collect and disperse, how forms relate, and how natural, psychological, and architectural networks evolve over time.
Working with glass, she treats the kiln as a collaborator, allowing granular textures, flowing color
transitions, and softened, diffused surfaces to emerge through process. Modularity is central to her installations, which often consist of repeating components that expand, contract, or reconfigure in response to site and light. These works unfold gradually, inviting slow looking and offering moments of
sensory calm—spaces where impermanence and continuity coexist.
Cipleu’s work has been widely exhibited in solo and group exhibitions and is held in public and private collections across the U.S. She has completed four consecutive Professional Artist Residencies at Pilchuck Glass School and teaches kiln-formed glass in Austin. Her practice continues to merge material exploration with an enduring fascination for perception, natural systems, and the quiet structures that shape how we experience space.
NUMBER OF ENTRIES & APPLICATION FEE
Each artist is limited to six (6) entries per submission. There is a $30 (USD) non-refundable/non-transferable fee for up to six (6) images. Payment must be submitted at the time of the application.
HOW TO ENTER
Please read through all of the materials, including load-in and load-out dates to ensure that you can participate. Entries can only be submitted via JotForm.
Please LABEL all submissions as "Work Title.Artist Name.Medium.Size.Price." Should your work(s) require additional details or notes, kindly note that in the "special requests" section offered in JotForm.
ELIGIBLE MEDIA
All works must have been completed between 2021-2026 and not previously exhibited at Ardest Gallery. We are looking for both wall pieces and pedestal pieces for this exhibition.
If you have a question about whether your work is suitable for submission, please contact julieverville@ardestgallery.com.
ARTIST NOTIFICATION OF ACCEPTANCE
Accepted artists will be notified no later than April 12th by EOD via the email provided in the submission application.
LOAD-IN/LOAD-OUT DATES
Load-in for will be offered both Friday, April 25th between 10 a.m.-2 p.m. and Saturday, April 26th between 2-4 p.m. at Ardest Gallery, located at 25200 Grogan's Park Drive, The Woodlands TX 77380.
Pre-arranged shipments of artwork WITH return labels are also accepted. BUT, the works must arrive during the gallery's open hours. **Please contact us prior to shipping artwork.
ALL accepted works delivered MUST be ready-to-hang or display AND include a printed inventory sheet with title/size/medium and price alongside a thumbnail of the work(s).
Load-out will be offered on Saturday, May 30th between 2-4 p.m. or MONDAY, June 1st between 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.
GALLERY SALES
Works will be exhibited and available for purchase by visitors to the gallery, and via an online gallery. All sales throughout the show's duration will be managed by the gallery, with a 35% commission retained by the gallery. Commission statements will be provided via email to artists that sell work along with payment via their preference of Zelle, Venmo or check.
AWARDS
Awards will be provided for one Best in Show, 1st Place & 2nd Place. Honorable mentions will also be noted.
PUBLICITY
The exhibition will be publicized locally via our social media platforms, digital media platforms and event listings, email newsletter and press releases submitted to local news outlets. Ardest Gallery reserves the right to use photographs and/or digital images for the purpose of publicity for the exhibit and/or the artist.
If you have any questions about this exhibition - please contact Julie Verville, Gallery Director/Curator, julieverville@ardestgallery.com or 832-296-6723. Thank you!