The Unexpected Portrait

Juried exhibition at ArtWorks Gallery, run by Workshop13, a nonprofit cultural arts and learning centre in Ware, Massachusetts. Artists are asked to deviate from formal posing and realistic representation, focusing instead on emotion, identity, memory, action or unconventional subject matter through modern techniques, stylised depiction or abstract interpretation of the sitter. Open to most physical media, photography included — electronic media cannot be accommodated, and AI-generated work, work created under instruction and work previously juried into an ArtWorks Gallery show are ineligible. Up to three original pieces per artist; the gallery may cap acceptances at two per artist depending on space. Juried by printmaker and teaching artist Julie Lapping Rivera. Accepted 2-D work must be framed and wired, hand-delivered or shipped with a prepaid return label. Exhibition runs 19 September – 17 October 2026, with an opening reception on 19 September. The gallery takes 30% commission on sales.