Nicolina Morra (b. 2003, Long Island) explores systems of belief and the aesthetics of transcendence. Responding to the architectural environment of the gallery, Portal (To Somewhere Else) considers the possibility of encountering something mysterious or otherworldly within a liminal space. Drawing on ideas of multiple realities and unseen worlds, the work evokes a sort of fairy-tale logic, where the familiar gives way to the unknown. Through the meditative qualities of color and light, Morra suggests that transcendence doesn’t require leaving the physical world, but can emerge through a shift in perception.