Dear PORT readers,

You may have noticed my online absence over the past few months. In the past year, my presence with PORT has become primarily behind-the-scenes; site moderation, accounting, and design. When Jeff and I initially conceived of PORT, we envisioned it as a fairly casual endeavor to promote visual arts in Portland to both a local and national community. However, it became clear that the project was going to be much more demanding and grandiose than either of us ever imagined. We quickly grew a staff of critics and writers and made swift strides to offer daily content on the site. What was initially conceived as a "from the hip" kind of endeavor soon begged for a higher level of seriousness and professionalism. Clearly, the community was hungry for a dedicated arts publication and we stepped up to the challenge.

However, due to my vocation as a gallery owner, it quickly became clear that it would not be prudent for me to publicly air my opinions on art and art politics. So, I became the announcements editor. As the demands of Motel increased, I then abandoned all posting responsibilities to take care of PORT's administrative matters. Although I have not been a visible force on PORT as of late, I have been plugging away behind the scenes.

In March, Motel will turn four years old. After housing over 40 exhibitions featuring over 150 artists and participating in a number of national gallery fairs, Motel has become a successful and reputable gallery. However, with this growth and development, the demands of the gallery have grown too. Out of a commitment to my artists and my vision and to the sustainability of the gallery, I have decided to end my tenure at PORT.

I am excited to have more time to commit to the gallery and hope that PORT will continue to remain a vibrant and essential voice for Portland's arts community. I am proud of what Jeff and I conceived of and executed and believe PORT to be an important player in the promotion of Portland to a international audience. I am grateful for the opportunity to work with a great crew of writers, all of whom have impressive talents and ambitions in their own right.

Although I will be absent from the PORT roster, you can expect to see more of me around town and as always, I can still be found behind the front desk at Motel.
Thank you for supporting me, Jeff and the rest of the staff in our contributions to putting Portland on the map.

All best,
Jenn