Cluley Projects

Cluley Projects is delighted to announce Dallas-based writer, Jillian Wendel, as the winner of the second annual Arts Writing Mentorship! ✨
 
Wendel will receive one-on-one mentorship from on-staff writer Harrison Blake, culminating in the publication of a text responding to and supporting the work of Katherine Miller, winner of the fifth annual Cluley Projects open call. In addition they will receive an honorarium of $500 and present their publication in an exclusive reading at the opening of Miller’s exhibition in May 2026.
 
Jillian Wendel (b. 2001, Wichita Falls, TX) graduated with their MA in Art Education in 2025 from the University of North Texas in Denton, where she also received a BA in Art History and Philosophy in 2023.
 
Over the last three years, they have curated and organized over a dozen exhibitions across the Dallas-Fort Worth area. In 2024, they founded The Shed Show, a backyard project space in Denton dedicated to exhibiting local artists. She is an author for Glasstire and an experienced press release writer.
 
They have been featured in numerous exhibitions at PRP (2025); Dallas Contemporary (2025, 2024); Easyside (2024); Arts Fort Worth (2023), and Cora Stafford Gallery (2022). Recently, Wendel was awarded a micro-grant from the Greater Denton Arts Council and received honors from the Dallas Observer for Best Miniature Art Gallery. Wendel lives and works between Denton and Dallas, TX.
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We’re continuing our countdown to this year’s Annual Artist and Art Writer Open Call deadline with a look back at past recipients.

Earlier this year, Leili Arai Tavallaei presented her solo exhibition ‘Shotor 〇 Morghe’ at Erin Cluley Gallery — marking the first Cluley Projects Open Call presentation to be hosted at the main gallery. Through printmaking, assemblage, and painting, Tavallaei wove together Iranian and Japanese cultural traditions, creating a tender archive of family memory and emotional inheritance. Her exhibition was accompanied by a catalogue featuring a new essay by Chukwudi Ukonne, the inaugural recipient of the Cluley Projects Arts Writing Mentorship.

Since her exhibition, Tavallaei has been named Artist in Residence with the Museum of Asian Texans, received the Arch and Anne Giles Kimbrough Grant from the Dallas Museum of Art, and led studio workshops at the Crow Museum of Asian Art. Her recent film was included in the Transfiguration International Film Festival in Baltimore, and she will serve as a juror for Painted Minarets, a platform supporting young Muslim artists.

Applications for this year’s Annual Artist and Art Writer Open Calls close November 2 at 11:59 PM CST. For more info and to submit, visit the link in our bio.
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Image 1:
Photo of Tavallaei courtesy of Thoughts and Days Studio

Image 2:
Leili Arai Tavallaei
‘Walking To Hassler’ (image still)
experimental animation

Image 3-5:
Installation of ‘Shotor 〇 Morghe’ 2025
Photos courtesy of Kevin Todora

Image 6:
Leili Arai Tavallaei
‘Do You Remeber the Sun on the Green Horizon’
Short Film
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Don’t forget to join us tomorrow, Saturday, October 11 at 1 PM at Erin Cluley Gallery for a discussion led by Harrison Blake on how to write an artist statement that feels clear, authentic, and true to your practice.

The event is free and open to all — a perfect opportunity for artists and writers preparing for this year’s Open Calls.
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Nic Nicosia
‘what i see/saw’ (detail)
Graphite on BFK Rives
39.75 x 42 in.
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Join us this Saturday at 1 PM at Erin Cluley Gallery for a free public program on writing the perfect artist statement, led by Harrison Blake — Dallas-based poet, art writer, and Erin Cluley Gallery’s Manager of Media Relations.

Designed for artists, art professionals, and creatives, this discussion will explore the basics of how to craft an engaging, authentic, and clear artist statement to communicate your practice.

This program also serves as a helpful resource for artists and writers preparing to apply to this year’s Cluley Projects Annual Artist and Art Writer Open Calls. More info can be found in the link in our bio.
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Harrison Blake (b. 2001) is a poet and arts writer based in Dallas, TX. Blake received a BA in 2022 in Visual and Performing Arts from the University of Texas at Dallas with a concentration in Art History.

Blake's writings appear and are forthcoming in digital and print publications including The Nasher Magazine, Southwest Contemporary, F Magazine, Sugar House Review, Driftwood Press, and Glasstire.

In 2023, Blake received the Glasstire North Texas Art Writing Prize for a selected work of criticism. Since 2022, they have worked as the Press Release Writer and Manager of Media Relations for Erin Cluley Gallery.
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