July Barn Door Gallery 2026

Ghostlight

Jay Rathaus

July 2 - July 29

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Opening Reception on Arts Night Out

A theater “ghost light” —the single bare bulb left glowing on an empty stage- symbolizes loneliness and isolation as it exists in a space meant for people, emotion, and connection. It stands alone in silence waiting, a protection against darkness and a talisman of hope in isolation.

Loneliness is usually framed as absence, being unseen or misunderstood, but loneliness also sharpens awareness and clears a space for inner observation and an appreciation of the subtleties of existence. The sublime is that strange sense of beauty that both terrifies and elevates. Alone on a cliff looking at the endless moonlit sea, we feel both insignificant and connected to something immense. Our smallness in terms of time or nature or truth is evident, but there is also a sense of belonging. Grandeur can make separateness feel sacred and the self becomes a threshold of endless possibilities.

The light boxes in my Ghost Light series create a sense of the sublime in miniature and are coupled usually with a lone individual in a cryptic narrative; these pieces strive to explore themes of isolation and connection.

• Jay Rathaus

  Jay (he/him) was born in London and raised in New York City, and grew up surrounded by a rich mix of cultures shaped through extensive travel with his family. These early experiences instilled in me a lasting fascination with landscape, atmosphere, and the emotional resonance of place—elements that continue to inform my work today.

  I studied painting and sculpture at Bennington College before earning an MFA in Painting from the San Francisco Art Institute. My career has moved fluidly between fine art, exhibition design, work in film and teaching, allowing me to explore visual storytelling across multiple disciplines. From museum installations and science and nature center exhibitions to detailed set design work, I have developed an approach grounded in narrative, space, and sensory experience.

  My paintings and sculptures have been exhibited in galleries throughout San Francisco and the Bay Area, Los Angeles, and Western Massachusetts. I was also awarded a Northampton Arts Council grant for work exhibited at A.P.E. Gallery in Northampton.

  My ongoing Ghost Light series consists of illuminated light boxes containing intricately cut white paper landscapes. These works explore solitude, distance, memory, and the fragile emotional terrain of contemporary life. Using light, shadow, and layered forms, I create quiet spaces that invite contemplation and introspection while acknowledging the uncertainty and vulnerability of existing alone in an unpredictable world.

  The landscapes exist somewhere between memory and dream—simultaneously comforting and unsettling. Through them, I hope to evoke both the sublime beauty of isolation and the deep human desire for connection.

  www.jayrathaus.com

August Barn Door Gallery 2026

Emerging Artist Showcase

Local emerging artists

July - July

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Opening Reception on Arts Night Out