Award Winning Paintings 2026

Ray Roberts, Juror (nos. 1-12)

First Place: Mark Shasha (Swampscott, MA), Last Call, oil, 12” x 16”
Second Place: Thomas Jefferson Kitts (Portland, OR), White River Falls, OR, oil, 16” x 20”
Third Place: Daemion Lee (Salem, OR), Columbia Gorge Dusk, watercolor, 10” x 14”
Honorable Mention: Wayne Chin (Vancouver, WA), Color of the Columbia, oil, 16” x 20”
Honorable Mention: Yong Hong Zhong (Lake Oswego, OR), Beneath the Oaks, watercolor, 9” x 12”
Honorable Mention: Michael Lindstrom (Battle Ground, WA), Steigerwald Sky, oil, 16” x 20”
Honorable Mention: Millie Gosch (College Park, GA), Purple Daze, oil, 12” x 16”
Best Sky: Aaron Cordell Johnson (Moscow, ID), Full Sun, gouache & colored pencil, 15¼” x 15¼”
Best Mountain: Laura Gable (Kennewick, WA), Honey Colored Light, oil, 6” x 8”
Best Water: William Martini (Portland, OR), Oregon Trunk Rail, acrylic, 16” x 20”
Best Cultural Element: James Sampsel (Port Orford, OR), Full House, oil, 12” x 16”
National Scenic Area Award: Oleg Ulitskiy (Ridgefield, WA), Columbia Gorge, oil on canvas, 10” x 20”
Maryhill Award: Thomas Jefferson Kitts (Portland, OR), Yakama Fishing Platform, Near Miller Island, WA, oil, 12” x 16”;
Friends of the Columbia Gorge Award:
a. Award: Mark Shasha (Swampscott, MA), Cliff Notes, oil, 14” x 18”
Runner Up: Aaron Cordell Johnson (Moscow, ID), The Other Side, gouache & colored pencil, 14¼” x 14¼”
Honorable Mention: Yong Hong Zhong (Lake Oswego, OR), Windy Day with Lupines, watercolor, 12” x 16”;
Museum Purchase Award Zachary Hixson (McMinnville, OR), Anticline, oil on panel, 14” x 18”
Museum Purchase Award Oleg Ulitskiy (Ridgefield, WA), Landscape in the Vicinity of The Dalles, oil on linen, 10” x 20”