PUTNEY, VT— The NXT Gallery presents an art exhibit by Karen Becker titled “Bearing Witness, Part 2.” The exhibit will run from May 21 to August 13, 2023, at the NXT Gallery located at 15 Kimball Hill, Putney. The opening reception for the exhibit will be held on May 21, 2023, from 3-5 pm.

The majority of the exhibition is devoted to Becker’s love of nature, which is being severely threatened by the climate crisis. The animals and trees represented here are all bearing witness to the devastation that is unfolding due to industrialization and war.

The exhibit is dedicated to Becker’s parents, Marianne and George Becker, for their lifelong courage, generosity, kindness, and devotion to the arts in Southern Vermont. Her parents instilled in her a deep appreciation of nature and beauty, and the courage to express her inner world. They fully and lovingly supported her art.

This is a retrospective of artworks Becker made during the past 40 years, including her favorite maple which inspired paintings for 35 years and imaginary canyons. She uses many different media, including watercolors, pastels, and gouache. On display are her drawings of animals and birds which combine mono-prints and charcoal drawings. In addition, there are fantasies, including ‘The Sphere Series.’ Many of these paintings and drawings have been in her private collection.

Karen Becker has exhibited her artwork in New York City, Boston, Maine, and Vermont. She received a BFA in Graphic Design from the Pratt Institute, in Brooklyn, New York.

The journey from Brooklyn to Brattleboro has been varied and has included creating on-air graphics and photography for Public Television in New York City, designing typography layouts on Madison Avenue, and working for Rolling Stone Magazine in San Francisco.

Living in Vermont, Karen became part of the Vermont Arts Council’s Artists-in-Education Program. For 25 years she led over 150 mural painting workshops for children and adults.

Karen was for a time a professional wedding photographer, and was voted “Best Local Wedding Photographer.”

If you want to see more of Karen’s artwork, please contact her by email at [email protected].

This exhibit runs concurrently with a show of Karen Becker’s work at the West Village Meeting House, in West Brattleboro, titled “Bearing Witness, Part 1,” on view from May 14 to June 30.

Next Stage is located at 15 Kimball Hill in downtown Putney, VT. For more information, please call 802-387-0102, email [email protected], or visit nextstagearts.org.

Next Stage serves southeastern Vermont as a regional cultural hub, arts producer, and instigator of meaningful cultural experiences. Founded in 2010 as a nonprofit organization, Next Stage Arts is a transformative, community-centered project dedicated to revitalizing Putney’s cultural and economic village center through excellence in arts programming valuing diversity as a springboard for nurturing community.

Please visit our Health & Safety page for our current COVID protocols.

For more information and updates please go to: nextstagearts.org