This show is a collaboration of four artists who have been exchanging information, supporting each other, and critiquing each other’s work for the past eight years. Over that time, our individual art practices have developed, expanded, and grown in ways we could not have expected. We initially came together because of our shared interest in watercolor painting, but as we have journeyed together, we have experimented with other media, techniques and materials, and encouraged each other to refine and expand our individual vision.​

Crossing Paths is a reference to that journey. While pursuing our own paths this collection honors our intersection: our Crossing Paths.  As we present our individual views of the world as expressed through our artwork, we also celebrate generous spirits, individual accomplishment and - most of all - friendship. 

Janine Bessenecker
Art in any form has always been interesting and important to me. I spent a lot of my childhood drawing and making designs with color. I received my BA in Interior Design from Iowa State University and moved to Madison where I worked for an architectural firm for several years. While my children were growing up, I started teaching art to middle and high school students in the Madison home school community. I also took classes myself, studying watercolor through MSCR and Madison College. I have participated in WRAP (Wisconsin Regional Arts Program), and am a member of Madison Watercolor Society.
For me, painting is a way to pause, reflect and take notice of what is meaningful and beautiful around me. I love the watery pigment and transparency of watercolor as a vehicle of expression. I hope that my work will cause viewers to see, pause and notice too.
 
Beth Mastin 
I have always been an artist at heart, raised in a home where art and creativity was encouraged. Still, after majoring in art, the demands of adulting left my art calling to me from the far end of my do list.  It was a time when I could doodle on conference calls, but where there was no time or place for intentional art. Over the last decade my art has moved to the top of the list, and I find that the doodles came along for the ride. 
 
I often begin with broad gestural paintings, executed in an improvisational manner, often in short bursts. Some paintings are completed in one sitting, while others are revisited or become a series over the course of months. I favor line and movement over depth in composition. My subjects range from vast open landscapes with broad backlit horizons to individual flowers. I think about portraiture when I paint flowers, trying to evoke the essence of a single flower. Both subjects allow me to bring my eye to ethereal color shifts, ideal for wet on wet washes.   
 
Marcia Smith     
I find birds fascinating to paint. In outline they have a relatively simple shape, but in texture and color they can be very intricate, sometimes demanding colors so bright that they are impossible to mix with watercolor. It intrigues me that that simple shape lends itself to so much expression of personality with a small cock of the head, or a change of position of the feet or the tail.
 
Crows are particularly interesting to me. Black birds, whose feather texture often cannot be seen because they are so dark, they are lively and engaging and individual when watched. We had a large maple tree in our backyard which was
the 5 o’clock gathering place for a murder of crows one winter. They would settle on the bare branches and gossip away until suddenly all would take to wing, soon settling again with different friends, making sure everyone was told the news. Captivating!
 
My husband and I travel extensively, and everywhere I take phone snapshots of the birds we see, a practice that doesn’t lend itself to detail. These paintings, therefore, are more about personality than realism. The birds I’m showing here are mainly from the States, Europe and Africa, and are mostly commonly known to us all: I’m not a dedicated bird watcher searching out the unusual, just an observer of these miracles, attempting to pass on my pleasure.
 
Mary Tilton
I am fortunate to live in this state of Wisconsin which has endless and quiet beauty to inspire paintings. I am drawn to the outdoors for many reasons but when I started painting, I noticed things in a new way. The open space between tree branches, a bright spot of sun, or the rolling hill are all shapes and values that make up a composition. I often paint from photos, but most recently I have begun painting on location. I usually find that the most successful paintings come from those started on site and completed from memory in my studio. I can get as lost in my studio as I can in the woods as I recall the sights, smells and sounds of a place.
 
I paint in both watercolor and oils, with oils being better behaved when outdoors. The paintings in this show are a selection painted in the past couple of years with this realization of the importance of being both physically present and lost in the moment.

July 27, 2025 - Beloit, Wisconsin – Beloit Art Center announces August Gallery Exhibits
Beloit Art Center is pleased to announce the August exhibits which will open with a First Friday
Gallery Reception on August 1 from 5 to 7 p.m. A gallery talk featuring the artists will be held at 6 pm.
Both exhibits will be open through August 28, 2025.

In the Sveum Gallery, the photography of Steve Toole will be on display. Award winning
photographer Steve Toole’s photos have been said to capture the essence, beauty, and sometimes the
desolation of the heartland of America. His photos and digital media work range from realistic monochrome
landscapes to themed abstracts. Toole will also give a Gallery Talk on August 27 at 6 p.m. in the Sveum
Gallery. Thank you to Doug Wetzel of Ashton North LLC for sponsoring the Sveum Gallery August artist.

In the Bell Gallery, artists Lynn Kline and Terry Brabazon will be featured. Kline loves the art of
being creative and paints in acrylic and makes leaded stained glass artwork. Brabazon believes that anything
you do in life can be elevated to art and her paintings and stained glass will be on display. Thank you to
State Farm Oldenburg Agency for sponsoring the Bell Gallery August artists.

The artwork of Abbey Pixler will be on display in the Members Gallery. Looking for more art in the
community? Be sure to stop by the Beloit Public Library to view artwork by Jean Apgar, and Bagels and
More to view photography by Jo Christofferson.

Mosaic Pot Class with Nancy Mayhew will be held Tuesday, August 12, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Make a funny pot person or a decorative pot. All materials are included and the cost to participate is $80.
New Dates for Intro to Digital Photography II! This course is for those with any type of digital
camera who would like to improve their photography skills. With a review of exposure, an exploration of
light, and learning how to use and control light in a scene, this course will be held Mondays from 5:30 to
7:30 p.m. on August 18, September 22, and October 27. The cost to participate is $65 and you will need tobring your own camera and camera manual.

Ongoing programming at BAC includes the Open Studio Art Group on Thursdays from 5:30 to 8
p.m. ($7 per session), Photography Club on the 4th Wednesday of every month at 6 p.m. ($85), and Qigong
on Mondays and Wednesdays from 10 to 11 a.m. ($10 per session).

Save the Date - Scoopie Night! Come out and support the Beloit Art Center by doing something you
love - having dinner at Culver’s of Beloit. Eat-in and drive-through orders will benefit BAC on Monday,
August 18, from 4 to 8 p.m.

Save the Date - Join us for a fun-filled Beloit Art Center Puzzle Competition Fundraiser where you
and your team can flex your problem-solving skills and compete for awesome prizes! The event kicks off at
6 p.m., with the competition starting at 6:30 p.m. With your team of puzzle masters, you’ll work together on
a Beloit Art Center Mural 500-piece puzzle (18x24) that’s sure to be a challenge. The cost for a team of up to
four puzzlers is $100 and each team gets to keep the puzzle. Prizes will be awarded for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd
place teams. Plus, there will be refreshments and water (feel free to bring your own snacks too!), and
beverages available to purchase to keep your energy up! So grab your team, bring your A-game, and let’s see
who can piece it all together! Registration opens August 1, 2025.
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Beloit Art Center is located at 520 E. Grand Ave. in downtown Beloit. The gallery is free and open
to the public. Gallery and gift shop hours are Monday 10 am – 2 pm, Tuesday – Friday 10 am – 5 pm and
Saturday 10 am – 2 pm.