Beloit Art Center Announces December Exhibits

Beloit Art Center is happy to announce this month’s exhibits, which will open on Friday, December 3. The Art Center will be open from 5pm – 9pm in conjunction with the downtown Holidazzle Event. A Gallery Talk is scheduled for 6pm. In the Main Gallery we welcome painter and mixed media artist Laura Easey-Jones and painter and sculptor Barbara Friedman. The Bell Gallery will feature the photography of Bernard Johnson.

​Main Gallery | LAURA EASEY JONES
Milwaukee based artist, Laura Easey-Jones, has been painting most of her life. She is also a mixed media artist and has combined these two disciplines to create a whole new art experience. Originally a photorealistic painter, a method she learned from her mentor and teacher, Mario Rueda, Laura went on to receive her art degree from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. She paints, does collage and bookmaking as well as sculpture. Laura is an award-winning artist whose work appears in galleries and museums around the state. Her murals adorn local establishments and private spaces. Laura teaches classes and workshops at Hart Park and for the Milwaukee Recreation Department. She is an active member of The Rogues Artists Group, MARN, NOAPS and League of Milwaukee.

​Main Gallery | BARBARA FRIEDMAN 
Color captivated Barbara Friedman even as a young child. She found inspiration nurturing flowers in the garden, playing in the woods, and picking the bluest of the blueberries. Her favorite Crayola crayon color was blue-green. She attended a Boston public high school and was offered a scholarship to begin attending art classes at the Boston Museum of Fine Art. There she began her formal training in drawing and studying amazing oil paintings by Sargent and Copley. In college Barbara chose to study horticulture and after several years of working in the field of plant science, she moved to New Mexico and redeveloped a strong desire to draw and paint. She studied under impressionist painters Susan Lange Marshall and Laura Robb and upon moving to Wisconsin, Dan Gerhartz. Studio still life painting affords Barbara the opportunity to paint in an inspiring setting, as she looks out at her gardens and trees and blends her love of horticulture and painting. Barbara lives near Milwaukee and teaches classes that include oil painting, plein air, studio still life and stained glass.

​Bell Gallery | BERNARD JOHNSON
In the Bell Gallery Bernard Johnson will be exhibiting a series of photographs taken in South Africa, Botswana and Madagascar. From 2012 to 2015 Bernard spent summers volunteering in Southern Africa with various programs focused on forest and marine conservation, environmental awareness, and education at local schools. While there Bernard also earned certifications as a professional scuba diving instructor and found a home away from home. His photography is influenced by the incredible fauna and geographic features of Africa’s National Parks, such as Kruger National Park in South Africa, and Botswana’s Chobe and Nxai Pan National Parks. Bernard’s first photography exhibition was in Monona, Wisconsin in 2016. He received a Top Ten award in the Beloit Art Center Juried Photography Show in March of 2021 and most recently was selected for a 2022 Honorable Mention Award with the Wisconsin Regional Artists Program (WRAP).

​Beloit Art Center is located at 520 E. Grand Ave. in downtown Beloit and has established a mission of partnering with the community and regional artists to maintain a center to teach, display and promote art through events, classes, and studio space. To learn more about Beloit Art Center visit www.beloitartcenter.com. Gallery hours are Monday 10am – 2pm, Tuesday – Friday 10am – 5pm and Saturday 10am – 2pm.