About Beth Cole
Artist Statement
When I step into the landscape as a painter, I see before me the chaos of nature. If I were to include everything in my painting, it would be overwhelming. My approach is to simplify what I see, transform chaos into order if you will, and create a peaceful and calming piece of art.
My background in piano from a young age, is what led me to painting, and it continues to inform all of my work. Piano taught me when to use a delicate touch and when to use speed and force. In the same way, my painting gestures and brushstrokes communicate a certain energy or calmness, and my paint mixing and application express mood and atmosphere, and may even allude to the ethereal.
Small studies of value and color help me to organize what I see. I am friends with many of the painting mediums, but oil is my best friend and what I use most often. My pencil has also become a trusted advisor.
I hope you see in my work the sense of peace I have when I paint. If I could package this calmness in some way, I would tie a bow around it and share it with you. But for now, I offer the peaceful work of my hands with paint, brushes and gratitude.
Artist Bio
Nebraska-based artist, Beth Cole, creates contemporary landscape paintings in oil. Her work centers on fields, trees, streams and buildings, and the effects of atmosphere and light upon them.
Piano was her first art form as it taught her a way of expressing emotion through touch, tempo and interpretation. Her love for “speaking” in this way is what inspired her exploration into painting. Like piano, painting also allows one to express not only emotions, but mood, place, ideas and so much more, without saying a word.
She has studied with many generous and accomplished painters including Jay Moore, Dave Santillanes, and Scott Christensen. Prior to painting, her degree in Human Services Administration allowed her to work with people in a variety of ways including twenty years as a small business owner serving clients in her web/graphic design company. Her background in small business influenced her development as a full time painter.
Beth has exhibited widely in her home state including Museum of Nebraska Art events and the Nebraska Biennial Exhibition hosted by Omaha’s Gallery 1516. Additional group shows include Colorado, Texas, and Wisconsin.
A small rural community near the Nebraska Sandhills is where she lives with her husband, Gary, and their beloved pup dog, Willow. They have two grown children and three grandsons with whom they enjoy spending as much time as possible. Discover more on Instagram @bethcoleart.
Highlights
2024
ARTCetera, Sioux City Art Center, Sioux City IA
Heartland Juried Artist Exhibition, Merriam KS
Artists At Work Exhibition, Prairie Art Center, North Platte NE
2023
Nebraska Biennial Juried Exhibition, Gallery 1516, Omaha
Southwest Art Magazine, Land, Sea and Sky
New Masters Exhibition, Hoff Family Arts & Culture Center, Council Bluffs IA
Farm Island Anthology Exhibition, Bone Creek Museum of Agrarian Art, Award of Merit for my painting “The Test of Time.”
Visions Seen In The Air, Invitational Exhibit, Willa Cather Center, Red Cloud NE
2022
New Master’s Exhibition, Hoff Family Art & Culture Center, Council Bluffs IA
Associates National Online Show, American Impressionist Society
SPIRIT Exhibition 2022, Museum of Nebraska Art, Kearney NE
Southwest Art Magazine, Close to Nature
2021
Associates National Online Show, American Impressionist Society
Solo Show, Western Nebraska Art Center, Scottsbluff, NE
Nebraska Star Herald Article
Solo Show, Brickwalk Gallery, Kearney, NE
2020
SPIRIT Exhibition, Museum of Nebraska Art, Kearney NE
2019
Group Show, Burkholder Project, Lincoln NE
2019 Nebraska Biennial, Gallery 1516, Omaha NE
Mountain Aire, WAOW, Mary Williams Gallery, Boulder CO
2018
Commissioned for two landscapes, Cloisters on the Platte
ANAC Traveling Show - Unity, 9 x 12, Oil on Canvas
Solo Show, Minden Opera House, Old Feed Store (Bassett)
Group Shows, Burkholder Project, Red Cloud Opera House
2017
Accepted into Nebraska Bienniel Exhibit, Gallery 1516, Omaha
Group Show, Carnegie Art Center, Alliance, Bone Creek Museum, David City
Favorite Quotes
“Comparison is the thief of joy.”
“The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.”
“If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”
beth cole, image credits photographic images
Memberships
Oil Painters of America
American Impressionist Society