July 1 - August 2, 2026

Opening Reception: Friday, July 3, 6-8 pm

“In Search of Now”
Bette Frank Leahy

”Cutting Edge”
Collage by NE Artists
Juried Competition

“In Search of Now”
Bette Leahy

In Search of Now is an exhibition of colorful, textured mixed media works on wood panel by Bette Frank Leahy. Her work explores the tension between structure and chaos, while she draws inspiration from nature and its microscopic architecture.  She approaches the surface as an archaeological site, where erosion, time, and chance expose partial histories. Leahy arranges layers of hand printed marks onto her surfaces that, when peeled back or sanded, reveal fragments of shape and texture. The resulting works suggest preservation and decay.

Leahy uses deconstructed silk screening to produce layered textures, organic marks, and evolving patterns. Each print resists precise control or repetition, emerging as a unique record of transformation. The gradual breakdown of image and material becomes a metaphor for change and renewal, as she reveals her impressions of the world as it is now.

“My interest lies in the unseen,” Leahy notes, “in the layers of reality hidden from immediate view yet forming the foundation of what we experience. What we perceive is only a fragment of a much larger whole. My work explores what exists beyond the edges of perception.”

Bette Frank Leahy holds a BA in Art from Colorado College and a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Pratt Institute. She has been a licensed architect in New York State since 1992 and has over 15 years of professional experience in residential and commercial design. Her work has been exhibited widely throughout the Boston area, including at the Cambridge Art Association, Mosesian Center for the Arts, and Brickbottom Artists Association. She lives and works in Waltham, MA.

”Cutting Edge”
Collage by NE Artists
Juried Competition

Collage is a democratic medium. It often features the discarded and overlooked and brings them into vibrant new light. Collage is the medium of disruption; it breaks down the authority of painting and traditional methods and offers fresh new ideas about image-making and expression. Collage is also the medium of the marginalized and the self-taught: it only requires source material and a willingness to see differently. The result is a democratic art form with extraordinary range: tender and passionate, whimsical and political, forthright and multi-layered.