Karen Hubacher, a Washington DC-based artist, is an award-winning painter and printmaker who has been exhibiting her work since 1990. She has had nine solo shows in the Washington metropolitan area, and over 70 group exhibitions nationwide. Her work is included in many public and private collections throughout the United States and Europe.


Hubacher’s  “constructed” paintings and collagraphs are characterized by their organized compositions and their textured surfaces. Her work addresses the concepts of order and  balance and what reflects the essence of “place.” With a visual vocabulary drawn from the shapes, angles and textures of the built and natural environment, Hubacher continues to pursue a formal and meditative ideal, which is a perfection of resolution in pictorial space. Within her work she explores the effect of landscape, the poetics of space, the texture of memory and the weight of experience.

                                 B I O G R A P H Y

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2008 “New Paintings” planB, Washington, DC
2005 "Relative Geography”  Frable Gallery, artspace @ Plant Zero,         Richmond, VA
2005 "Recent Work"  planb, Washington, DC
2002 “Recent Geography”  Studio Gallery, Washington, DC
2001 "Geography”   Printmakers, Inc., Alexandria, VA
1998 "New Work"  Studio Gallery, Washington, DC
1996 "Art at Whitlow's Presents Karen Hubacher"   Whitlow's, Arlington,           VA      
1993 "Cultural Conflict"  Gallery West, Alexandria, VA
1991 “Watercolor Paintings of the Southwest and the Orient"  Gallery                West, Alexandria, VA

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2008 “24/7 - The Creative Challenge”  Carla Massoni Gallery,                            Chestertown, MD
2008 “DC Women Artists” Martin Luther King Library, Washington, DC
2008 “Annual Small Works Show”  GlaveKocen Gallery, Richmond, VA
2007 “Dwell”  Carla Massoni Gallery, Chestertown, MD
2007 “What Lies Beneath” Carla Massoni Gallery, Chestertown, MD
2007 “Gallery Group Show” planB Gallery, Washington, DC
2006 “Discoveries” The Parker Gallery, Washington, DC
2006 “Printmaking” planB Gallery, Washington, DC
2006 “kaleidoscopic” Carla Massoni Gallery, Chestertown, MD
2005 "Standard Issue: 144 Square Inches"  The Parker Gallery,                        Washington, DC
2005 "Points of Departure: The Structured and Unstructured Landscape"          Elizabeth DaCosta Ahern, Heidi Fowler, Karen Hubacher, Grace              Mitchell, Jessie Pollock"  Carla Massoni Gallery, Chestertown, MD
2004 "Discoveries”  The Parker Gallery, Washington, DC
2004 "Latitudes: Mind and Matter: Elizabeth DaCosta Ahern, Karen                  Hubacher, Celia Pearson, Larry Schroth" Carla Massoni Gallery,             Chestertown, MD
2003 "Beyond the Image”  Carla Massoni Gallery, Chestertown, MD
2003 "Being Stephen Hawking: Elizabeth Featherstone Hoff, Karen                   Hubacher, David Logan, Marilee Shapiro, Ami Wilbur, Laurence               Wyllie"  Warehouse Gallery, Washington, DC
2003 "Fall into Abstract: Karen Hubacher, Margaret Kennedy, Calvin                 Edward Ramsburg, Jeffrey Smith"  The Parker Gallery,                            Washington, DC
2003 "Landscape: A Unique View"  Carla Massoni Gallery, Chestertown,           MD
2003 "Summer Solstice"  Carla Massoni Gallery, Chestertown, MD
2003  "Abstract Realism" Sharon Arts Center, Peterborough, NH
2003  "Printmakers, Inc.”  Black Rock Center for the Arts, Germantown,             MD
2002 "InSites"  Ashley Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2002 "ART-O-MATIC"  Waterside Mall, Washington, DC
2002  "The Beautiful Square"  Health & Human Services, Washington,               DC
2002 "The Beautiful Square" National Institute of Health, Bethesda, MD
2002 "Winter Invitational"  The Painting Center, New York, NY
2000 "Time Pieces"  Newport Art Museum, Newport, RI
2000 "Collaborations: Imagining Place"  Studio Gallery, Washington, DC
2000  "Printmakers Inc."  Century Gallery, Williamsburg, VA
2000  "Transatlantic 2000"  Bridge Gallery, Dublin, Ireland
2000 "Transatlantic 2000"  The Townhouse Gallery, Belfast, Ireland
2000 "The Cutting Edge: An Exhibition of Printmakers: Kate Borcherding,          Karen Hubacher, Akemi Ohira"  Seminole Community College,                Sanford, FL
1999 "Karen Hubacher and Karen Schmitz - Books and Monotypes" The           Art League Gallery, Torpedo Factory Center, Alexandria, VA
1998 "Pieced Together - Dore Bodenheimer, Karen Hubacher, Jon                    Lezinsky" Sinclair Community College, Dayton, OH
1997 "Clusters: Installations and Collaborations"  Studio Gallery,                      Washington, DC

NATIONAL JURIED SHOWS

2004 “Global International Competition”  Gallery International,                           Baltimore,MD
2004 "6th Annual All Media Juried Exhibition" Touchstone Gallery,                    Washington, DC
2002 "Herstory",  Manhattan Arts International,   New York, NY
2000 "Images.2000" Robeson Gallery, Pennsylvania State University, PA
2000 "22nd Annual Vahki"  Mesa Arts Center, Mesa, AZ
2000 "Art at the Millennium" The Stage Gallery, Merrick, NY
1998  "20th National Print Exhibition"  Schenectady Museum,                           Schenectady, NY
1998 "Pressed and Pulled VII"  Georgia College & State University,                    Milledgeville, GA
1998 "Counterpoint - 30th Annual National Exhibit" Hill Country Arts                  Foundation,  Ingram, TX
1998 "18th Annual Nat'l Print Competition"  Artlink Contemporary Art                 Gallery, Ft Wayne, IN

AWARDS

2008 Painting Fellowship - 6-Week Residency -  Vermont Studio Center,          Johnson, VT
2006 Semi-Finalist - Annual Bethesda Painting Awards
2004 Honorable Mention - 6th Annual All Media Juried Exhibition -                   Touchstone Gallery, Washington, DC
2002 Scholarship - Mapping the Terrain Workshop & Residency - Santa            Fe Art Institute, Santa Fe, NM
2001 Painting Fellowship - One Month Residency - Vermont Studio                 Center, Johnson, VT
2000 Judge’s Equal Award - The Art League Gallery, Alexandria, VA
1998 Juror's Award - Counterpoint '98 National Print Competition, Ingram,         TX
1998 Equal Merit Award - Artlink National Print Competition, Ft. Wayne,          IN
1996 First Place Award American Landscape Show, The Art League                Gallery, Alexandria, VA

REVIEWS AND ARTICLES

2006 “HeART throbs at City Hall”   The Examiner, Washington, DC
2006 “Ninth Street Gallery - Exhibition Review” online, Stephen Dennis
2005  “A Textured Life”   Chesapeake Life, Baltimore, MD
2005 “Between Sensory Event and Memory” The Star Democrat, Easton,          MD
2004 "Unknown Territory”   élan magazine, Great Falls, VA
2003 "An Inside-Out Show at Warehouse"  The Washington Post,                    Washington, DC
2003 "Visual Dichotomies"  Monadnock Ledger, Peterborough, NH
2003 "Abstract, Rrealism in Sharon"  The Keene Sentinel, Keene, NH
2002 "Inner Geography" The Washington Times, Washington, DC
2001 "Karen Hubacher: Geography"  Journal of the Print World, Meredith,          NH
2000  "Printmaking Has Come a Long Way"  Daily Press, Newport                   News, VA
2000 "Take a Lively Step in Time"  Newport This Week, Newport, RI
2000 "Sharp Prints"   The Orlando Sentinel, Orlando, FL
2000 "Art at the Millennium"  The New York Times, New York, NY
1999 "Books and Monotypes at The Art League"   Old Town Crier,                    Alexandria, VA
1998  "Homage to the Square"   Where Washington, Washington, DC
1998 "Worth Seeing: Karen Hubacher, New Work"  KOAN, Washington,           DC
1992 "Spiritual Journeys - Struggles of the Inner Self" The Hill Rag,                   Washington, DC
1991  "Exploring New Art Styles"  The Journal, Fairfax, VA


SELECTED COLLECTIONS

Edward Albee, New York, NY
City Hall Art Collection, Washington, DC
International Monetary Fund, Washington, DC
Government of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC
Corporate Executive Board, Washington, DC
Embassy Suites Hotel, Washington, DC
Wealth Advocacy Partners, Washington, DC
Axtechnology, Baltimore, MD
American Embassy, Poland
Nixon & Vanderhye, Washington, DC
Dickinson Landmeier, Washington, DC
Arlington County Government, Arlington, VA
Schnader, Harrison, Segal & Lewis, Washington, DC
Chemonics International, Washington, DC
ITT Research, McLean, VA
Chesapeake Resource, Alexandria, VA
Young Entreprenours Organization, Alexandria, VA
American Academy of Optometry, Rockville, MD
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
Booz-Allen Hamilton, Herndon, VA

CURATORIAL/TEACHING/TALKS

Lecture, Martin Luther King Library, Women’s History Month, Washington, DC
Juror, Arlington County High School Gold Key Competition, Arlington, VA
Juror, National Competition, Perry House Gallery, Alexandria, VA
The Artist’s Book - Self-Portrait, Grier School, Tyrone, PA
Beyond the Book, Art League School, Alexandria, VA
The Art of the Book, Art League School, Alexandria, VA

EDUCATION AND RESIDENCIES

2008 Massachusetts College of Art & Design, Bennington, VT
2008 Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT
2004 Corcoran School of Art, Washington, DC
2003 George Mason University, Fairfax VA
2002 Santa Fe Art Institute, Santa Fe, NM
2002 Pyramid Atlantic, Riverdale, MD
2001 Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT
2000 Massachusetts College of Art & Design, Bennington, VT
2000 - 2002  The Art League School, Alexandria, VA
1998 Pyramid Atlantic, Riverdale, MD
1994 - 1995 Corcoran School of Art, Washington, DC
1994 - 1995 Pyramid Atlantic, Riverdale, MD
1993 - 1994 The Art League School, Alexandria, VA
1990 The Art League School, Alexandria, VA
1989 Hong-ek Art University, Seoul, Korea
1986 - 1989   The Art League School, Alexandria, VA
1985 BS, American University, Washington, DC


Essay: Johanna Halford-MacLeod, from catalog for the Washington, DC City Hall Art Collection, October 2006  “The group of works assembled under the heading of Color and Abstraction for the City Hall Art Collection at the John A, Wilson Building are a reminder that, more than thirty years on, abstract art is still vibrantly alive in this city......But all art tends to start somewhere in the real world, and sometimes allusions to these real world origins seem clear....Karen Hubacher’s Habitat I, a collagraph of overlapping weathered planes, is not a cityscape, but it has a layered walled quality. The square, gridded white “window” surrounded by rectangles of blue, yellow and green assumes a position of importance, drawing our attention and suggesting a luminous interior haven.”

Review: Stephen Dennis, from online review, July 2006 "The two paintings by Karen Hubacher are particularly noteworthy, and show a European elegance in their quiet arrangement of muted silver-gray colors and shapes.”

Feature Article: Rosemary Harty, from Chesapeake Life, December 2005  “There’s a dichotomy to Karen Hubacher’s work; It appears free-spirited and precise, spontaneous yet meticulously planned.  ‘There’s a Zen quality to the way I work,’ she says. ‘I like order and resolution.’ She’s moved into an exciting stage of her career with a new series of abstract works, characterized by a dramatic and compelling arrangement of shapes, texture, and bold strokes of black paint with a surprising splash of color.”

“Gallery owner Carla Massoni sees an ‘intellectual rigor” in Hubacher’s work that reflects the organized mind of an architect or planner but still allows the imagination to run free.”

Review: Deborah McLeod, f rom The Star Democrat, September 16, 2005 “Karen Hubacher’s fragmented compositions in the rear of the gallery shift the show’s perspective. Instead of looking skyward, she presents the lay of the land from a bird’s eye view. There are many works to consider and each one is highly satisfying in its own discrete way. The interlocking shapes with irregular surfaces occur in differing densities, and are a journal of the artist’s travels between her Eastern Shore retreat and her Northern Virginia day job.”

Review: Michael O’Sullivan, from The Washington Post, September 12, 2003  With the exception of one room of all red, mixed media abstractions by Karen Hubacher, an artist whose collages of textured material make a bow to pictorialism by suggesting topographical maps of the earth, Lyon’s show has a uniformly gray cast.....For many, I suspect, the show’s real rewards will be found....in allowing some of the show’s more unintentional leitmotifs to percolate upward. I was struck, for example, by a recurring, and powerfully evocative, minor theme of trains and tunnels [such as] the railroad tracks that seem to run through some of Hubacher’s pictures.”
Review: Joni Hullinghorst, from The Keene Sentinel, August 8, 2003  “Likewise Hubacher’s ‘Metro I’ reflects the artist’s dark emotions in the wake of a world crisis. Hubacher explains that the work was inspired by her first trip on the DC metro after 9/11. The work shows clearly what a dark, chaotic ride it must have been, as fragmented shapes create a visual maelstrom around a swirl of light. This is no happy light at the end of the tunnel; it is clearly the light of an oncoming train. These works show what abstract art at its best is capable of producing; a clear and unequivocal statement of an artist’s response to a world event or situation.”

Review: Mark St. John Erickson, from Newport News Daily Press, December 10, 2000  “Light, color and texture interact in unexpected combinations, giving each collection of subtly moving forms an identity and impact all its own. More than a dozen layers of hand-torn, puzzlelike elements pile up upon one another in "Displaced," their irregular boundaries intersecting and overlapping to form a teetering heap of shape, texture and color. What results is a previously unimagined world in which these abstract entities behave as if they had lives of their own.”

Review:  Phyllis Braff from The New York Times, January 23, 2000 “The show’s other highlights include...Karen Hubacher’s slick, bold abstraction interweaving design, texture and vibrant complementary colors for a forceful impact.”