Linda Guenste

"Whether I am exploring the structural center of a tree or my personal reaction to my environment, I assume the role of amanuensis and project a series of emotions meant to be interpreted and absorbed. Each piece tells a story; many times through the image on the canvas but most times through the eyes of the viewer."
-Linda Guenste

Linda Guenste received her B.F.A. from the Philadelphia College of Art in 1978. She also studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia and the Art Students League in New York. She is a practicing artist/teacher and has exhibited widely in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Most notably, she has exhibited at the Berman Museum of Art, the Woodmere Museum, Muhlenberg College, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and the Allentown Art Museum.

Many of Guenste's paintings are nature scenes. It is her objective to preserve nature the way it appears now. She says, "The theme of my work has primarily been nature with a focus on trees and environment and has explored the transitional state of innocence to maturity."

She creates paintings that examine the violent nature of today's youth. Her social realism paintings, often with children in gas masks, beg the viewer to confront the dichotomy of good and evil.

Education and Training
B.F.A., Philadelphia College of Art, Philadelphia, PA, 1977-1982
Four year certificate, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (in coordination with Philadelphia College of Art), Philadelphia, PA, 1978-1982
Art Students League, New York, NY, 1977

Connection to Bucks County
A native New Yorker, Guenste attended the Philadelphia College of Art and Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. The landscape of Bucks County has influenced her work, especially her focus on trees. Guenste lived and operated a studio in Chalfont, Bucks County, just north of Lake Galena with her fellow artist and husband Jonathan Hertzel. The couple moved to Santa Fe in 2015. She has taught numerous painting and drawing workshops for children, teens, and adults.

Colleagues and Affiliations
Member, Central Bucks Chamber of Commerce, 2002-present
Member, Artsbridge, 1998-present
Vice President of the Board of the Monroe County Arts Council, 1997-1998
Director, Artspace 534, 1991-1999
Director, Third Street Gallery, 1982-1984

Major Solo Exhibitions
Trimbur-Henry Gallery, Doylestown, PA, 2006
15 Exposures, Richard Stockton College, Pomona, NJ, and Chester County Art Association, West Chester, PA, 2004-2005
Drawn to Maine, The Gallery at the Medical Healing Arts Center, Doylestown, PA, 2003
Sojourn Series, The Gallery at the Medical Healing Arts Center, Doylestown, PA, 2002
Amanuensis & Memory, Atelier Gallery, Frenchtown NJ, 2001
Beyond The Usual, Foxglove Gallery, Stroudsburg, PA, 2000
Lineage, MCAC Artspace, Stroudsburg, PA, 1998
Within Life And Limb: The Roots Aloft Our Common Ground, Artspace 534, Stroudsburg, PA, 1997
A Stones Throw, Artspace 534, Stroudsburg, PA, 1996
Untitled: Recent Work, Artspace 534, Stroudsburg, PA, 1994
When A House Is A Home, Artspace 534, Stroudsburg, PA, 1993
Figure It Out Starling, Artspace Gallery, Stroudsburg, PA, 1991

Major Group Exhibitions
Sabine Rose Gallery, Doylestown, PA, 2006
Mixed Media Gallery, Doylestown, PA, 2006
Mason Murer Fine Art, Atlanta, GA, 2006
Allentown Art Museum, Allentown, PA, 1994, 2005
Trimbur-Henry Gallery, Doylestown, PA, 2005
Artsbridge 10th Annual Juried Show, Stockton, NJ, 2004
Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA, 2000, 2004
Aldie Mansion, Doylestown, PA, 2002
Phillips' Mill Annual Art Exhibition, New Hope, PA, 2001, 2002
Foxglove Gallery, Stroudsburg, PA, 2000, 2001
Louisa Melrose Gallery, Buckingham, PA, 2000, 2001
Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA, 1999, 2001
American College, Bryn Mawr, PA, 1994, 2000
Art of the State, Harrisburg, PA, 1994-2000
Artspace 534, Stroudsburg, PA, 1994, 1997
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA, 1981, 1983, 1997
Anton Dutot Museum, Delaware Water Gap, PA, 1991, 1996
Berman Museum of Art, Collegeville, PA, 1992
Blair Academy, Blairstown, PA, 1991
Open Space Gallery, Allentown, PA, 1986, 1990
Third Street Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, 1984, 1985
Lawrence Oliver Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, 1982
Kutztown University, Kutztown, PA, 1981
Print Club, Philadelphia, PA, 1978

Collections
Michener Art Museum
Mr. and Mrs. Herman Silverman
Mr. and Mrs. Jan VanHeyst
Mr. Arthur Kaplan, Esq.
Dr. Claire Thompson
Dr. Barry Abraham
Carol Rossi
Mr. and Mrs. Barth Rubin
Ed Chesnovitch
Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Rubin
Gary Bloss and Ann Carlin
Dr. and Mrs. Robert Morrow
Catherine Rieser
Mr. and Mrs. Ron Power
Mr. and Mrs. Michael Hertzel
Mr. and Mrs. Timothy Fletcher
Steven Mullen
David Rose Kelly and Rick Smith
Albert Murray, Jr., Esq.
Brenda Hewitt

Awards
The Fred and Naomi Gibson Hazell Prize for Best Composition, Woodmere Art Museum, 2006
The Maybelle Longg Street Prize, Woodmere Art Museum, 2006
1st & 2nd Prizes in Painting, Monroe County Arts Council, 1991, 1992, 1993
Contemporary Gallery Merit Award, Marywood College, 1993
Binney & Smith Award, Allentown Art Museum, 1994
Emerging Artists/u2019 Award for Painting, 1982
Henry J. Shiedt Traveling Scholarship, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1982
The Charles Toppan Prize, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1982
The Gimble Prize, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1982
The Buciarelli Drawing Prize, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1981
The Fred and Naomi Gibson Hazell Prize for Best Composition, Woodmere Art Museum, 2006
The Maybelle Longg Street Prize, Woodmere Art Museum, 2006

Teaching and Professional Appointments
The Art Barge, Amagansett, NY, 1999
Art Goes to School, Central Bucks School District, 1998-2000
Baum School of Art, Allentown, PA
Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, PA, 2003
The Pennsylvania Center for the Arts, Stroudsburg, PA