Karen Lembo

Nothing makes me happier than walking in nature, especially when I encounter a scene that takes my breath away. It's as if God reaches out beyond the "veil" and grabs my heart, reminding me to look up, and notice the Glory that is all around us. This is the fourth in a series of paintings exploring the emotional potential of saturated color and of the effects of light streaming through the trees. My style is intentionally more abstract, although still recognizable, for a numb

This painting is another in series of highly saturated landscapes of familiar paths. I titled it "Return" because I returned to a photo reference I had painted over three years ago. This "return" also refers to God's call to return to Him, to return to prayer, to return to walks in nature where He often meets with me and helps me settle body, soul and spirit. I am not the person I was three years ago, and I think the contrast between these two paintings reflects that. In the

I have been taking countless laps around my local parks over the past several years. Walking in nature helps me process. I am inspired by the ever-changing light and seasonal changes, but most of all, I am encouraged by my encounters with God along those otherwise familiar paths. In this ongoing series of paintings inspired by my walks, I have been experimenting with ways to capture some deeper feelings that words, even now, cannot express. In the case of this painting, the l

Maine Memories, 2025 My friend shared a breath-taking photo of the Maine coast near her new home and I knew I wanted to paint it. I also knew that it would be a lot easier to just paint it straight up, but that doing so would probably also be boring. I spent a lot of time contemplating how to proceed. As I stared at the pristine white 18x24" gallery wrapped canvas, I kept weighing my options. I've been wanting to explore painting more American landscapes with the Korean Hanji

This piece began, as many of mine do, on an early morning walk, this time on the Chonnam University campus in Gwangju, South Korea. My...

Not sure why this was posted at the register of this Korean diner, but it seemed like a good photo op! While some of us are very...

My family and I were floating down the Erie Canal one summer day, when we passed this inviting scene and I snapped a photo. Nothing...

"How long did it take you to paint that?" I've often wondered what people are getting at when they ask me that question. I'm sure some...

As a follow up to my previous piece, " Old Meets New ," I wanted to continue using the traditional Korean Hanji paper in combination with...

Photos just don't do it justice. For Western eyes, there is no easy way to capture the emotional impact of the juxtaposition of...

Sweet Hour, 18x24", mixed media, SOLD I just noticed that it has been 8 months since my last post about my artwork. If you keep up with...

Together. We may not be perfect, but we're getting it done, and we're still standing...together. In this painting, strength and stability...

Soaring spaces. Stained glass filtering ordinary daylight into an other-worldly display of color, bringing ancient stories to life. A...

**Note: Hover over each image to see its title. Click the image for more information. When I began this series of 6 mixed media pieces, I...

You know the feeling: wearily hiking along, the path grows longer than you expected, pines, leaves, stones and needles all merging into a...

In the first of five mixed media paintings in the "Hearts Set Free" series, I revisited the memory of the farm field painted previously...

One evening, on a recent trip to Gwangju, South Korea to visit my daughter and her family, we visited an art café and stopped to take in...

I never imagined I would visit a land so distant as Korea. I was raised in a typical suburban environment in upstate New York, on...

The title of my latest painting comes from a poem called "Land of Enchantment" by poet, Marisa Longo. We were recently paired for an...

During the pandemic, I began to experiment with monoprinting, layering, mixed media and collage, eventually leading to several of the...