The paintings and objects in Surprise Garden take viewers on a search for undiscovered meanings and stories, one that mirrors the artist's own. Through her process-based practice grounded in paint, paper, fabric, and repurposed items, Allen creates a journey into a personal and idiosyncratic "garden" of painting. “My images are dreamlike, as in a Chagall-esque garden," she says. "My imagination peers in from atop a wall of limitations.” Surprise Garden, Allen's third solo at BAU, nurtures a space of memory, loss, and trauma, with an underlying beauty that remains too often veiled from our view in a world of competing narratives.

About the artist: Karen Allen has a BFA from Syracuse University and did postgraduate studies with intaglio printmaker Ruth Leaf and painter Jenn Wiggs. She has exhibited her work at Prince Street Gallery, ArtsWestchester, Upstream Gallery, and Silvermine Gallery, among other venues. Her 12-by-25-foot muralGarden Passage, is on permanent display outside the Jeanette J Phillips Health Center in Peekskill. Her work has also been recognized by the Southern Vermont Art Center and Bethany Arts Community. Allen is a member of Netvverk artist community. She maintains her studio in Verplanck, NY.