Artist Linda Behar will demonstrate the process of woodblock printing using laser cutting plates.  Behar deployed this technique to create the colorful and striking images currently on display at IMAGO Gallery.

Linda Behar is interested in the female form, specifically how it is manifested in different media and how it highlights the dissonance between “the expectations of society and an individual’s sense of self.”  Body language, for Behar, is a visual form of communication that helps the viewer understand human behavior.  The artwork for this exhibit is titled “The Maccabees,” a group of Jewish rebel warriors who conquered Judea from the Seleucid Empire and reasserted the Jewish religion, partly by forced conversion.  The work represents the empowerment of women fighting for their rights and changing our society.  As Behar notes, her goal is “to create images that echo the past while embracing the future.”

Born in Venezuela, Behar emigrated to the United States in 2000.  Behar was trained originally as a civil engineer before attending the Academia Taller Arte y Fuego in Caracas.  In 2014, she received her MFA from Florida Atlantic University with an emphasis on printmaking.  Behar’s works incorporate a variety of techniques and processes, including glass casting, woodblock prints, laser cutting, and pâte de verre (a form of kiln casting).  Her works have been exhibited nationally and internationally, winning numerous awards and honorable mentions.