When Lauren Beauchner starts talking about her art, her passion and love for her work simply flow out of her. Whether she is talking about her commissioned pet portraits or her colorful “party paintings,” you can tell right away that she loves what she does.
Where Lauren Beauchner Started
Lauren Beauchner is a Pennsylvania-born artist new to the professional arts scene. Beacuchner’s art career started in school when she attended Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Performing Arts (Charter Arts). At Charter Arts, Lauren fell in love with oil painting during her junior year and decided at that point that she wanted to become an artist. After high school, she went on to study painting at Kutztown University, receiving her Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2015. Beauchner later said that Charter Arts “saved her” and gave her the opportunity to discover a specific artistic field that would later become her career. She explained that Charter Arts was unique in having oil painting courses. She said she was “lucky to have the opportunity to experiment with oil paintings [because] most high school students do not get that chance before college.” Beauchner said she received “such a good foundation from Charter Arts” and that training allowed her to flourish at Kutztown.
Style Development
During college, Lauren was able to establish her personal painting style. She explains her painting genre as “party paintings,” because the paintings come from photos she takes while surrounded by friends at different social gatherings. Lauren’s paintings are personal works. She takes intimate photos and seeks to capture the connections between the figures. Her paintings are moments of happiness and “freedom from everyday life.” Painted entirely with oil paint, her work features busy canvases filled with crowded figures and diverse colors. Below is one of these “party paintings.” This piece, titled “Approved for the Road,” is featured at the coffee shop Lit and depicts various members of the Lit team.
In addition to these party paintings, Beauchner also paints oil pet portraits for commission. This adorable side job started after Lauren painted a pet portrait for a friend. The example below is from her website and is called “Oscar and Stella.”
Lit: Friends, Food, and Art
Recently, Beauchner was chosen to be the first featured artist at a new South Bethlehem roastery and bakeshop called Lit. She has six paintings hung around the shop. Lauren has been personally involved with Lit’s creation since the beginning and provided background on its roots. Lit was essentially created from a “little web” of friends. They came together to make a cool local place for artists to meet and enjoy all-natural coffee and baked goods. This friend group was formed at the old Vera Cruz elementary school in Emmaus, Pennsylvania. The school closed in the 1980s and later became an arts hub. Artists could use the classrooms as studios and the old cafeteria allowed local bakers to practice their work. This is where Beauchner met Melanie Lino, one of the owners of Lit. Lino is an organic baker who uses local, Lehigh Valley made ingredients. Along with Lino and Beauchner, Lit is made up friends who brought their talents together to create a unique space for creativity to flourish.
Lit recently opened on 26 E Third St. in South Bethlehem. Lauren’s paintings will be featured in the space for about month. Be sure to check it out to see her artwork and all the other local art Lit offers!
