the Urban Landscape Collection

At The Art Center of Dover

The Art Center announces the Urban Landscape Collection, a solo exhibition showcasing the work of contemporary artist Beth Wittenberg.

On display in the Beth Wittenberg Gallery located at The Art Center Loft from September 8 through October 31. A reception will be held on Saturday, October 4, from 6:00 to 9:00 PM.

Wittenberg’s Urban Landscape series is a vibrant exploration of mark-making, layered symbolism, and urban grit. Using spray paint on canvas with stencils and grids, the artist creates dynamic works that feel alive with movement and meaning. Bright neon hues collide with geometric patterns, arrows, insects, and abstract forms—suggesting the energy, chaos, and coded language of contemporary life.

“I’m loving the freedom I feel when making these paintings,” says Wittenberg. “There are so many paintings inside this one surface. I personally get lost in the layers. The problem I set for myself is ‘make it work.’ I have no idea where these paintings will go.”

Highlights of the exhibition include large-scale canvases that layer black silhouettes and bold sprays of color over rhythmic grids, as well as a striking wall of smaller works displayed in series, each one a distinct variation on Wittenberg’s visual vocabulary. The pieces are intuitive yet deliberate, reflecting both the unpredictability of urban environments and the artist’s deeply personal process.

A notable element of this series is the reemergence of imagery from Wittenberg’s Heroin Kills Poster Project of 2015, where black stenciled squares first appeared. Revived here six years later, these motifs underscore the artist’s ability to recycle and reimagine past work in new, transformative contexts.

Beth Wittenberg, a Resident Artist and Printmaker at The Art Center, was a beloved community member. She passed away earlier this year, leaving behind powerful works renowned for their social commentary, vibrant spray paint, and layered abstraction—inviting viewers into a dialogue between chaos and order.

All works in the exhibition are available for purchase, offering collectors and admirers a chance to acquire bold, thought-provoking pieces from one of the Seacoast’s most distinctive contemporary voices.

The Art Center Loft, home of the Beth Wittenberg Gallery, is located at 1 Washington Street, Suite 3175, Dover, NH.