Local artist Beth DeJesus England will be the featured artist at the Genetti Hotel’s Windows on 4th through Feb. 28. Her recent plein air paintings feature many scenes from Lycoming County and surrounding areas.

There will be a meet and greet with Beth from 5 to 6:30 p.m. on Friday at the Genetti, 200 W. Fourth St. There also will be an opening reception with refreshments from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 3, at the Genetti.

“My love of art and making things dates back to my early childhood, but I became interested in plein air painting when I attended the Maryland Institute College of Art, studying under well-known artist Mark Karnes,” Beth said. “Karnes is quoted as saying, ‘My work is about my connection to my surroundings. The subjects of my pictures are things that are familiar and immediate to me.’ I certainly can relate in the same way to my paintings.”

Beth shared a bit of her trade, which involves a lot of finding joy in the day-to-day.

“On the weekends, when the weather is nice, there’s nothing more exciting to me than packing up my car with my oil paints, watercolors and pochade box in-tow, exploring the back roads, quaint townscapes of Lycoming County and beyond,” she said. “It’s common to find me and out and about, at baseball games, concerts and community events documenting life with paint. Recently, when I visited Portugal, I traveled with my miniature watercolors and documented my trip and my family’s heritage with eight small 5×7 plein air watercolors.

“I hope when people look at my work, they feel a connection and emotion to what is on the canvas,” she continued. “Someone recently said to me that my painting, ‘Mowery’s Yellow Barn,’ brought back so many warm childhood memories.”