Our Artists
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Karen Anderson Jones is retired from jobs in government and international relations. She lives in West Roxbury creating unique pieces of art. Karen creates hand-painted maps on trays, pillows, lampshades and reconditioned furniture. She also reupholsters chairs, ottomans and other furniture, repurposing and reimagining older pieces. Her latest endeavor is pressing flowers and other items from her garden to create beautiful wall art that lasts a lifetime.
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Gretchen Nash has been working with clay - teaching and creating - for over 30 years. She has taught at a variety of studios in the greater Boston area and is thrilled to be involved with Arts on Centre. Gretchen lives in West Roxbury, teaches ceramics part time at the Rivers School of Weston and is adjunct faculty at Lasell University. You can see her work at:
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Amanda Bligh is a West Roxbury-based artist and manufacturing engineer whose work is anchored in the interplay of the organic and built environment. Amanda's primary mediums include graphite, watercolor, pen, and collage, but expand when the work, or curiosity, requires it. Through careful observation and experimental exploration, Amanda creates pieces that invite viewers to engage with the familiar and discover unexpected, compelling details.
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Anthony has been making jewelry over 15 year’s. Started out collecting and cutting stones from rough materials long before. Cutting stones led to silversmithing and creating one off pieces of jewelry.
So it was the lapidary that started everything. It was about the stones that would guide or inspire the jewelry .
So adorn yourself your worth it.
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Nancy Hamann is an encaustic and mixed-media artist in Boston. She particularly likes encaustic painting because of the effects that can be achieved by using melted, pigmented wax. The resulting paintings are highly textural and evocative. Nancy gravitates toward landscapes, but also explores the still life genre.
Facebook: NancyHamannArt
Instagram: @NancyHamannArt
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During her career as a psychotherapist, she witnessed the soul’s beauty emerge through vulnerability and self-discovery. That same process inspires her art. In encaustic and cold wax painting, she layers wax, pigment, and oil, then scrapes, burnishes, and reveals hidden depths—much like uncovering the true self beneath defenses. Her work is full of mystery and surprise, echoing the inner journey. Music fuels her process, and she hopes her art awakens the viewer’s senses, inviting them to feel, notice, and reflect on their own reactions—an intimate insight into themselves.
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Kaia Narbunshart is a sophomore in high school and a local teenage artist. Shes been doing art since before she could walk and loves to share her work with others. She works with mixed media including painting, drawing, oil pastels, collages and much more.
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John, a longtime Roslindale resident, has maintained studios in the South End, Jamaica Plain, and Indianapolis over the past 60 years and now works from his home studio. His painting is an exploratory process where color, design, and expression evolve directly on the canvas—a metamorphosis of surface and layers revealing light and dark. In the past decade, he has shifted from pure abstraction to nature-inspired work, influenced by long walks during COVID. With over 20 years as a landscape garden designer, John’s deep connection to natural forms continues to shape his artistic vision.
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Jim is a Boston based artist with a studio in The Brewery Complex in Jamaica Plain. Jim is a graduate of Vesper School of Art (Boston, MA) with continued art studies at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (SMFA). Working as a commercial artist in and around the Boston area for over five decades, Jim is recently retired and now spending his days creating art at his studio or sketching outdoors.
Jim’s foundation is set within the visions and techniques of such American artists as James McNeil Whistler, Edward Hopper and Robert Henri, as well as the reflective light and color from the French Impressionists.
Website: jameswilliamflynn.com
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Karen Owens Linehan is a bird photographer and jewelry designer who has combined her two interests to start The Birds and the Beads. Karen is a retired Boston school teacher whose interest in geology and science fueled her creativity. When she designs a piece she teaches the owner a little bit about how the precious stones were formed and where they are mined. Her bird photography has been exhibited at the Audubon Nature Center in Mattapan and she is proud to say she has photographed over 50 different birds in her backyard in West Roxbury.
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As an educator, Paul inspired many students to explore their creativity and be life-long learners. After retiring, he began painting, moving from line drawing to more expressive free form and has recently found watercolors to be a rewarding medium. Paul has found joy in using vibrant color with acrylics. He keeps an open mind to accepting the work as it flows and he is grateful to have art as a means of relaxation.
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Nimita Dave is a scientist by training and a professional in the biotech industry. Alongside her work in science, she is a passionate artist specializing in Madhubani art—a vibrant Indian folk tradition expressed on both paper and textiles. Nimita skillfully merges her scientific curiosity and creative vision, reimagining classic Madhubani techniques to craft contemporary designs that celebrate both tradition and modernity.
Dedicated to building vibrant art communities, Nimita is committed to helping fellow artists thrive and create sustainable careers.
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Avery is a 7-year-old artist whose love of color and creativity shines through every piece she makes. Working with paints, mixed media, and plenty of imagination, Avery creates artwork that feels joyful and full of life. Avery has lived in West Roxbury for her entire life and loves hanging with friends and playing with her new puppy Magenta.
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Susan has been passionate about jewelry since she was a child wearing and dismantling her mothers jewelry. Susan has been making beaded jewelry for 40 years. When in need of inspiration she goes to her treasure trove of beads of every kind and have fun creating something beautiful ! Her second love is making collage decoupage items which she has been doing for 29 years. She looks forward to meeting you and creating something individual just for you!!
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Michelle Sloan is an artist, architect, and mom of three young boys who believes creativity is for everyone. She blends structure with flow in both her art and life. Through string art, ink art, watercolor and DIY workshops, she helps others find calm, joy, and inspiration. Outside the studio, she and her husband enjoy the outdoors and have completed 26 half marathons in 26 states—often with little ones in tow.
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For Heather, art is an act of rebellion, healing, and change. Rooted in the strength of the human spirit and nature’s complexity, her work transforms personal and collective struggle into renewal and self-discovery. Using materials like flowers and clay—symbols of growth and adaptability—she expresses pain, hope, and rebirth through touch and form.
Raised in Massachusetts and educated at Boston Latin, Boston College, and New England School of Law, she brings the lens of a wife, mother, educator, and attorney to her art. These roles fuel her empathy, discipline, and drive for social justice. Through bold, expressive forms, she amplifies silenced stories, especially of women and children, using art as a vehicle for transformation and creative resilience.
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Leila is a painter who enjoys creating art with gouache and watercolor. Her work is inspired by Persian art traditions, rich in intricate details, and she loves illumination (Tazhib), calligraphy, and tile painting. She lives in West Roxbury and is delighted to create paintings full of color and Eastern mystique.