{"id":313909,"date":"2026-10-25T10:58:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-25T10:58:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/313909\/"},"modified":"2026-10-25T10:58:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-25T10:58:09","slug":"yocum-institute-to-present-work-of-4-local-artists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/313909\/","title":{"rendered":"Yocum Institute to present work of 4 local artists"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Yocum Institute for Arts Education, 3000 Penn Ave., West Lawn, will present \u201cThe Landscapes of Berks County,\u201d a group exhibition featuring the work of four award-winning local artists: Jonathan Bond, Robert Seabourne, Russell Slocum, and Karen Weber. The exhibition will run through Nov. 21 in the Holleran Gallery.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Landscapes of Berks County\u201d invites visitors to experience the region through the distinctive styles and perspectives of four artists who have found inspiration in the places, history, and natural beauty of Berks County. The exhibition features nearly 100 original paintings, including dozens being exhibited publicly for the first time.<\/p>\n

\""The\u201cThe Bertolet House at Daniel Boone Homestead\u201d by Jonathan Bond. (Courtesy of the Yocum Institute for Arts Education)<\/p>\n

Bond, a Kempton-based artist who has been pursuing his art career for more than 50 years, draws inspiration from the Pennsylvania Dutch farmsteads, fields, stone walls, and rolling hills surrounding his studio near the Kittatinny Ridge. His work often places nature at the center, using a muted palette to create a dreamlike quality. The exhibition includes Bond\u2019s work in egg tempura, oil, and watercolor.<\/p>\n

\""Frolic“Frolic in History” by Robert Seabourne. (Courtesy of Yocum Institute for Arts Education)<\/p>\n

Seabourne, a Shillington native, combines his love of painting with his appreciation for the history of Berks County. His paintings often tell a story, whether inspired by his own experiences or the history of the place depicted. For this exhibition, Seabourne traveled the backroads of Berks County in search of scenes that captured the area\u2019s character, translating them into paintings using bold, vivid colors and expressive brushwork.<\/p>\n

\""Beach\u201cBeach at the Bend\u201d by Russell Slocum. (Courtesy of Yocum Institute for Arts Education)<\/p>\n

Slocum of Wyomissing focuses primarily on landscape painting, with much of his work inspired by Southeastern Pennsylvania and the coast of Maine. Many of his paintings begin outdoors, painted en plein air, while others develop from his own photographs and sketches. A longtime advocate for the local arts community, Slocum has co-directed West Reading\u2019s Art Plus Gallery since 2015 and co-founded Plein Air West Reading. For this exhibition, he has included ten paintings being shown publicly for the first time, along with works depicting locations throughout Berks County, from Hamburg to Hopewell Furnace, and the Oley Valley to Robesonia.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\""Far\u201cFar Fields \u2013 Bieber\u2019s Mill\u201d by Karen Weber. (Courtesy of Yocum Institute for Arts Education)<\/p>\n

Weber of St. Lawrence brings together her love of Berks County landscapes with her signature whimsical and nostalgic imagery. Known for her animal paintings and imaginative scenes, Weber incorporates local farms, barns, historic places, roads, and changing light into a new body of work that connects real places with imagined worlds. Some of the landscapes featured within her whimsical paintings can also be found elsewhere in the exhibition, creating unexpected connections for visitors to discover as they move through the gallery.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis exhibition is a wonderful celebration of the place we call home and the many ways artists can interpret the same landscape,\u201d said Nadia Pochan, visual arts director at Yocum Institute. \u201cEach of these artists brings such a distinct voice and perspective to their work, and together they give us an opportunity to look at Berks County with fresh eyes. I think visitors will recognize places they know while also discovering something new in the familiar.\u201d<\/p>\n

Together, the artists offer a multifaceted portrait of Berks County, one that celebrates both the familiar and the unexpected. Visitors will encounter recognizable landmarks, rolling countryside, historic settings, quiet natural spaces, and imaginative interpretations that encourage a closer look at the community and landscapes that surround us.<\/p>\n

For more information, visit www.yocuminstitute.org\/hollerangallery<\/a>, call 610-376-1576, or stop by Yocum Institute for Arts Education.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u2022\u2022<\/p>\n

An opening reception for \u201cThen & Now,\u201d a retrospective of Bruce Becker\u2019s art through the years, will be held on Nov. 6 from 6-9 p.m. at The Warehouse Studios, 300 Penn Ave., West Reading. The exhibit will feature artwork in different mediums, spanning 40 years \u2014 drawings, etchings, pastels and paintings, all leading up to a gallery full of his current oil paintings. Bring a non-perishable item to be donated to the local food bank.<\/p>\n

Music<\/p>\n

A new partnership between Albright University students, Centro Hispano (the owners and management of bilingual radio station WXAC-91.3 FM), and the Busker Incognito Blues & Boogie Weekend Festival will open doors for students to interview and interact with blues and boogie music performers, composers, event planners and community festival organizers.<\/p>\n

Interviews and programs produced by the participating students will air on WXAC through the weeks leading up to the festival.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve created a win-win partnership and program for all involved,\u201d said festival founder and WXAC General Manager Dave Kline.<\/p>\n

The festival runs from Nov. 19-22 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Reading.\u00a0All information and tickets are available at www.buskerincognitobluesboogie.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u2022\u2022<\/p>\n

Just in time to share with all of your ghoulie friends, Busker Incognito & the Hollow Wieners, (a playful Halloween season pseudonym for Busker Incognito & the Show), on Smoking Bishop Records, has released a new, original Halloween blues & boogie music-based song called, \u201cHerr Krampy Bein.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vampires come in more than one type and the vampire in this song is a thief of comfortable, peaceful and restful sleep.<\/p>\n

Recorded at Smoking Bishop and Gangsta Beagle Studios, this track has been released worldwide on all major digital download and music streaming platforms, including Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple iTunes, Apple Music, Deezer and Pandora, for the Halloween season.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a link to the official video: https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=EcTTXsG0wF8<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u2022\u2022<\/p>\n

Berks Opera Company and Albright College will present Hernry Purcell\u2019s \u201cDido & Aeneas,\u201d directed by Jeffrey Lentz, Albright Class of 1985, on Nov. 13 and 14 at 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 15 at 2 p.m. at\u00a0 Albright College, 1621 N. 13th St., Reading.<\/p>\n

\u201cDido & Aeneas\u201d is the oldest opera in English that is regularly performed, and was first presented near the end of a century of violence, revolution, and religious upheaval.<\/p>\n

Purcell\u2019s tuneful music, by turns comic, charming, touching and deeply emotional, underpins a drama of personal relationships, psychological truth, political duties, and the supernatural.<\/p>\n

For tickets, visit https:\/\/www.eventbrite.com\/e\/dido-aeneas-tickets-2000258381665<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Bull riding<\/p>\n

PBR (Professional Bull Riders) returns to Reading for its fifth year when the PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour charges into Santander Arena on Jan. 29 and 30, 2027.<\/p>\n

Top bull riders will set their sights on Reading, battling some of the rankest, most explosive bulls in the sport for crucial Velocity Global points. During the high-octane two-day event, every matchup will be a battle for points, pride and a coveted spot at the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Finals in May 2027.<\/p>\n

The Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour began in 2014 as PBR\u2019s premier expansion tour and is the sport\u2019s fastest-growing tour, bringing rising stars, established competitors and top bovine athletes to cities across the United States. Velocity Global points contribute to the Velocity Global Standings and help determine which PBR riders are added to the elite Unleash The Beast tour throughout the season.<\/p>\n

At the 2026 PBR Reading event, Marcus Mast won after being bucked off Working Man in 2.52 seconds on the final out of the night. His 170.50 total points were enough to secure the Reading victory, along with 124 points in the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour standings.<\/p>\n

Tickets are available at the Santander Arena box office, 700 Penn St.; ticketmaster.com<\/a>; and PBR.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Yocum Institute for Arts Education, 3000 Penn Ave., West Lawn, will present \u201cThe Landscapes of Berks County,\u201d…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":313910,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[349,1681,182,1213,858,28,128,130,129,289,706],"class_list":["post-313909","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-berks-county","tag-entertainment","tag-local-news","tag-music-and-concerts","tag-ontap","tag-pennsylvania","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news","tag-things-to-do","tag-top-stories-reg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/313909","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=313909"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/313909\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/313910"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=313909"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=313909"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=313909"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}