Karen Bien

Karen Bien is a member of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation and grew up in the bush along the Old Alaska Highway. As a child, she greatly admired her mother’s beadwork. In 1986, at age sixteen, Karen began beading herself and shortly after, in 1993, began publicly showing her work. Around that same time Karen met her now late husband Alex Dixon, a carver from Teslin. A passion and love of art brought the two together, eventually leading to artistic collaborations. Both examples of Karen’s personal artwork as well as collaborations with her husband, can be found in the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre permanent art collection.