Biography

Barbara lives and paints in Bakersfield, CA. She is a CPA by background with a career in healthcare finance but left in 2000 to care for a sick child. Since then, she has taken art classes at CSUB, Bakersfield College, and various workshops across the state. She works primarily in acrylic mixed media, monotype and photography.

Barbara grew up in West Texas and spent as much time as possible outdoors in the trees and in the nearby desert. Family camping trips around the Southwestern US were an early influence. Also a strong influence was her father’s passion for photography, which she began to mirror in high school. She won art awards in school, but never considered the art path as a possibility. She was also interested in journalism, but practical voices prevailed and she degreed in accounting. The oil industry brought her from Houston to Bakersfield where she has lived for 29 years.

Her work has been featured at the Bakersfield Museum of Art, Metro Galleries, Surface Gallery, Arts Council of Kern, Todd Madigan Gallery (CSUB), Wylie and May Louise Jones Gallery (Bakersfield College) and the Kaiser Permanente Corporate collection in Bakersfield. Her art is owned by collectors throughout the US and a few abroad. Barbara is grateful to start a new career—this one using the right side of her brain.

Before he died, her son Danny said, "I’ll speak to you through your art." She believes she hears him.

"Highwire Act"

My work for this show is a collection of photography using buildings, especially abandoned and broken down structures as a metaphor for healing the self. Images explore the idea of physical repair work both inside and out, dismantling delusion while taking the treatment and recovery steps toward healing. More people than we realize are touched by substance abuse or are in recovery. There is grueling work but also beauty on the path.

August 19, 2011

"Chronicles"

Women have unique abilities and insights that allow them to explore their world intuitively, often with freshness and a multifaceted approach to problem-solving. These paintings depict abstract personal narratives which explore the spaces and options that women create to meet their needs and the needs of those under their care whether it be at home, work, or in the community at large. The resultant outcome is the surfacing of their authentic voices.

June 3, 2011

"The Seasons of Her Life"

My life is richer for fully embracing all of the seasons, including the bitter cold. My greatest personal growth has often come about during or after significant loss. Shedding my leaves is less painful when viewed through a wider lens, allowing me to embrace humility and prepare for the next productive season. These lessons are always about letting go—of health, relationships, concepts, religion, other people’s opinions, and even my own child.

Seasons are paradoxically proof of transience and stability. I find balance and harmony in nature, but also perfection.

I occasionally employ text in my work as a tension between the complexity of language and the simplicity of nature. I have often said to close friends that "words matter."

Nature stills and centers me. She is a respite and walks through life alongside me. She not only survives; she thrives. She is strong and beautiful, but not arrogant. She is satisfied with the present moment, is authentic, and wears sensible shoes.

© 2012 - Barbara Reid