WILLIAM BARNHART

A lifelong career artist, Barnhart's paintings are marked by heightened sensitivity and reverence to humabn gesture and expression; however, one can't help but sense that the figures in these paintings are both trapped by and affecting the space they inhabit. This gives us a hint into Barnhart's phylisophy about painting as a form and a practice which is inextricably connected to understanding others and one's environment. A close look at both the imagic scope and sheer volume of his works reveals that narrative is just as important in each painting as it is in the overall arc of his body of work. 

For Barnhart who has also been classicaly trained in painting, colour is an important focal point. The cool violet and azure shadows of the Southwest and the glorious glow of gold and orange light one finds in Arizona and California are repeated in his paintings. As an artist that was born and raised in Indiana, he also knows the works of the Ashcan school and understands how light is used sparingly to describe the urban environment. He has carefully analyzed colour, figuration and composition as it was used by the San Francisco Bay Area Figurative School - Wayne Thibeaud and Richard Diebenkorn.

ARTIST STATEMENT

My artwork: it is an exploration of the drama, the emotional complexities, the mental and spiritual realities of this human experience we are suspended in, and the universal truths that transcend the boundaries of social class, politics, nationalities, religion, and even time itself. My large oil paintings, monotypes, and bronze sculptures delve into universal matters of the human heart, such as love, joy, passion, beauty, kindness and hope. They also explore the dark regions of loss, pain, rejection, stress, fear, despair and relationship complexities. By dealing in emotional truths with a common human denominator, I strive to have my esthetic explorations relevant, moving, and timeless in their application and interpretation. My aim is to speak to the hearts of those sensitive enough to understand this visual vocabulary.