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| A Joe Barnes painting is like a window into the world of a very specific color, inviting the viewer to step into a new experience. |
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| A Joe Barnes painting is like a window into the world of a very specific color, inviting the viewer to step into a new experience. |
 Mars black/Warm gray/Burnt umber 12" x 9" 2001 |
 Napthol Red medium 8" x 10" 2001 |
 Chrome yellow medium 8" x 10" 2001 |
| Joe Barnes has always regarded his paintings as meditations, to be experienced rather than read. His work combines the quiet concentration of meditation with a focused intensity that makes color bloom. Originally inspired to paint by living in Paris in the 50's, Barnes won quick recognition for his talent, winning the Emily Lowe Foundation award during his first year of painting. In that same year, he was offered representation at the Gordon Gallery on Fifth Avenue in New York, and was even given a Tribeca studio by his gallerist. By the early 80's, he was exhibiting extensively in Germany, as well as in other European countries and the United States. From the very beginning, Barnes produced monochrome paintings, feeling that abstraction was best suited for evoking the sense of mystery he wished to communicate. From the late 70's through the early 90's, his paintings were entirely white. His motivation for making white paintings had to do with the purity of white, the concept that "less is more," and "the challenge to push the painting as much as possible." In the early 90's he began making drawings, using pastel colors. His current work, acrylic on panel, features colors that are at once soft and intense. Current works are relatively small, ranging from 10"x8" to 24"x22". The choice of format is another variation on the "less is more" theme. Attention is drawn to a compact but extremely lively rectangle of color, in much the same way that a lens focuses diffuse light into a concentrated beam. As one viewer remarked about the Napthol Red painting in an exhibition, "it's the biggest small painting I've ever seen." Barnes succeeds in his intention to produce work that reflects "the element of silent, serene quietude." At the same time, his paintings speak clearly and insistently, bidding the viewer to step up and experience their vibrant colors. Joe Barnes has in many ways led a charmed life. After
graduating from college as an English major, he left for Paris,
intending to write a novel. Most of the people he knew there
were artists, and the art world of Paris in the 50's was an
exciting place to be. By the time he returned to New York, he
had decided that he too wanted to be a painter. He didn't even
know how to stretch a canvas, but he was not one to let such
details stand in his way.
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BORN Detroit, Michigan EDUCATION Wayne University, B.A. Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO Taylor Museum, Colorado Springs, CO Sorbonne, Paris, France SOLO EXHIBITIONS 2001 Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Newport Beach, California 1999 Stil-American Fine Art, Mettman, Germany 1998 Die Weisse Galerie, Cologne, Germany 1998 Galerie Parade, Amsterdam, The Netherlands 1998 Stil-American Fine Art, Dusseldorf, Germany 1998 Sin Titulo, Nice, France 1997 Galerie Orms, Innsbruck, Austria 1997 Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico 1996 Die Weisse Galerie, Cologne, Germany 1995 Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico 1993 Die Weisse Galerie, Cologne, Germany 1992 Galerie Dr. Luise Krohn, Badenweiler, Germany 1989 Galerie Dr. Luise Krohn, Badenweiler, Germany 1987 Galerie Dr. Luise Krohn, Badenweiler, Germany 1985 Geilsdorfer Galerie, Cologne, Germany 1983 Geilsdorfer Galerie, Cologne, Germany 1981 Geilsdorfer Galerie, Cologne, Germany GROUP EXHIBITIONS 2001 Works on Paper Plus, Studio 18 Gallery, New York, New York 2001 Studio 18 Gallery, New York, New York 1998 Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico 1998 Die Weisse Galerie, Cologne, Germany 1998 STIL-American Fine Art, Dusseldorf, Germany 1997 Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico 1997 Die Weisse Galerie, Cologne, Germany 1997 Victoria Anstead Gallery, New York, New York 1997 Frankfurt Art Fair, represented by Galerie Orms, Innsbruck, Austria 1996 Frankfurt Art Fair, represented by Die Weisse Galerie, Cologne, Germany 1995 Victoria Anstead Gallery, New York, New York 1995 Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico 1994 Small Works, New York University, New York, New York 1993 Necessary Fictions, East Stroudsburg University, Pennsylvania 1992 Die Weisse Galerie, Cologne, Germany 1992 Small Works, New York University, New York, New York 1990 Discoveries VI, The Arsenal North, New York, New York 1990 Small Works, New York University, New York, New York 1985 Galerie Dr. Luise Krohn, Badenweiler, Germany 1981 Pratt Manhattan Center Gallery, New York, New York 1981 Hadler/Rodriguez, New York, New York, Houston, Texas 1979 U.S. Court House, Open Space 1977 O.K. Harris, New York 1975 Hansen Gallery, New York, New York 1974 Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, New York 1973 Buecker Harpsichords, New York, New York 1973 Artist House, New York, New York 1972 Warren Benedek Gallery, New York, New York 1965 Alan Stone Gallery, New York, New York 1963 Gordon Gallery, New York, New York 1962 Eggleston Gallery, New York, New York AWARDS 1999 Pollock/Krasner Foundation Grant 1994 New York University, Small Works, Jurors Award 1962 Emily Lowe Foundation Award PUBLICATIONS 1997 The New Mexican/Pasatiempo 1996 Catalog for solo exhibition in Cologne 1995 The New Mexican/Pasatiempo 1994 "On Monochrome Painting of Joe Barnes," Florian Goldberg 1993 Catalog for solo exhibition in Cologne 1993 L'uomo Vogue 1984 Appearances Magazine, Number 11, Fall PERMANENT COLLECTIONS 2000 Weatherspoon Art Gallery, University of North Carolina, Greensboro 1996 Werner H. Kramarsky, New York, New York |
