Today we’d like to introduce you to Elizabeth Barlow.
Hi Elizabeth, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Beauty found me early. I was raised in Utah in a house filled with art, surrounded by a flower garden. I started out in the performing arts (theater, ballet, opera, you name it!), dabbled in writing (WAY too hard!), and eventually found my true voice as an artist. I now understand that my childhood with an artist father and gardener mother made my life today painting flowers seem inevitable.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
When I finally decided I wanted to be a painter, my late father, artist Philip Barlow, said, “Wonderful! You have talent, but you need to start studying seriously.” So I began taking art classes in San Francisco and from that very first day, I knew I was in the right place. This is not to say that I was immediately GOOD at making art. I wasn’t the most brilliant artist in my classes, but I always had a kind of religious devotion to the practice of making art. This gets me through all the bumps, frustrations and hurdles that come with being an artist. If our deepest, truest desire is to make art, then we will find a way to show up at the easel (or barre or piano or notepad) each day, no matter what. It is my desire and my devotion that clear my path.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am an oil painter and in my current series, Flora Portraits, I elevate flowers in hyperreal detail. These paintings ask viewers to slow down and contemplate the transformative power of beauty and stillness. When we moved from San Francisco in 2016 to this seaside town, my work underwent a profound transformation. After the excitement and stimulation of a busy urban life, I was suddenly surrounded by coastal mists, twisting cypresses, and year-round flower gardens. At the same time, I began a dedicated meditation practice. I quickly understood that by using a flower as my subject, I could muse on the gifts of stillness, strength within fragility, and the miraculous power of beauty to change our lives. From that moment, I have been painting flowers. I’m thrilled that my Flora Portraits are currently featured in Flora Fauna, an exhibition at the Monterey Museum of Art.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
My late father, Utah artist Philip Barlow, gave this brilliant piece of advice. I was just beginning to take art classes, and he said, “Always sit next to the best person in the room.” So, rather than sit at the back of a figure drawing class, I would look around and take a seat next to the most advanced artist in the room. This did two things: it gave me an eagle’s eye into the best art in the room, and it encouraged me to have the courage to “take my seat” with the people I most admired. I think of this advice all the time today as a professional. I still want to learn from and take my seat next to the best people in the room (art world).
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.elizabethbarlowart.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elizabethbarlowartist/
Image Credits
Image credits: Rick Pharaoh
