Artist's Statement

My work has evolved out of the Bay Area Figurative tradition, and I am always exploring the territory between figuration and abstraction. I love to paint on a large scale, and work in an expressionistic manner using the mediums of both oil and acrylic paint. A more recent development is my interest in printmaking, I've become somewhat obsessed with monotype and regularly switch back and forth between painting and printmaking.

My figurative work often has a narrative component, and relates directly to my experience of life. I enjoy creating situations to explore gesture, expression, color, and line, and find myself becoming completely immersed in the stories and environments that I create. Feminist issues are often addressed, often with an emphasis on our obsession with body image, and I find myself continually drawn to the subject of interpersonal relationships and the absurdity of the human condition.

In 2020 I was a visiting artist at the American Academy in Rome, a remarkable experience, where I investigated classical painting and sculpture and the mythological roots of so many of the artworks. In 2016 and 2017 I also held artist residencies, the first in Amherst, Virginia, at the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, the second at VCCA's branch in Auvillar, France. In both instances I was inspired by poetry, in Virginia I reflected on the moody and dark works of Edgar Allan Poe, while in Auvillar I was reading Charles Baudelaire's Fleurs du Mal and other works, and have returned to imagery inspired by that experience in my current paintings.

Over the past decade I have been exploring working with monotypes, often working with stencils and using imagery inspired by animals and nature. A recent series took the striking image of the sea horse as a point of departure, and hummingbirds have also been a recurring theme. Each of these monotypes is a unique hand-pulled print, and I always love the element of surprise when the work comes off my press.

Barbara Morris

June 2019