With a background in Psychology and Social Relations, Susan Barnett’s painting practice has flourished in creating a psychological tension between geometric shapes that emerge and disappear into constant gridded grounds. These past experimentations with pure non-objective abstraction and geometry have given way to representational elements that inhabit her patterned grounds. Inspired by a 19^th century Chinese screen printing in the artist’s own collection, Barnett appropriated the idea of the wild birds that reside in the eastern landscapes. In Barnett’s paintings, as in the original panels, the activity is exuberant. The wild things preen, soar and eye their prey. Birds eye each other warily in Community and a mighty mouse-like bird attacks a large prey in The Avenger. In Love Songs in Pidgin English and Nightfall the birds are embedded in stripes, some sweetly cooing, some wisly surveying the landscape.

Susan Barnett earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in painting from Southern Methodist University in 2008, an M.A. in Psychology from the New School for Social Research, New York, NY and a B.A. in Social Relations from Harvard University, Cambridge, MA in 1973. Since receiving her M.F.A in 2008 she has exhibited in such venues as: Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX; Hulse/Warman Gallery,Taos, NM; Southwest College Art Gallery, Chula Vista, CA; McKinney Ave Contemporary, Dallas, TX and the Harwood Art Center, Albuquerque, NM. Susan Barnett lives and works in Dallas,TX and Taos, NM.

Artists in this Exhibition

• Susan Barnett

Artist Video