ITS NOT ME, ITS YOU

August 1 - November 1, 2021

Dab Art Co. is pleased to announce the online exclusive, ITS NOT ME, ITS YOU. A solo exhibition of paintings by Jennifer Del Barrio.

Del Barrio may have gotten a late start to art career, it doesn't show. The foundations of her paintings easily fuse with the surface, composing seemingly informal union or gestures, swipes and the occasional awkward drawing. Using a variety of elements Del Barrio creates pieces that reflect her deep connection to nature in all its forms.

Depending on the piece, Del Barrio’s palette can be intense or subdued; no matter the hue it is always cohesive. Concentrating on the loosely scattered dialogues within some of the works, the unsettled viewer is still compelled to finish the points made within each painting.

I first began painting when I was 45 years old. I had just seen the movie, Camille Claudel and it inspired me so deeply I just threw a tarp down on the living room floor and began painting. I used dark umber, navy, blue and white and just moved intuitively, not painting anything specific but they turned out as abstract landscapes. I didn't realize it at the time but it quelled my anxiety. I became obsessed by the New York School painters and studied everything I could about them. The more freedom I give myself while painting, the more successful the painting turns out. I may have ideas of media and methods to use but when I go to a blank canvas, all of that is pushed somewhere in back of my head. An essence of energy flows through me when I allow it and that is where the sweet spot is. I am drawn to high contrast values, color and organic shapes and the blurred spaces between them. Empathy for animals, humans and nature are always near in my subconscious when I paint.

-JENNIFER DEL BARRIO