I love it when inspiration comes in unexpected encounters.  I was approached in late in 2015 with a tantalizing proposition - to create a "self-portrait" for an exhibition at the New Museum Los Gatos called "More Than Your Selfie." The museum curator, Maryann McGrath, encouraged me to "reveal" aspects of my SELF in the painting.

What a prospect! I have been painting "portraits in absentia" for over 5 years - they are illuminations of people, real or imagined, using objects or their own belongings - to tell stories in paint about their lives, journeys, and selves.

And now I was asked to turn this eye on myself. How to choose objects that reveal something about my true self - my story and my thoughts? What to reveal and what not to reveal?

The painting that emerged, "Self Portrait in Absentia," was a revelatory journey. I selected objects that "show" an aspect of me (my beloved red lipstick), some objects with deep personal meaning (my father's palette knife), and I included postcards of art that resonate profoundly with me.
And I decided to "invent"  two books I wish existed -- whose subjects are ideas and values I cherish.

This painting has opened up worlds of enticing new ideas to explore and encounter in future paintings.  Here's to chance encounters.....

"Self-Portrait in Absentia," oil in linen, 24x36"
By Elizabeth Barlow

New Museum Los Gatos
"More Than Your Selfie",  exhibition
Jan 21-May 15, 2016

I've just discovered a wonderful new art blog -- written by Marie Cameron.  She is a Bay Area artist and passionate blogger who writes with perception, curiosity and a wonderful inner "eye" on her artistic discoveries.

I met her at Art Silicon Valley/SF -- and I was delighted to read today that she mentioned my work in her recent overview of Art Silicon Valley -- and posted a pic she snapped of me in front of one of my paintings in the Gallerie Citi booth.

Here is what she wrote:

"I had the pleasure of meeting San Francisco based artist,Elizabeth Barlow, represented by Gallerie Citi of Burlingame. Her “portraits in absentia” are still lives of personal possessions that paint a portrait of their owners. Her work is meticulous, flawless realism that is embued with a sense of fun and lots of personality."

BRAVA Marie -- thanks for sharing the things that delight your eye!

And here is a link to her fantastic blog about making and creating art.....

http://mariecameronstudio.com/category/blog/

Yesterday at Art Silicon Valley/San Francisco, gallery owner extraordinaire Andra Norris gave a symposium on two of her artists -- Kim Frohsin and myself.

Kim has a new series titled Cautionary Tales -- in which she has explored (on foot, with camera in hand) the changing cityscape of her beloved San Francisco.  She has documented the changes she sees -- old buildings being replaced with high rises -- and the resulting displacement of long time residents -- into her paintings.  Her paintings are colorful, beautiful yet eloquent collages of these changes.

My new paintings are the latest evolution of my "portraits in absentia" series, in which I paint portraits of people -- real or imagined -- using their belongings to recount their stories, choice and lives. Lately, I've chosen the clothing that we choose to cover (or adorn)  ourselves with -- our uniforms, our flamboyance, our circumstances, our celebrations.  I believe that our clothing retains something of our essence -- our truest selves -- even after we have discarded it.

Andra spoke deeply and perceptively about Kim's and my journeys of discovery and alchemy -- as we explored and then brought to life our newest work.

What a gift it is to hear a passionate art lover, art thinker, art collector discuss one's work!  Thank you Andra!

Art Silicon Valley/SF is produced by Art Miami and I'm thrilled that my work will be presented there this week by Gallerie Citi -- Oct. 8-11.  It's an exciting showcase for contemporary art from around the world -- and I can't wait to see what wonders I will find there....

 I will be unveiling my newest "portraits in absentia" -- these paintings are "portraits" using belongings (clothing) rather than faces or figures to describe people's lives.   I believe that our clothing retains the shape of our essences and leaves behind a symbolic trace of our selves and our stories.

"Spooned," oil on linen, 24 x 36"

"Pas de Deux", oil on linen, 20 x 30"

I could have stayed all night!  I am usually so nervous for the opening of an exhibition -- it's like being an actor before the curtain rises on opening night -- wishing I were anyplace ELSE.  But for the first time EVER, I was excited for the opening of "REAL: Elizabeth Barlow and Willard Dixon" at Gallerie Citi.  Maybe I have a few enough of these openings under my belt by now?  Or maybe I am just so proud of this new work and wanted to share it with my friends and collectors.  It was truly a pleasure to see familiar faces and be able to show them what I've been working on for the past 8 months.

It was also such a privilege to share the exhibition with Willard Dixon.  He is a noted Bay Area artist, who paints beautifully in every genre -- landscape, figurative and still life.  In this exhibition, he is sharing some of his new trompe l'oeil paintings -- they are astonishingly "real" -- but still retain an other worldly air found in most of his work.

"REAL", at Gallerie Citi, 1115 Howard Avenue, Burlingame, CA, until November 6, 2015.
www.gallerieciti.com

This is another new painting waiting to be revealed at the Opening Reception of REAL -- a two person exhibition with Willard Dixon and myself at Gallerie Citi -- September 19, from 5-7pm.  The exhibition runs through November 6. 

"Yin/Yang," Oil on Linen, 24 x 30 

For several years now I have been working to entwine the traditions of still life painting and portraiture.  I call these paintings "portraits in absentia."  I use people's belongings, most recently their shoes, as stand-ins for their visages or bodies, to create "portraits" that illustrate their lives and stories.

On September 19 at Gallerie Citi I will unveil a new evolution of these "potraits in absentia."  In these new paintings I am using the "uniforms" that many of us have in our closets -- jeans and white shirts.  These uniforms are ubiquitous in our society, yet they are highly personal.   A pair of jeans or a white shirt is a form of cultural anthropology -- a piece of archeology from our time -- but each garment also retains the very real essence of the person who wears it.

My new series will be shown at Gallerie Citi in Silicon Valley (Burlingame, CA) in the two-person exhibition REAL (which I will share with the extraordinary Willard Dixon), from September 19 -- November 6.  There is an opening reception on September 19 from 5-7pm -- please come if you can!

Here is a peek at one of the new works.  It is a "portrait" of a couple and it illumines their love story and their zest for living.

"Embrace," oil on linen, 24 x 36"