Chantal Barlow

Artist Statement

Creating is an opportunity to process life. I let my daily experiences pass through me onto a forever-preserved medium. My paintings are the remnants of human experience: emotional state, physical environment, music, and weather - all aspects of a moment. When observing my work, I recall the sacred space present for each piece's inception.

My paintings are a result of a craft I've developed over many years of experimenting and testing chemical reactions among a range of materials from concept to completion. In sum, I manipulate the viscosity of paint to create texture and depth. Using wood stain and aged and recently mixed paints, I am able to create an aesthetic that appears both ancient and newly formed. Within this process, I utilize paints as the various chemical components separate in their containers, harvesting the clear gloss that rises to the surface. After these initial reactions occur, I delicately incorporate sea water as one of many catalysts deliberately creating seamless movement throughout my work.

Due to the robust nature of my materials and prolonged layering process, wood as a medium is preferred. Knots and uneven texture provide the character and versatility that allow for a unique painting experience each time I create. The culmination of bonding media and method to canvas results in paintings that appear, in some instances, to be an aerial perspective of various segments of the Earth's topography, and a satellite image of the universe's galaxies in others.

My work often persuades the viewer to examine each piece closely, muting external stimulants and creating a profoundly intimate viewing experience. It is in this moment that I feel I have absorbed human experience that sparked the impetus to create, and communicated humanity back to itself.