40"x 40" Acrylic and Wax PastelBarbara Reade is a mixed media abstract artist from Burlington, Ontario. She earned a BFA in Illustration at Parsons School of Design in New York City, before pursuing careers in education and as a retail business owner. Barbara now paints full time in her light-filled studio near Lake Ontario, surrounded by the natural and urban views that inspire her work. Barbara’s paintings hang in private and corporate collections throughout North America and the Bahamas and have appeared in both solo and group shows.As an abstract artist, Barbara’s work is an exploration of energy and the intangible connections that shape our human experience. She is drawn to the interplay of colour, texture, and form to create pieces that elicit a sense of movement. Each painting begins as an instinctual response to a thought or feeling, evolving through layers of experimentation and discovery.Barbara’s recent series of floral-inspired paintings is more about the feelings evoked by flowers, rather than a literal representation. This allows for the viewer to make their own connections. Instead, they’re all about colour, gestural brush marks, and luscious swoops of thick paint that remind us of balmy summer days, fragrant breezes and gardens in full bloom.
