We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Liz Barber. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Liz below.

Alright, Liz thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I really knew at an early age that I would follow the path of creativity. My talent was noticed at an early age and I was extremely fortunate to have parents that encouraged me to follow that path. The programs I was offered at the Middle School and High School level were to focus my time in the studio to hone my craft of painting and drawing. These programs unfortunately are being phased out of public schools. Which I feel is totally unacceptable. Creatives need nurturing. In high school I put together a portfolio of work at a very advanced level and received a scholarship to attend Moore College of Art in Philadelphia. The skills that have served me most are learning to draw realism. Developing the drawing and painting skills to represent what is in front of you in a realist perspective is crucial to making the jump to abstraction.

Liz, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Liz Barber. I am an abstract expressionist painter. I have been showing and selling my work for twenty plus years. Atlanta is where I got my start. I built an audience of colllectors in the southeast and then nationwide. My paintings are represented by galleries across the country in cities such as Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Chicago, Charleston, S.C. , Atlanta, Santa Fe , San Francisco and Napa Valley. I have created hundreds of commission paintings for clients that have a specific space in mind. They wish for me to paint a piece that expresses my style within their criteria. It is a valuable collaboration that allows my work to sing in the space. I am very proud of the pieces that bring joy to my clients and collectors.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding part of my creative process is the connection built with my viewer. My process brings the formal aspects of creating a painting together with emotion and memory. This produces a language that transcends and speaks to the viewer. My goal is to connect to the viewer’s understanding of my translation of these emotional responses that come from color palette and line and shape and composition. It’s like falling in love when a painting is chosen. To choose to live with my window into the world in your daily space is a remarkable connection. I want my paintings to bring joy and life to the owner’s space.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Starting out as an artist, this spans all creative fields, there is a tremendous amount of rejection. It takes time to find the correct path and the collaborating hands that help you along the way. It takes time to build traction. Staying positive and true to your vision can be challenging. Keeping confidence during discouraging moments is tough. It is important to build a network of fellow artists that can boost you up. Having fellow creative minds to walk arm in arm along the way is crucial to the journey.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lizbarber.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lizbarberpaintings/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LizBarberPaintings