About Barbara Buntin

 

I make paper collage art pieces in my studio in Cobourg ON, drawing inspiration from multiple sources. Just as collage is an assemblage of materials to form a unique composition, the layered influences on my creative life bring me to this point in my art making.

The bustle and hum of the nearby city, peaceful rhythms of our beloved shoreline and treasured opportunities to travel to wild open spaces all work their way into my abstracted landscapes.  My desire to understand and improve human connections also play out in the dynamic interactions of shape and form.

Some of my earliest memories involve making art and the practice remains a constant for me. A grandmother who never failed to show us the wonders of the natural world, uncles who pointed me towards art history and friends and family who continue to engage in conversation about the forces at work in my art, all bring meaning and joy to the process.

My art studies in Toronto encouraged a spirit of exploration of materials, technique and a dedication to ongoing practice.  My training in Art Therapy expanded my understanding of the emotional connections made through visual art.

These layered influences are played out in my collage process.  Working with papers that I've hand printed, I cut and move shapes around the piece until the elements create a pathway for the eye, a place for the imagination to dwell.  The shapes, colours and movement in the materials seem animated while I construct the scene, resulting in compositions that echo human energy and interactions.  Some compositions settle into abstract form, hinting at unseen forces in transition; others evolve into landscape images reflecting the memory and atmosphere of place.

I enjoy the opportunity to exhibit my work in Galleries and Art Shows both locally and in Toronto as well as welcoming visitors to my studio by appointment.  The conversations that arise with the viewer are a sustaining part of the process of making art.

 

Artist Statement

 

My monotype and collage work is a visceral response to the natural world and events around me; conveying a yearning for internal, relational and land based home.  Art making is less an intellectual pursuit for me; more a meditation on how best to navigate our lives.

The textures, forms and movement of our physical world provide a metaphor for the inner workings of human nature.  Perspectives shift, forces ebb and flow and balance is needed between enclosure and expanse.  The abstracted landscapes I create are intended as an invitation for the viewer to find intrigue in small details, calm in open spaces and recognition of shared experience.

 

Selected Exhibitions

 

2021- 25 Days of Minis Online Holiday Show

2021- Autumn Artisan Market, online fundraising exhibition for the McMichael Canadian Collection

2021 - Riverdale ArtWalk, online exhibition

2020 - Layered Landscapes, solo exhibition, Northumberland Arts Gallery, Port Hope ON

2019 - Riverdale ArtWalk, Toronto ON

2019 - Art Gallery of Northumberland Wall Takeover

2019 - Northumberland Hills Studio Tour

2019 - Autumn Art Sale, McMichael Canadian Collection Kleinberg

2018 - solo exhibition, Metaphor, Whitby Station Gallery, Whitby ON

2014 - 2018, Simple Pleasures, an Annual Show of small works, Cobourg ON

2015 - 2019 participation in Juried Exhibitions at The Station Gallery Whitby and The Visual Arts Centre Clarington

2015 - 2017 representation at The Engine Gallery, Port Hope ON

2015 - Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibit

2014 - Group Exhibition, Idea Exchange, Cambridge ON

2004 - 2014 representation at the artist run Colborne Art Gallery

2012 - 2014 representation at The Crimson Feather Gallery, Alton ON

2013 - solo show, off the map, The Colborne Art Gallery, Colborne ON

2013 - Beauty in the Eye exhibit and theatrical performance,
Etobicoke Civic Centre & Port Hope on Main Street

2012 - Figuratively Speaking feature show The Crimson Feather Gallery, Alton ON

2012 - Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibit

2009 - Solo show, in this moment , The Colborne Art Gallery

2008 - 2012 Northumberland Hills Studio Tour

2008 - 2010 Propellor Gallery, Toronto ON, Washi 1 & Washi 2 & Go Figure

2008 - 2010 group shows The Upstairs Gallery, Port Hope ON

1985 - 2017 Numerous Regional Juried and group Exhibits, including fourteen Art Gallery of Northumberland Juried Shows

Art Work in private collections in Canada and USA, including in the Permanent Collections of The Art Gallery of Northumberland and The Japanese Paper Place, Toronto ON.

 

 

Professional Affiliations

 

Member of The Artists Network, Toronto ON

Past Member and Chair of the Colborne Society of Artists, Colborne ON, www.thecolborneartgallery.ca

Past Marketing Committee Member, Northumberland Hills Studio Tour, www.northumberlandstudiotour.ca

2010 Juror for Ontario Arts Council National & International Residency Program

The Shelter Valley Folk Festival, a Founding Member, past member of the Board of Directors and Artists' Village Coordinator

Private Art Therapy Practice serving Individuals and Groups

 

Education & Awards

 

2019 Second Place Award Juried Exhibition Visual Arts Centre Clarington

2017 Honorable Mention, Juried Exhibition, Art Gallery of Northumberland

2016 and 2017 Best Drawing Awards for Juried Exhibitions at Visual Arts Centre Clarington

2012 Awarded an Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant

Awarded funding by the Ontario Arts Council National & International Residency Program

for a seven week trip to the Yukon in the fall of 2012

Expressive Art Therapy Course, Sir Sandford Fleming College

Art Therapist Training Program, Toronto Art Therapy Institute, Toronto ON

New School of Art, full time studio program, Toronto ON

Part time studies in life drawing, painting & sculpture; Ontario College of Art & Design, Three Schools of Art & Central Technical School, Toronto ON