Jane Barthès by Bernard Colbert Portrait4 2017

We’re delighted to be working with the Chicago based artist Jane Barthès on the development of her PR strategy and creative communications. Our focus is on the UK and Europe, as well as offering some global support, especially with exhibition promotions and new projects. We first worked with Jane between 1994 and 2004.

Jane Barthès Molecular Cities #2_wm

Molecular Cities #2, 2017, acrylic, charcoal and graphite on canvas, 121.92 x 121.92 cm

Artist Statement:

“My artistic development reflects an intensely personal journey that began with comic strips in the 1980s. I consider myself primarily a draughtswoman seeking to exploit the illusion of space on two-dimensional surface in new ways.

I feel a bit like a physicist with her molecules occupying an obscure corner of ‘science’. I am fascinated by form and what lies behind it before it materialises.  Everything in existence, when stripped to its essence becomes merely matter and energy. I had no real aptitude for science at school; however, through drawing and paint, I feel I somehow have access to the same knowledge without trying to pin it down or possess it. The results seem to reveal a natural order, even harmony.

Jane Barthès The Heart of Matter_wm

The Heart of Matter, 2017, acrylic, charcoal and graphite on canvas, 121.92 x 121.92 cm

Grounded in an intuitive meditative approach developed over many years, my paintings offer a distilled space that invite the audience to reflect on the source of all energies and the intangible mysteries of this life. This seems ever more important in a world of increasing information overload. There is an elusive ‘Something’ so fundamental, powerful and yet so intangible that propels me through my own existence, just as it does all living particles. This, for me, suggests a parallel with the current theories in Quantum physics and the discovery of the Higgs Boson, often referred to as the ‘God Particle’.

Jane Barthès Activated Molecular Suspension_wm_l

Activated Molecular Suspension, 2016, charcoal and acrylic on canvas, 183 x 152 + 183 x 107 cm

The inherited duality of a fiery Catalan French father and a reserved English mother is fundamental to my work as is a love of Eastern philosophies. I am intrigued by the idea that beauty can result from chaos; that opposing concepts such as poetry and maths are utterly interconnected; and that energy can be contained. My use of colour is at once bold and restrained. Negative space is absolutely crucial in my work – emptiness is full, everything seems to spring from nothing. The resulting visual distillation flirts with Minimalism, which, for me, is not a rigid movement that favours the cool over the dramatic; it is a passion and a product of my enduring search for the essential.

Seductive City Coming Undone, 2017, acrylic, charcoal and graphite on canvas, 137.16x167.64cm

Seductive City Coming Undone, 2017, acrylic, charcoal, graphite and yarn on canvas, 137 x 168 cm

Just as my obsessions with energy, physics and duality are constants, there is a sustained dialogue with art history which includes my love of Renaissance artists’ use of the Golden Ratio and of geometric Arabic patterns in architecture. My quest for roots and an insatiable curiosity have led me to move about the globe and each port of call has been an opportunity to explore and integrate local arts and culture.   Sensitive to my latest environment, I am intrigued to see how my work has come to reflect the exquisite urban architecture that surrounds me now that I am based in Chicago. The sunny, scintillating patterns of the river reflected in the geometric, glass high-rise buildings resonate so deeply that I get goose-pimples sensing the esoteric connection between all things. And thus I find my work entering another phase, into a bright future.” Jane Barthès, January 2018

Jane Barthès framed 4 monoprints

Clockwise from top left, available framed: Stitched Monoprint #2, #3, #5 and #4; 2017, ink and cotton yarn on Somerset paper, 184 x 184 mm

Jane Barthès, December 2017, photographed by Bernard Colbert

2018
Solo Shows
“GRIDZ” – Pop-up curated by artist, Chicago, Illinois
Group Shows
“Stripes” – bG Gallery, Santa Monica, California

2017
Solo Shows
Kit and Ace Designs INC., Chicago, Illinois
Group Shows
“5th Annual Art Competition” – Bridgeport Art Center, Chicago, Illinois – Juried
“Unpresidented: Art in Common Cause” – Space 900, Evanston, Illinois
“Patterned Universes” – Village Home and Design, Hinsdale, Illinois
South Shore Arts 74th Annual Salon Show, Munster, Indiana
Juried Prize — Susanne Andersen Beck Award
“Unpresidented” – Hubbard Street Studios, Chicago, Illinois
“Carte Blanche” – Thomas Masters Gallery, Pop-up Show, Chicago, Illinois

2016
Group Shows
“Dynamic”, Studio Channel Islands, Camarillo, CA
Art Fairs
Boca Contemporary Art Fair, Boca Raton, FL

2015
Solo Shows
“Molecules of Drawing”, Echt Gallery, Chicago, Illinois

Visit Jane Barthès’ website for more information and latest news.

Jane Barthès Molecular Jostle ac_wm

Molecular Jostle, 2017, acrylic and charcoal on canvas,182.88 x 167.64 cm x 3 panels