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Mature but Hip and Refreshing Work at Kenise Barnes

Mature but Hip and Refreshing Work at Kenise Barnes
“Julietta,” above, is one of a series of wall sculptures by Julie Maren at Kenise Barnes Fine Art in Kent, Conn. This 36 x 36 x 6 inch work is made of acorn tops that are bedazzled with paint, crystal, glass, brass and more. The show opens on June 6.

A two-person show of work by a painter from Canada and a sculptor from Boulder, Colo., will open on June 6 at Kenise Barnes Fine Art, 7 Fulling Lane in Kent, Conn.

Works by Julie Maren are from her Biophilia and Monsoon series. Described as “meandering wall sculptures,” they are three-dimensional works that are joyful and delightful, with a smattering of nature in them. 

 Biophilia features acorn caps that have been glamorized with paint, glass, shards of minerals.  

“Each cap sits on a copper pin that is installed at a 90 degree angel to the wall in varying depths that create clusters of biomorphic patterns suggesting organisms, and the exuberance of new life,” according to the artist’s statement. In the Monsoon series “individual elements hang away from the wall on pins, creating a poetic rain of color and texture.” 

Janna Watson, who lives and works in Toronto, Canada, paints on birch wood with thick and thin layers of pigment. 

“Her painting process ends with the addition of deliberate scribbles of buttery oil stick — exclamation marks to finish her statement,” according to the description from the gallery. 

Kenise Barnes, who also has a gallery in Larchmont, N.Y., said, “We will open the two-person show on June 6 in the Kent gallery but there will be no public opening. We will allow visitors wearing masks into the gallery in the groups they arrive with; if it is a family group of two to five, for example, they may visit the gallery together.  

“Otherwise we will stagger visitors; art is always a no-touch experience and I am the only staff member in the space so I feel confident that I can make safe decisions for myself and our visitors.” 

Barnes represents primarily North American artists who are “mid-career or emerging,” she said. 

Watson is “a young Canadian whose work gives a fresh voice to my program, which is heavy on American, especially Brooklyn, artists. 

“Both Watson and Maren are young and I felt that the work was mature but hip and refreshing,” she said.

The gallery’s hours are going to be Thursday through Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. and by appointment; call  860-592-0220 or go to the website at www.kbfa.com to learn more.

Cynthia Hochswender

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