A new look at James Barron Art

KENT — The James Barron Art gallery, which celebrated its third anniversary on Sept. 27, has recently undergone a reconfiguration.

Located in the Kent Barns, the gallery formerly occupied two spaces — one on the first floor and one on the second floor. As of mid-September, the gallery now occupies only the larger second floor space.

“It’s an amazing place for an art gallery,” said owner James Barron of the second story. The room is 31 by 31 feet with white walls, museum-quality lighting  and double doors that open onto a large deck. 

“It used to be a yoga studio, and I had practiced yoga here about 100 times. It has a spiritual essence to it, and lots of positive energy,” he said. “I love being tucked up in the sky among the trees. It’s just perfect.”

The original intention of the first-floor space was to draw people in as Barron established his gallery’s presence in the community. The pièce de résistance of the first floor was a wall-sized graphic work by Sol Lewitt that was on display for two years. 

“Once that piece was gone, there was less reason to keep the space. By that point people knew about the gallery and where it was, so the first floor was not really necessary anymore,” Barron explained.

“My goal is to create a space where people can congregate and enjoy art, without pressure to buy anything. Someone might walk away from viewing the artwork, and their life might not quite exactly be the same because of that experience,” Barron said.  

“Two Edens” by Ellen Cantor is the exhibition on display now. Cantor, who died of cancer in 2013 at the age of 51, was a feminist multimedia artist. 

“She was about 25 years ahead of her time,” Barron said. The show is especially meaningful to him, not only because of the quality of the work but also because the artist was his cousin. The show runs through Oct. 29. 

The gallery is open Thursday and Friday from noon to 4 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.