Karen Barry,
Successfully Mixing Paintbrush, Pencil and Intrigue
The Early Years
As a child growing up in Maryland, Karen had the opportunity to visit the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC to view Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa,” on loan from the National Gallery in London. However, it was the equine portrait of “Whistlejacket,” oil on canvas hanging in the gallery’s marble stairwell that caught her eye. As she gazed in awe and admiration at the almost life-sized thoroughbred stallion painted by George Stubbs in 1762, not knowing the work was created by the most important sporting artist of his time. "I was simply captured by its majesty and beauty, and dreamed of one day being able to create such a work." It was much later that she learned that in 1766, the artist published “The Anatomy of the Horse,” perhaps the greatest book in racing literature that changed the world of equestrian art forever. The artist and his work continued to be an inspiration to her. She went on to pursue an art career at the University of Maryland. Unable to mesh with the bohemian counterculture of the time, she changed her major from art to Physical Education and Health Sciences effectively ending her art for the time being.
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After graduation, Karen's interest in law enforcement led her to a 24-year career in the Secret Service. While assigned to the presidential detail for President Reagan, she took advantage of having access to the vast art collection on display in the White House; particularly admiring the Boehm Studio porcelain collection, and the many works of the American West artists and in particular the Hudson River School of painters.
Her association with the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art provided her with yet another source of access to fine art. Her ultimate goal was to someday get back to the study of art and development of her own talent.
In 1996, she was promoted to Special Agent in Charge of the Secret Service’s Louisville,KY field office, and then retired in 2000 after 24 years of service. After retirement, Karen began studying oil painting with local KY artist Angie Campbell, and attended workshops with colored-pencil artists Vera Curnow and Cecile Baird. "I really love the labor intensity and the detail that I am able to achieve with colored pencils."
Today
Even though officially retired, Karen continues to work part-time on special assignments, and contracts her services out to various security agencies. Most recently Karen traveled to Vancouver as part of the security for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Never without her camera, the images she captures during her travels provide interesting subjects for her art.
Her biggest challenge now is to free her imagination to create her one-of-a-kind equestrian artwork. Karen prefers to work in two different mediums, oils and colored pencils. She likes oils because of their flexibility; mistakes can be corrected and if she doesn’t like the outcome, she can change it without beginning the piece over.
Karen enjoys the detail of colored pencils. “I love to sketch and see the drawing progress from pencil sketch to finished drawing. There is a lot of layering in colored pencil work. It is time intensive but the detail you can achieve is what I love." Some of her favorite subjects are friends' pets and other wildlife, seascapes and mountain scenery. She travels quite a lot and has been to Colorado to paint and sketch elk. Another favorite destination for some inspiration is Bermuda.
Regardless of her use of different medium and an occasional landscape or small animal, her primary subject remains the same – the horse. She resides on a mini farm with her three horses and one too many cats and often draws inspiration from them. Karen 's work can currently be seen at Gallery 104 in LaGrange, KY an affliate of the Arts Association of Oldham County.
Karen is currently accepting commissions.