Stories from the Studio: Judy Barker

This week STA caught up with artist Judy Barker from the Hilltops Region. Judy finds inspiration for her art just about anywhere, in nature, people and society more broadly. Different techniques are always interesting and in Judy’s 2D work she loves using a range of mediums from acrylics, pastels and inks to monoprints, linocuts, collage and very often a mix of one or more of these. Colour and light are the driving principles.

Judy is drawn to the textures and complexity of the stories that arise from layers of material. Starting with a collage of old books and music is a great way to give context to the next layers of different, often transparent papers or glazes. Recently Judy has been making abstract monoprints or paintings without any preconceived ideas and then after sitting with the piece, images or figures, emerge and result in the story told in the final work.

Carving soft stone sculptures in limestone, soapstone and Hebel is a wonderful way to create abstract forms and figurative works. It is such a tactile way to feel a work coming together from a block of stone. With soapstone it can be more about finding where the stone encourages you to go due to it’s imperfections. In creating sculptures from found metal objects, the pieces often tells her what they are going to be. Judy doesn’t change the pieces, they just come together to make works ranging from abstract, geometric forms to quirky characters that always have names reflecting that character.

“Making art is a journey that can surprise, delight, frustrate and sometimes disappoint me in turn but there is always the challenge to keep creating.”

See more of Judy’s Work on Instagram