Alexander Girard, Inspiration in Design of Space. A presentation by Ivan Barnett

This May, Patina celebrates Girard with an opening reception, Inspiration in Design of Space. Artist and gallery director, Ivan Barnett, will conduct a presentation, discussing Girard’s influence on design within Patina’s gallery space.

A presentation will take the viewer through a brief history of Barnett’s artistic career, into his introduction of Girard’s Multiple Visions at the Museum of International Folk Art, and onward to the opening of Patina Gallery. A guided tour through the space will follow, emphasizing concepts of design, pioneered by Girard, adopted by Barnett, to propel device, purpose and discovery within Patina Gallery.

On a trip through Santa Fe in the early 80s, Barnett visited the Museum of International Folk Art while Multiple Visions was newly on exhibit. To his astonishment, seven of his art pieces were in Girard’s curated selection. Onward to 1999, Barnett is designing the Patina. Decisions were made that have elevated the gallery as an international destination for unique and personal discovery. Alexander Girard informed many of Barnett's choices in design that ultimately made Patina one of the most beautiful galleries in the world to experience contemporary works of art jewelry in juxtaposition to sculptural objects in metal, clay & wood.
 
Dated from 1984 is a note from Girard to Barnett, upon Barnett’s discovery of his work in Girard’s Multiple Visions:
 
What a very pleasant surprise to receive your letter and a new piece of your work. Both my wife and I were delighted with the cut-out swan and also with your remarks about the Exhibition [Multiple Visions]. We did hope it would make people happy and give them also more knowledge of the universal message such objects represent. It is good to know that you share similar feelings…
 

Patina Gallery, born in the heart of Santa Fe’s historic, art district, celebrates 20 years of soul-stirring works. Through the year, gallery co-owners and curators, Allison and Ivan Barnett, celebrate Patina’s two-decade achievement. 


When: Saturday, May 4th, 2 - 4 pm.  
131 W Palace Avenue Santa Fe, NM. 


About Ivan Barnett:
Ivan Barnett has enjoyed a successful career as an artist for over 40 years. His father, Isa Barnett, was a successful illustrator, painter and faculty member at UArts in Philadelphia, PA. Ivan Barnett received his formal training at UArts with a focus in illustration. After graduation in 1969, he went to the US Army to serve as an illustrator at the Pentagon.
In 1976, Barnett began creating garden sculptures and weather vanes, inspired by the German Folk Art he observed from his studio in Lancaster County, PA. His signature works blend the folk tradition of native Pennsylvania with strong, contemporary design. His work achieved a high profile in the early eighties with recognition in Architectural Digest, House & Garden, Better Homes and Gardens, House Beautiful and Country Living.
 
Barnett is recognized as a leader in the country’s Contemporary Folk Art Movement and is one of the first modern American craft artists to revive and interpret traditional American folk forms. Collectors of his work include that of actor, Christopher Plummer, designer, Ray Eames and illustrator, Tomie dePaola.
He continues to exhibit his work at Patina Gallery, exhibitions include: In the Garden & Beyond the Sky (2017), Mobiles (2014) and Abstraction (2013) where he has shown his signature work in mobiles, collages and weathervanes. In 2012, Barnett curated a joint exhibition, Generation to Generation at UArts, featuring the a collection of his work and that of his father, Isa Barnett. Barnett’s career has taken many courses, including: artist, advisor, writer, furniture maker and most importantly, gallery director at Patina Gallery. In 1999, he and his wife, Allison Buchsbaum-Barnett, opened Patina Gallery in Santa Fe, NM. This year signifies two decades of soul-stirring works.