Bärbel Smith

Later she moved to Calgary, spending summers in the parks, and interior of BC. She received her training at Alberta University of the Arts. Later living in Saskatchewan before finally moving across Canada to Montreal and settling there for the next 10 years and raising her family. Visits to the east and the west coast have allowed her to capture the Canadian landscape in her emotive paintings, infusing her art with a joyous and peaceful vision.

​Her style evokes influences of Art Deco and The Group of Seven. Her semi-representational paintings, are vibrant and simplified in form. She is an award winning artist and a juried signature member of national and provincial art organizations. Her extensive body of work is in private and corporate collections nationally and internationally. Currently she resides with her hubby of 45 years in a country home south of Ottawa surrounded by forests where she paints full time.

Artist’s Statement

My subject matter is the Canadian landscape and my method is smoothly applied paint whether acrylic or oil. I strive to see beyond the busy surface of things and capture the light, colours and shapes of this numinous land. My paintings are inspired by on-site studies and sketches, my own reference photos of all the places in Canada that I have travelled, as well as, half-remembered dreams and feelings. The final result pushes the boundaries to something more transcendent, more spiritual; as if I am painting the soul of the landscape.

​​Painting is a form of communication for me, communication between heaven and earth. A way for my soul to reach out and touch the immortal; to catch a fleeting glimpse of God. Each body of work becomes an adventure where I can re-unite with creation and my own immortal being.