Suzy Barnard

Suzy Barnard does not have to search far for her inspiration. Providing ample opportunity for exploration and a constant supply of inspiration, her studio is located off Pier 70 in San Francisco and just out her window is a panoramic view of the bay. Her paintings are informed by the endlessly changing weather, its dramatic light, and the constant parade of cargo ships in the vast harbor. Hundreds of ships have passed by her windows. Quite familiar with all the ways they can appear and disappear, Barnard imagines that her process of mixing and layering paints is akin to playing with particles of water and air, traveling in her mind’s eye between sea, sky, and shore, completely immersed in colorscape.

Born in England, Suzy Barnard earned her BFA (Painting) in 1980 from Bristol Polytechnic and moved to the Bay Area in 1981. She obtained her MFA at the San Francisco Art Institute in 1984 and has been exhibiting steadily since that time. Her works can be found in many private, and public collections, including the Federal Maritime Commission, Washington DC; Zuckerberg General Hospital, San Francisco; San Francisco Public Utilities Commission; Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation; Laguna Honda Hospital, San Francisco; The County of Alameda; the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Business School West; the City of Lafayette.