(USA) – 1st Place Winner of 4th International NeoPopRealism Starz Art Competition
Introducing BLAIR BARBOUR (USA) - 1st Place Winner of 4th International NeoPopRealism Starz Art Competition, September 1, 2009 – March 28, 2010
Art was a big part of Blair Barbour’s childhood. She said to the NeoPopRealism Journal, “My art career started in high school when I received a national art award from the United States Achievement Academy. I got started showing my artwork in art events and galleries early in life with the support of my parents – my mother is an artist – and went to college and got a degree in Fine Art, receiving the Marion-Ebert Wolle Scholarship.”
Blair Barbour thinks that the most exciting thing about this profession – artist – is creating the artwork itself.
“The medium I use doesn’t allow me to see the piece until the very end for two reasons: I work backwards, starting with the most basic background details and finishing with the top layers and waiting for the acrylic medium to dry letting the art reveal itself,” she said. “I love showing my work and sharing it with the world. There is nothing better than doing what you love as your “job” and, I hope, to inspire others to chase their dreams.”
Blair gets her inspiration from “every day life, exciting moments in time might be lost otherwise. I like taking those moments and spending days bringing them to the surface. The little details in life are the most valuable, so don’t miss them!”
To the question what she thinks about experimenting in art, Blair Barbour said, “This is such a large question! I believe that visual arts are a form of therapy, expression of the soul, one of the greatest gifts given to every human, and, I hope, each one will utilize that talent in some way. Experimenting is what life is all about and I will continue to experiment and grow with my art, to inspire and give back. Experimenting in visual arts is my life and my duty because art has been the one truth that has pulled us through history and reveals its secrets. Without art and experimentation our world would be a dark, boring place.”
Blair Barbour is from a blended family with five sisters and four parents. Her family consists of musicians, writers and artists. Blair’s mother is an exhibiting artist and teacher. Her step-mother was an artist who was always trying new things and showing to Blair how to do them. Art and music have always been around the house and the support of Blair Barbour’s parents has been the driving force in following her dreams.
“I am living my main dream, and on the path to accomplishing more of my dreams,” Blair said, and continues: “My main dream is to share my visual art with the world’s eyes, next – to share my writing with the world’s ears, and then – to share my future yoga studio with the world’s souls.”
“Blair Barbour’s artwork ‘Moulin Rouge’ is harmonical and courageous in her choices. She is experimenting with the medium, adding to her technique her talent and spirit,” said juror Nadia Russ.
(NeoPopRealism Journal, May 2010)
