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Landscape Fragment

by Bob D. Barker

Acrylic on shaped canvas
Dimensions: 66 x 71.5 x 2
Gift of Barbara Jensen Wootan, 1986

Landscape Fragment by Bob D. Barker
Photo by John Jernigan

The Artwork

Limiting his palette to orange and blue, Bob D. Barker created a composition primarily of geometric shapes and changes in tone. Wide horizontal bands of orange emerge from the right side of the canvas and then shift downward at a staggered angle. At the center axis of the canvas, these bands shift upward. By pairing these geometric shapes with tonal changes, the artist implies shadows and highlights. The result is an optical illusion in which a pyramid seems to emerge from the canvas. This illusion is reinforced by the left side of the canvas which is parallel to the implied left side of the pyramid. The use of the shaped canvas is characteristic of Bob D. Barker's paintings.

The Artist

Born in Ardmore, Oklahoma, in 1940, Bob D. Barker earned his Bachelor of Arts from Oklahoma State University and his Master of Fine Arts from the University of Oklahoma. With other prominent Oklahoma artists Dee J. Lafon and Robert Seig, he was a Professor of Art at East Central University. These three artists became known as 'the Ada Trio' and exhibited together throughout the region. Barker also served as an instructor at the University of Oklahoma. His work has been included in group exhibitions throughout Oklahoma and the United States including the Oklahoma Art Center, Museum of Art at the University of Oklahoma, and Lawrence Collection.