ARTIST

Cassandra C. Barney discovered her passion for sharing her life experiences through image and color at an early age. She continued to develop her education and received a Masters of Fine Art degree in painting, at Brigham Young University.

Cassandra focused her talents on painting portraits and still life. She finds great joy in exploring her roles as a mother, wife, woman and artist in her work. She has found balance in these roles by actively involving her family in the creation process.

Cassandra resides in Utah were she works side by side with her husband Daniel and father James who also pursue a career in art.

While sitting in church with my family, we often draw together to keep little hands busy. One afternoon I drew a shape of a house then passed the drawing to one of my daughters. She added a pet, a chair and a hair salon, then, another daughter added an attic and trees. I filled in the kitchen and a bedroom and then we began the passing again. Working side by side with my three daughters, we produced art works, which documented details of our home environment. My large-scale home paintings grew out of this idea. Together we intertwine our insights with paint to record our ideas of home. Figures are not included in these art works so that the viewer can place him/herself in the home's environment.

In my still life paintings, birdcages, cooking pots, windows, fish bowls, fruit and flowers are objects that I find aesthetically interesting and symbolic of the activity and circumstances of my family. They are quiet moments on which we can reflect upon the beauty that we find amongst the chaos of our everyday lives.

My portraits capture the souls of heroines, everyday women who have found strength and personal victory in their diverse experiences. The portraits carry a range of emotion reflective of the life events that have shaped their character. Their historical reference invites us to look at reflections of the past to learn about ourselves.