Page 78 - CA 2019 Final(3)

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In the 1990s Phil struck his stride with a bold, signature style that
reduces landscapes to their essential shapes and colors. He worked in
oil and acrylic on wood and also created sculptural wood reliefs which
sharpened contours and colors while adding a third dimension. He made
thumbnail sketches on site on a pad small enough to prohibit detail.

“I see simply. That’s what separates art from pretty pictures,”
Phil said.

He has painted his impressions of other landscapes, from the American
Southwest to Spain and north to Greenland. Maine, however, remains
his passion and focus – its mountains and lakes, harbors, rivers, woods,
blueberry barrens, and fishing boats, – capturing its colors and light as they
change with the seasons, especially in fall and winter. His work continues
to evolve, becoming ever bolder, brighter, and more abstract.

Phil’s paintings now hang in museums and fetch big money in the best
galleries, but the artist and his wife Priscilla still warmly welcome visitors
“by appointment or chance.” Phil built this fanciful house himself, incor-
porating and re-purposing found objects, adding on “one year at a time” as
the family grew to include seven children. Furniture (he makes that too) is
brightly painted, floors are spotted with rugs that have been hooked or “Hancock Point” 36” x 36” acrylic on linen
braided by Priscilla (a professional artist too). Walls are hung with Phil’s
wood reliefs and most recent paintings.

At age 80, Phil will tell you that he likes being older, slowing down.

“I enjoy talking to people who enjoy my work,” he said, assuring us that no visitor should feel expected to buy anything. The gal-
lery does sell prints and postcards along with copies of “Philip Barter, Forever Maine,” a handsome coffee table book by Carl Little,
published in 2017.
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A view of the gallery

“Ice on the Androscoggin” 36” x 48”
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