Andrew Barker - Ink & Watercolor

Colorado Artist

Andrew Barker is a Colorado artist who creates intricate, mixed-media, paintings and drawings on wood and paper. His primary medium is watercolor, and frequently incorporates ink, ballpoint, and colored pencil. He’s drawn to the “honest” aspect of watercolor – the artist must work with the natural tendencies of water, incorporating substrate textures, mistakes, bleeding, and other unexpected effects that add to the character of a painting. Andrew's subject matter is heavily driven by our current era of climate change, population growth and mass extinction. In effect, he wants to celebrate a natural world that is on the precipice of destruction. Stylistically, Andrew is influenced by mid-century commercial illustration, tattoo design, and the golden age of naturalist illustration. He studied at Oregon State University, receiving a BFA in Applied Visual Arts in 1999, and has been a practicing artist and design since. Although born in Utah, Andrew spent his formative years in East Africa and the Pacific Northwest. He has called Boulder, Colorado his home since 2013.