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"The
Vanishing Fleet" typical
of Barber's skipjack paintings.
Click on any artwork image for enlargement
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Nationally acclaimed American artist John M. Barber has
painted the Chesapeake Bay and the eastern seaboard for
more than two decades. Although he has also become known
also for his cityscapes and architectural art, Barber is
particularly fond of his maritime subjects, primarily the
Chesapeake and its vanishing way of life. We often find
in his work the Bay's few remaining oyster dredging skipjacks
and other traditional vessels, lighthouses and harbors.
Calling Barber the "premier
chronicler of Chesapeake Bay life," J. Russell
Jinishian, the nation's leading authority on contemporary
marine art, praised the artist's technical skill and painstaking
attention to detail. "Many artists paint skipjacks,"
he explained, "but John's emotive depth puts him on
another level entirely. Should the skipjacks disappear,
Barber's paintings will provide a valuable historical record
of the waterman's era for generations to come." The
artist's career has been amply marked with accolades and
accomplishments, a few of which follow.
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John
Barber painting in Old Antibes, France 2005
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"Tribute to a Generation" is the official painting
of the World War II Memorial.
2007 - Elected to Fellow of the American Society of Marine Artists.
2004
- Selected by the American Battle Monuments Commission to create
the official painting of the WWII Memorial located on the National
Mall in Washington, D.C.
2003 - Honored by the Chesapeake Bay Maritime
Museum in St. Michaels, Maryland with a 25th Anniversary Retrospective.
The museum exhibited 27 original works of art spanning Barber's
career.
- Featured in the publication Bound for Blue Water,
the definitive collection of the best American marine art of the
20th and early 21st century, published by the Greenwich Workshop,
Seymour, Connecticut.
2001 - Sponsored by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation
to paint a five-foot, 40-pound sculpture of the James River rockfish
in Richmond, Virginia's public art project "Go Fish!"
Rockfish auctioned for $4,500.
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Barber
with former First Lady,
Hillary Rodham Clinton.
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"White
House Sunset," created for the bicentennial of
the White House. Copyright courtesy of The White House Historical
Association. |
2000 - Selected to represent Virginia during
the Clinton administration by creating a painting of the White
House in Washington, D.C., in commemoration of the bicentennial
of the President's home.
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John
and Captain Walter Cronkite aboard Cronkite's sailing yacht
Wyntje, 1999.
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"Wyntje
Returning Home" shows Cronkite's
yacht entering Edgartown Harbor, Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.
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1996 - John M. Barber's Chesapeake,
a retrospective fine art book and visual treasury of the artist's
career, published by the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.
1994 - Presented with the Medallion
of Honor by the Virginians of Maryland.
- Opened
The Barber Gallery in Richmond, Virginia.
1992 - Two Barber paintings included in the U.S. State
Department's "Art in Embassies" Program, which exhibits
American artists' work in U.S. embassies abroad.
1987 - Elected to the Board of Trustees of the Chesapeake
Bay Foundation.
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Bruce Hornsby and John Barber on May 6, 1995 at the Harrison
Opera House, for a Chesapeake Bay Foundation event in Norfolk,
VA.
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President
Ronald Reagan, Gilbert M. Grosvenor, President of the National
Geographic Society, John M. Barber and Dennis B. Kane, Vice-President
of television at the Society.
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1985
- Commissioned by the National Geographic Society to create an
original oil painting for President Ronald Reagan, which was presented
in a White House ceremony.
1984 - Presented with the Chesapeake Appreciation Days
Award in recognition of his efforts to preserve, through his art,
the last remaining Chesapeake Bay Skipjacks.
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Barber,
author James Michener, and Ray Culter of The Nature Conservancy
in St. Michaels, Maryland, 1979.
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The
Barbers began publishing and distributing limited edition
prints of John Barber's artwork in 1978. Since then they
have introduced more than 110 signed and numbered limited
edition prints and posters to the marketplace. Located in
the fashionable shopping district known as "The Avenues"
in Richmond, Virginia's West End, The Barber Gallery
was devoted exclusively to the marketing of the artist's
prints and original artwork.
The Barber Gallery
closed in 2004 to give Barber more time at the easel and
the flexibility to travel. While Barber remains the primary
source of original work, the entire inventory of his prints
is now available from John Barber Editions, located at The
Annapolis Marine Art Gallery in Annapolis, Maryland.
See the "Limited Edition Prints" section for more
details.
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John
M. Barber's Chesapeake, fine art book published
by the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, 1996.
John
M. Barber's Chesapeake is a major collection of paintings
by this nationally acclaimed American artist. The book
is narrated by John R. Valliant, Executive Director of
the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, St. Michaels, Maryland.
Many of Barber's limited edition print paintings are included,
as well as unpublished works created expressly for this
project. Accompanying the artwork are journals written
in Barber's own words, which detail his inspiration and
personal experiences relating to his art. The book is
hardbound, 96 pages, and includes 88 images: color plates,
sketches, maps and archival illustrations. The book was
published by the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in 1996
and retails for $59.95.
A portion of the proceeds
from each book benefits the Chesapeake Bay Foundation
and the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. This volume is
available from the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St.
Michaels, Maryland or John Barber Editions, located at
The Annapolis Marine Art Gallery in Annapolis, Maryland.
For more information on John Barber Editions, see the
"Limited Edition Prints" section.
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Bound
for Blue Water, published by The Greenwich Workshop,
2003.
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Barber's
art was recently highlighted in Bound for Blue Water,
a modern treatise on contemporary American Marine Art
written by the nation's leading authority on the subject,
J. Russell Jinishian, and published by The Greenwich Workshop
in 2003. The book retails for $85.00 and is described
as the definitive collection of the best American marine
art of the 20th and early 21st century.
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Barber's
love for the Chesapeake Bay is reflected not only in his
art but also in his environmental and philanthropic endeavors.
Through donations of his art and copyrights, nearly half
a million dollars has been raised to further the efforts
of nonprofit conservation groups which protect and preserve
the heritage of this great natural resource.
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