Louise Barnwell

Although she was born in 1983 in Calais, France, Louise spent her childhood and adolescence at her family's home in a small village not far from there. From an early age she began to draw and paint and very quickly developed a love for all things art. She was influenced from an early age by the work in color painted by her great-grandmother and also her grandfather, the latter being very gifted for artistic and industrial design. The first real work of art she made was inspired by Vincent Van Gogh's painting "The Starry Night" which she reproduced on a much larger scale on her bedroom wall.

In high school, her drawings were noticed by her art teacher and classmates. Her parents encouraged her to embrace the field of art because of her gift and this is how she began to express herself through her drawings and paintings.

Unfortunately, at the age of 14, she fell into depression. Her art was influenced by this and also helped her to slowly overcome this disease. Looking through his work at the time where two periods can be discerned: a dark period which testifies to his inner turmoil and a lighter period where his work became progressively more colorful and brighter reflecting his progressive success in fighting and overcoming his anxieties.

In 2008, she learned computer graphics in France. In 2009-2010, she was introduced to sculpture and modeling by working with a group of artists. From 2012, she continues to perfect herself at the

watercolor technique. From 2015 to 2017 she took plastic arts classes in Hauts de France.

From 2018, she follows similar courses for two years at Morley College in London.

Louise is mostly self-taught and also experiments with various techniques in other artistic fields.

Part West Indian by her father, Louise particularly favors the bright colors and hues she saw in Trinidad and Tobago. She likes to travel a lot in Europe and beyond foreign countries. She was inspired by her various travels and the places she visited. She also likes to escape on the magic flying carpet of her dreams and her imagination.

His art is not limited to any particular style. Depending on his mood, his work can be abstract, figurative, realistic or surreal. She draws her inspiration from her favorite artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Jackson Pollack. She uses brush, knife, paintbrush and her fingers to create a variety of different effects and reliefs on her canvases and employs acrylic, oil, pastels, charcoal and occasionally watercolors.

She is perfectly content to stay in her studio for hours and focus on her daily art.

In 2014, thanks to a competition, one of his collages: "Untitled Collage" was selected for an exhibition at the Tate Britain in London as part of the Tate Collective - BP Spotlight - Source:

Textures and collages.

In 2019, another of his works "Tourmente" was selected to be exhibited on screen alongside other artists' works at the Saatchi Gallery in London.

Louise has also exhibited her work locally in the North of France and now wishes to make herself known and recognized internationally. She has already sold some of her work in France and Europe including "Near the River" 100cms x 100cms, acrylic on canvas; "Reunion" 100cms x 100cms acrylic and pastel on canvas; "London" 70cms x 50cms, acrylic on canvas and his first self-portrait:

"Self Portrait" 40cms x 50cms acrylic on canvas with many others.

For her, painting is not only a great love but also a way to share her ideals, her conception of the world and a way to express her emotions and feelings through colors and shapes.