Skip to main content

Katherine Barieau Art

American, 1917-2011

Katherine Barieau was among the artists associated with the University of California at Berkeley in the 1950s. She remained active in the regional art scene throughout the following decades, producing abstract and figurative work in oil, acrylic, watercolor, mixed media and collage. The daughter of Scottish immigrants, Barieau was raised in Cambridge, MA. She graduated from Wellesley College (BA, 1938) and later settled in California. Her art studies culminated with her enrollment in the art department at the University California, Berkeley (MFA, 1953). A quote from a 1992 artist statement reads, "I was caught up in the wave of Abstract Expressionism and influenced by the riches in the Unconscious (I had a Jungian therapist). I have never ceased to experiment with media and searching to find how best to express inner ideas. It was wonderful to be exposed to established and active painters, to have a chance to study with experienced painters, to have friends who were also exploring and involved."

Barieau’s teachers included John Haley, James McCray, Glenn Wessels and Felix Ruvolo. Her friends included fellow UC students Paul Wonner, Theophilus Brown, Jerrold Davis as well as Richard Diebenkorn after his return to Berkeley in 1953. Barieau also studied with the California watercolorist Alexander Nepote and with the New York School Abstract Expressionists Esteban Vicente and Kyle Morris. Like many others of her generation in the Bay Area, the artist also worked in a figurative style in the 1950s and later. Over the years, she took interest in a variety of subjects. Her travels in California, Britain, Egypt and elsewhere also influenced her art. The artist exhibited in New York at the Van Diemen-Lilienfeld Galleries (1958 solo show and group shows) and at many venues in the San Francisco region, including the Lucien Labaudt Gallery. Her last gallery show (a retrospective) was held in San Francisco in 2009.

Barieau also taught, most notably, as instructor of painting and later assistant professor at the California College of Art. A set of course materials she prepared in 1961 included a statement of advice that captured her own philosophy as an artist: "Do not accept an academic reproduction of the figure on your canvas. Look until you can feel an individual reaction to the relationships of the space. Your expressions of your reaction are related to your sense of personal freedom. Aim for freedom."

to
1
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
8,232
2,807
1,650
1,318
1
1
Artist: Katherine Barieau
Vintage Bay Area Figurative Movement -- "Napoleon's Ambition"
By Katherine Barieau
Located in Soquel, CA
Stunning abstract Bay Area Figurative Movement piece titled "Napoleon's Ambition" by Katherine Barieu (American, 1917-2010), 1982. Signed and dated lower right corner. Presented in grey painted slat shadow box frame. Image size: 16"H x 16"W. Framed size is 17"H x 17"W x 1.50"D. Born in 1917, Katherine Barieau was among the artists associated with the University of California at Berkeley in the 1950s. She remained active in the regional art scene throughout the following decades, producing abstract and figurative work in oil, acrylic, watercolor, mixed media and collage. The daughter of Scottish immigrants, Barieau was raised in Cambridge, MA. She graduated from Wellesley College (BA 1938) and later settled in California. Her art studies culminated with her enrollment in the art department at the University California, Berkeley (MFA 1953). A quote from a 1992 artist statement reads, "I was caught up in the wave of Abstract Expressionism and influenced by the riches in the Unconscious (I had a Jungian therapist). I have never ceased to experiment with media and searching to find how best to express inner ideas. It was wonderful to be exposed to established and active painters, to have a chance to study with experienced painters, to have friends who were also exploring and involved." Her teachers included John Haley, James McCray, Glenn Wessels and Felix Ruvolo. Her friends included fellow UC students Paul Wonner, Theophilus Brown and Jerrold Davis - as well as Richard Diebenkorn after this return to Berkeley in 1953. Barieau also studied with the California watercolorist Alexander Nepote, and with the New York School Abstract Expressionists Esteban Vicente and Kyle Morris...
Category

1980s Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Related Items
French 20th Century Abstract Head Portrait of Figure Large Oil Painting Canvas
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Abstract Expressionist Composition by Gilbert Pelissier (French born 1924) signed, titled verso oil painting on canvas, unframed canvas size: 24 x 20 inches condition: overall very g...
Category

Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Manhattan Night Life"
By Vaclav Vytlacil
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Vaclav Vytlacil (1892-1984) He was born to Czechoslovakian parents in 1892 in New York City. Living in Chicago as a youth, he took classes at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, returning to New York when he was 20. From 1913 to 1916, he enjoyed a scholarship from the Art Students League, and worked with John C. Johansen (a portraitist whose expressive style resembled that of John Singer Sargent), and Anders Zorn. He accepted a teaching position at the Minneapolis School of Art in 1916, remaining there until 1921. This enabled him to travel to Europe to study Cézanne’s paintings and works of the Old Masters. He traveled to Paris, Prague, Dresden, Berlin, and Munich seeking the works of Titian, Cranach, Rembrandt, Veronese, and Holbein, which gave him new perspective. Vytlacil studied at the Royal Academy of Art in Munich, settling there in 1921. Fellow students were Ernest Thurn and Worth Ryder, who introduced him to famous abstractionist Hans Hofmann. He worked with Hofmann from about 1922 to 1926, as a student and teaching assistant. During the summer of 1928, after returning to the United States, Vytlacil gave lectures at the University of California, Berkeley, on modern European art. Soon thereafter, he became a member of the Art Students League faculty. After one year, he returned to Europe and successfully persuaded Hofmann to teach at the League as well. He spent about six years in Europe, studying the works of Matisse, Picasso, and Dufy. In 1935, he returned to New York and became a co-founder of the American Abstract Artists group in 1936. He later had teaching posts at Queens College in New York; the College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, California; Black Mountain College in North Carolina; and the Art Students League. His paintings exhibit a clear inclination toward modernism. His still lives and interiors from the 1920s indicate an understanding of the art of Cézanne. In the 1930s, his works displayed two very different kinds of art at the same time. His cityscapes and landscapes combine Cubist-inspired spatial concerns with an expressionistic approach to line and color. Vytlacil also used old wood, metal, cork, and string in constructions, influenced by his friend and former student, Rupert Turnbull. He eventually ceased creating constructions as he considered them too limiting. The spatial challenges of painting were still his preference. During the 1940s and 1950s, his works indicated a sense of spontaneity not felt in his earlier work. He married Elizabeth Foster in Florence, Italy, in 1927 and they lived and worked in Positano, Italy for extended periods of time. Later on, they divided their time between homes in Sparkill, New York and Chilmark, Massachusetts, where Vyt, as he was affectionately called, taught at the Martha's Vineyard Art...
Category

1930s Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Human Silhouettes" Abstract Figures Mid-Century American Oil Painting on Canvas
By Robert Freiman
Located in New York, NY
An abstract Mid-Century piece with dark color tones accentuated with the use of basic colors, blue, red and yellow. In this abstract composition we can see outlined 4 figures, to the...
Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Good Company - Amicus Colorful Authentic Original Contemporary Intense Striking
By Karnish Art
Located in Cullinan, ZA
Title: Good Company - Amicus Colorful Authentic Original Contemporary Intense Striking Love Friendship One-of-a-kind Amīcus - The Latin word meaning to befriend. To be in good com...
Category

2010s Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Canvas, Charcoal, Oil, Acrylic

French Contemporary Abstract Painting Gold Highlights Expressionist Composition
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Artist/ School: French expressionist/ abstract contemporary artist, 21st century Title: Abstract composition Medium: oil/mixed media painting on canvas, unframed. canvas: 25.75...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Oil, Canvas, Mixed Media

The Red Dress 5 - Framed Dynamic Original Red Figurative Abstract Oil Painting
By Bettina Mauel
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Bettina Mauel, an internationally collected artist, effortlessly channels vitality and sensuality through her awe-inspiring collection of abstract and figurative paintings. With an u...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Canvas, Graphite, Mixed Media, Oil

The Oracle X
By Yari Ostovany
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Yari Ostovany is an American abstract artist of Iranian origins. He has lived in Tehran, Cologne, Los Angeles, San Francisco and in Reno. He is currently based in New York City. His ...
Category

2010s Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

The Oracle X
The Oracle X
$15,600 Sale Price
44% Off
H 82 in W 62 in D 3 in
French 20th Century Vibrant Geometric Pink and Purple Quirky Abstract Figure
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Abstract Expressionist Composition signed by Gilbert Pelissier (French born 1924) oil painting on canvas, unframed canvas size: 24 x 20 inches condition: overall very good, a few min...
Category

Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Simorgh Descending VI,
By Yari Ostovany
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Yari Ostovany is an American abstract artist of Iranian origins. He has lived in Tehran, Cologne, Los Angeles, San Francisco and in Reno. He is currently based in New York City. His ...
Category

2010s Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

Simorgh Descending VI,
$15,000 Sale Price
40% Off
H 90 in W 60 in D 3 in
The Oracle VI
By Yari Ostovany
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Yari Ostovany is an American abstract artist of Iranian origins. He has lived in Tehran, Cologne, Los Angeles, San Francisco and in Reno. He is currently based in New York City. His ...
Category

2010s Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

The Oracle VI
The Oracle VI
$21,000
H 55 in W 75 in D 3 in
Chelleneshin XXVII (Triptych)
By Yari Ostovany
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Yari Ostovany is an American abstract artist of Iranian origins. He has lived in Tehran, Cologne, Los Angeles, San Francisco and in Reno. He is currently based in New York City. His ...
Category

2010s Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

Chelleneshin XXVII  (Triptych)
Chelleneshin XXVII  (Triptych)
$15,000 Sale Price
37% Off
H 40 in W 90 in D 3 in
"Absorption" Oil Painting 31.5" x 39" inch by Anastasiia Danilenko
By Anastasiia Danilenko
Located in Culver City, CA
"Absorption" Oil Painting 31.5" x 39" inch by Anastasiia Danilenko Ships rolled in a tube. Anastasiia Danilenko is an artist and graphic designer. But the area of her occupation ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Previously Available Items
Live Movement Abstract Expressionist San Francisco School
By Katherine Barieau
Located in Soquel, CA
Stunning San Francisco Abstract Expressionist Movement painting titled "Live Movement" dated 1954 by Katherine Barieu (American, 1917-2010). Signed lower right corner "Barieau '54). Presented in a giltwood with black painted slat shadow box frame. Titled "Live Movement" and Signed "Barieau" with a San Francisco Museum of Art Exhibition Labels on verso. Condition: Excellent. Image size: 36"H x 61"W. Framed size is 37"H x 62"W x 1.5"D. Born in 1917, Katherine Barieau was among the artists associated with the University of California at Berkeley in the 1950s. She remained active in the regional art scene throughout the following decades, producing abstract and figurative work in oil, acrylic, watercolor, mixed media and collage. The daughter of Scottish immigrants, Barieau was raised in Cambridge, MA. She graduated from Wellesley College (BA 1938) and later settled in California. Her art studies culminated with her enrollment in the art department at the University California, Berkeley (MFA 1953). A quote from a 1992 artist statement reads, "I was caught up in the wave of Abstract Expressionism and influenced by the riches in the Unconscious (I had a Jungian therapist). I have never ceased to experiment with media and searching to find how best to express inner ideas. It was wonderful to be exposed to established and active painters, to have a chance to study with experienced painters, to have friends who were also exploring and involved." Her teachers included John Haley, James McCray, Glenn Wessels and Felix Ruvolo. Her friends included fellow UC students Paul Wonner, Theophilus Brown and Jerrold Davis - as well as Richard Diebenkorn after this return to Berkeley in 1953. Barieau also studied with the California watercolorist Alexander Nepote, and with the New York School Abstract Expressionists Esteban Vicente and Kyle...
Category

1950s Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Deep Down
By Katherine Barieau
Located in Soquel, CA
Watercolor, Gouache and Watercolor and Gouche on paper Collage layers, abstract expressionist painting by Katherine Barieau (American, 1917-2011). Image, 36"H x 28" W. Mat, 47.5"H x 39"W. Signed lower right "Barieau '67" and description tage on verso, with partial exhibition label. Katherine was born in Baltimore, MD, in 1917. She was raised in Cambridge, MA. She received her B.A. from Wellesley College in 1938 and her M.F.A. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1953. She shared a famous Shattuck Avenue studio with Richard Diebenkorn and Paul Wonner, and enjoyed early success showing her work in San Francisco and New York. Her first important show, “Paintings of Garden and Growth,” (the Adam and Eve paintings) was exhibited at Van-Diemen Lilienfeld Galleries in New York in 1958. She lived in El Cerrito, CA, and taught at many Bay Area schools. She died in 2011, leaving behind a lifetime of strikingly original paintings, and a legacy that a commitment to an art form can provide for a rewarding and well-lived life. Barieau’s work can be found in a handful of public and private collections, including the Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, CA. Katherine Barieau was among the artists associated with the University of California at Berkeley in the 1950s. She remained active in the regional art scene throughout the following decades, producing abstract and figurative work in oil, acrylic, watercolor, mixed media and collage. The daughter of Scottish immigrants, Barieau was raised in Cambridge, MA. She graduated from Wellesley College (BA 1938) and later settled in California. Her art studies culminated with her enrollment in the art department at the University California, Berkeley (MFA 1953). A quote from a 1992 artist statement reads, "I was caught up in the wave of Abstract Expressionism and influenced by the riches in the Unconscious (I had a Jungian therapist). I have never ceased to experiment with media and searching to find how best to express inner ideas. It was wonderful to be exposed to established and active painters, to have a chance to study with experienced painters, to have friends who were also exploring and involved." Her teachers included John Haley, James McCray, Glenn Wessels and Felix Ruvolo. Her friends included fellow UC students Paul Wonner, Theophilus Brown and Jerrold Davis - as well as Richard Diebenkorn after this return to Berkeley in 1953. Barieau also studied with the California watercolorist Alexander Nepote, and with the New York School Abstract Expressionists Esteban Vicente and Kyle Morris...
Category

1960s Abstract Expressionist Katherine Barieau Art

Materials

Paper, Watercolor, Gouache

Deep Down
Deep Down
H 47.5 in W 39 in D 2 in

Katherine Barieau art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Katherine Barieau art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Katherine Barieau in canvas, fabric, oil paint and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 1980s and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Katherine Barieau art, so small editions measuring 17 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Allie William Skelton, Tom Hamil, and Daniel David Fuentes. Katherine Barieau art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $1,516 and tops out at $1,516, while the average work can sell for $1,516.

Artists Similar to Katherine Barieau

Recently Viewed

View All