Featured Artwork: Barbara Tapp
"Tenacity, Oakland" (watercolor, 10 x 14 in.) by Barbara Tapp
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by Barbara Tapp

Drawing and illustration are a fundamental foundation of my watercolor paintings and I love the transparency of watercolor allowing the white of the paper to shine through. I grew up by a harbor, loving boats both in and out of the water. Searching for a scene to paint I often find a title first. For this, the word Tenacity rang true, seeing the fragile supports the hull was resting on. This could have been a metaphor at the time. Currently, I am painting a Victory Ship and have become comfortable painting dockside with my French Easel and gear.

Moving to San Francisco from Australia in 1980 after an 18-month art study trip across Europe and the USA, I freelanced drawing pen and ink hotels for Karen Brown’s Travel Guides while raising my 3 kids. For 35 years I have worked as an architectural renderer sketching and painting watercolors for the real estate industry. In 2011 I began painting imaginative colorful seascapes holding 2 exhibitions in Sydney, Australia. In 2013 I discovered plein air painting and in 2018, Holton Studio Gallery in Berkeley held my exhibition 31 Days in West Berkeley. I paint along the Californian Coastline as well as my local urban neighborhoods and participate in plein air events across the USA, sharing my painting process on Facebook and Instagram.

Please visit my website to see more works. To purchase, contact me at (510) 520-8383.

Representation
Holton Studio Framer and Gallery, Berkeley, CA (510) 450-0350