Picture perfect

Sarasota artist Nancy Barrie lets her art do most of the talking. Each image she creates reflects her mood. 

As she greeted guests at the debut of her solo exhibit, "Vivid Outlook" March 15 at the Polo Grill and Bar, her piece, “Resuming the Journey,” stood in stark contrast to the painting next to it. The light colors of "Resuming the Journey," with a light blue background and the painting next to the darker, forest collage scene, represent her lack of commitment to just one style.  

“It’s a gathering of many moods and who I am in the moment,” Barrie said of "Resuming the Journey." “It’s a collage. The word cut out there is from a telegram my parents had from when I was born. I put the gold dots to lighten it up a little. It tells a story that only makes sense to me.”

Barrie said that while many of her works are collages and mixed mediums, she doesn’t have just one style.

Jaymie Klauber, the owner of the Polo Grill, is Barrie's daughter and says her mother has always been artistic.

"I was absolutely beaming with pride," Klauber said of the one-day show. "It was so well done and professional, and she sold over 20 pieces, so that really validated her talent and hard work."

Many of Barrie's friends came out to support her, both locally and from far away, including Phil Malter from Baltimore and Susan Epstein from Miami. They both grew up with Barrie in Miami.

Malter said that Barrie has always been creative.

“She’s always been the most creative person of all of us,” Malter said. “I’m wiped out, creatively, at my age. She’s just hitting her stride."