Merete Barker (born 1944) is a Danish artist who uses sketches and photographs from her many travels as the basis for highly expressive paintings where it is often difficult to distinguish between nature and culture. She has received various honorary scholarships, as well as the Eckersberg Medal and the Danish Arts Foundation’s Lifelong Artist’s Grant.

Career

Educated at the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts () has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Danish Academy of Portraiture, Sculpture, and Architecture in Cope ...

(1966-1973), she became a member of the ''Ny Abstraktion'' group in 1977 and in 1989 of ''

Grønningen Grønningen is a Danish artists cooperative whose members arrange exhibitions and similar events. Founded in 1915, it is one of the oldest and most important groupings of its kind in Denmark and currently has 54 members. It is named after the str ...

''. Her abstract approach to recognizable subjects and themes combines the constructive with the expressive, often in minimalistic series of wood carvings and reliefs. From 1976, digital graphics became an important tool for Barker. At the end of the 1980s, nature's organic universe became an important concern. Journeys to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

and

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

have been the basis for her paintings which build on the shapes and colours of towns and landscapes."Merete Barker", ''Den store Danske''
Retrieved 4 March 2010. She has also produced a number of decorative works, for example for the ''Specialarbejderskole'' in

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...

(1985), which forms an integral part of the architecture. Her works are present in many Danish art museums. She was awarded the

Eckersberg Medal The Eckersberg Medal (originally the ''Akademiets Aarsmedaille'' or Annual Academy Medal) is an annual award of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. It is named after Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, known as the father of Danish painting. The ...

in 1995.

Bibliography

*"Min lange rejse. Merete Barker og maleriet", Ole Lindboe, Gads Forlag, 2004

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barker, Merete 1944 births Living people 20th-century Danish women painters 20th-century Danish painters 21st-century Danish painters 21st-century Danish women painters Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni Danish contemporary artists Recipients of the Eckersberg Medal