Artist Biography
Scottish artist, Anne Marie Barnett was born in Ayrshire in 1964 and has been based in Perth since 2000. In 2023 she graduated with a BA Hons (First Class) in Art and Contemporary Practices at UHI, Perth. Anne Marie works primarily with paint, sculpture, mixed media and installation art with vibrant colour at the heart of her practice. As a lover of the outdoors work is generally informed by her surroundings and occupies indoor and outdoor spaces. Experimentation leads to abstract, often playful results which aim to evoke positive emotional responses.
With a successful career in the creative industry, Anne Marie has worked as a paste-up artist, technical illustrator, 3D modeller, graphic designer and is a qualified CIM Marketer. Key achievements through study include sculpture work displayed in Perth Art Gallery, placement work within care homes as an Arts Facilitator and a short video with an accompanying soundtrack created in collaboration with a BA music student.
Anne Marie won the 128 Telephone Box Gallery Annual Contemporary Art Graduate Award at her 2023 Degree Show and had her installation work on display in the gallery in Kirriemuir, Angus Feb/ Mar 2024.
She was also awarded Outstanding Art and Contemporary Practices Graduate at the UHI Perth award ceremony, 2023.
Artist Statement
Colour forms the foundation of my practice. It lifts my spirits, recharges and nourishes my senses and combined with my love of the outdoors, both enrich and fuel my life with positivity. Inspiration is plentiful and comes from many sources such as the natural environment, significant life transitions, cultural experiences through travelling and an enduring interest in people - particularly the elderly due to their wealth of knowledge, conversation and life stories. The preciousness of time and how we use it is an additional driver of inspiration which prompts notions of work that focus on reflection and contemplation.
My work is primarily sculptural and gravitates towards Installation due to the sensory, interactive and immersive qualities that can be experienced through this media. Everything begins with looking and thinking and a high degree of experimentation involves the exploration of colour and its relationship with space, materials, and light. Results involving these elements often determine whether the work will occupy indoor or outdoor spaces. Digital mock ups or maquettes are created to envisage work in a space to determine how the viewer may navigate the work and how additional elements relate to each other.
Colour can have the ability to act as a positive distraction and may counterbalance negativity in our lives. The key aim of my work is to create aesthetically uplifting work that stimulates positive emotional responses and brings joy without the need to over analyse.
