Lot 427: Large Walter Barker O/C Painting, Sky World, 1960

Walter William Barker, Jr., (North Carolina/Missouri/Germany, 1921-2004) oil on canvas abstract expressionist painting, “Sky World,” 1960.  A white form radiates from the upper-center of a yellow field framed in loose, white brushwork, with black oil stick linework and passages of impasto throughout. Signed and dated, lower right. Additionally signed, dated, and titled en verso. Housed in a modern giltwood frame. Canvas: 80 in H x 60 in W. Frame: 81 1/4 in H x 61 1/4 in W. Biographical Note: “…Walter Barker taught in the University of North Carolina Greensboro Department of Art from 1966 until his retirement in 1992. Barker also attended graduate studies at UNCG in the late 1940’s, during the time it was Woman’s College. He continued to teach as Professor Emeritus through 1999, giving talks devoted to his life and work, growth as an artist, and conducting graduate studio visits and critiques. Barker’s work spanned a long and distinguished career. His open-minded approach to art-making led him to assimilate a variety of styles, based on his mentor, Max Beckmann, Abstract Expressionism, and his own interest in history and literature…Barker’s work is represented in the collections of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, The Museum of Modern Art, Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, and the Weatherspoon Art Museum at UNCG.” (Source: Weaver Foundation, Greensboro, NC)

PROVENANCE: Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts Foundation.

CONDITION: Excellent condition. Frame with minor abrasions.