Jo Barrett studied Fine Art at Bath Spa University, graduating with a first class degree in 2000. Her work focuses on the use of light in still life paintings, often referencing the tradition of Dutch master paintings, but with a minimalist contemporary mood. Meticulously detailed flowers and vessels are illuminated, contrasting the clean flat surfaces of the background with subtle shifts in light. Light and scale are important features in Jo’s work, striking in their size with subtle inflections of shadow and shifting tone. ‘Jo Barrett’s paintings focus on still life, capturing the form, light and atmosphere by carefully selected objects and the space they inhabit. Her work has a contemporary, formal approach to the subject while evoking the palette and atmosphere of the Dutch master still life tradition. She has distilled this influence into minimal and structured arrangements, where folds in the tablecloth and diffused forms in the background play an essential role in the final works. This balance of traditional and the now, combined with her meticulous observation of detail, enable her work to stand out from the photorealist genre.’ Jonathan Cooper, 2023
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