Barbara Gothard, a contemporary African American visual artist, embarks on an Art + Humanities project. Her current series, Contradictions – Bringing the Past Forward©, explores the plight of early 20th century African American homesteaders in the Mojave Desert. The series focuses the Homesteaders’ stories and the contradictions of her own desert lived experience. BoxoPROJECTS awarded Gothard an Artist Residency for October 2021 in Joshua Tree, CA. During this residency she will continue to develop the artworks for Contradictions – Bringing the Past Forward©, an Art + Humanities project. In conjunction with BoxoPROJECTS, a sponsored project of Fulcrum Arts, a non-profit arts service organization, Gothard received a California Arts Council Impact Project Grant and a California Humanities Quick Grant.
From modest Illinois roots, Gothard aspires to tap into her creative potential with a contemporary art form known for exploring the subconscious mind. She lives, works and is influenced by the ever-changing colors and majesty of the desert in the Palm Springs/Mojave Desert area. The desert is a soft malleable and metamorphic environment surrounded by majestic mountains awash in brilliant colors. Gothard’s artworks are symbolically autobiographical and are exhibited locally, nationally and internationally. Gothard’s non-traditional career path zigzagged from education to global corporate leader to her art. Her artwork continuum evolves from traditional art education, Bachelor’s Mount Mary University, Master’s Long Island University, Ph.D. Michigan State University, and her historical influencers: Hieronymus Bosch, Georgia O’Keefe, Gustav Klimt and Rene Magritte.
Community service is an integral part of her life. She is currently an Emeritus Member of the Artists Council, having previously served as President. Gothard is an art magazine Writer/Contributor.