Barbara Busenbark could be charged with aiding and abetting the daydreamers among us. Her watercolor and oil paintings of rugged mountains invite viewers to think far more deeply about an adventurous hike than the daily “to-do” list, and that’s exactly what she hopes will happen.
“I like to create scenes so inviting that you feel like you could just step into the painting and wander around in there,” Busenbark said.
Her exhibit, called From the White Mountains and Beyond, is on display during the months of January and February at the Conservation Center, headquarters of the Society for the Protection of N.H. Forests, in Concord. In addition to paintings of mountain scenes, Busenbark has chosen a sampling of her still-life paintings to include in this exhibit, which focuses on appreciating the natural world. Her oil paintings are created almost exclusively with a palette knife, giving texture and vibrancy to the layers of color.
Busenbark started painting as a teenager with watercolor lessons and later moved into college courses and studied with several master painters as an adult. She has been painting full-time for more than a decade, showing her work at art shows throughout the summer months from Maine to Pennsylvania. Last year, she moved from Peterborough to Hampton Falls and opened her own gallery, Color Notes, in her home along Route 1. Increasingly, the ocean and harbor scenes of her new seacoast locale are finding their way into Busenbark’s body of work. You can see her studio and more of her work at www.ColorNotesArtGallery.com.
The exhibit will be open for viewing Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Conservation Center Conference Room, located at 54 Portsmouth St. in Concord. The Conference Room is used for meetings, so please call (603) 224-9945 before visiting.