Generations of Athenians may recognize the name Coleman Barks for his illustrious career in the literary arts. An internationally renowned translator of 13th century Sufi mystic poet Jalal al-Din Rumi, Barks has translated over a dozen volumes of Rumi’s poetry, including The Essential Rumi, The Illuminated Rumi, Rumi: The Book of Love and A Year with Rumi.
The accessibility and lyricism of his translations, which have resonated with an ever-growing audience since the late 1970s, is of course rooted in his own poetic talent. His open-hearted poems traverse the ups and downs of life with an enduring sense of joy and wonder, and he has published numerous poetry collections including The Juice, Gourd Seed, Winter Sky: New and Selected Poems and Hummingbird Sleep.
In addition to being a professor emeritus of English at the University of Georgia, where he taught poetry and creative writing for three decades, he was also inducted into the Georgia Writers’ Hall of Fame in 2009.
Now, at the age of 87, the poet, translator and educator is venturing into new creative territory with his first exhibition of paintings rendered in bold ink brushwork on paper. Currently on view at Tiger’s Eye Gallery, the exhibition was culled down from a collection of well over 1,000 works created within the past year.
Expressive and gestural in nature, Barks’ paintings consist of swirling brushstrokes that remain unburdened by the pressures of intention or meaning. These “noodlings,” as he calls them, flow from an inner quietness where playfulness and happiness manifest as decisive, energetic movements.
“It’s all spontaneous,” says Barks. “There’s nothing thought out about this process.”
Barks’ earliest paintings, made roughly a decade ago, were influenced by the Zen Buddhist artistic practice of the ensō, or a circle hand-drawn in one fluid, uninhibited brushstroke to symbolize enlightenment, the universe or emptiness. It wasn’t until recently, however, after his assistant Benjamin Rouse surprised him with a special paintbrush as a souvenir from his trip to Japan, that Barks began creating paintings on a consistent basis.
Since then, Rouse has hand-crafted a variety of brushes for Barks to experiment with, resulting in all sorts of unpredictable mark-making. Most notably, he made a brush nicknamed “Mopsy” that was built with a bamboo handle and rope snipped from a mop at the Manhattan Cafe, Barks’ favorite downtown bar to frequent in the evenings.
“Whenever I look at his art, it actually strikes me as the work that someone does later in life when they are just totally free,” says Rouse. “I don’t know if a young person can paint like that. Either a baby or an older person can paint them, but I don’t know of anyone in the middle.”
“I think that’s true,” agrees Barks.
Not unlike a Rorschach test, the longer you gaze into one of his paintings, the more likely you are to see abstracted shapes or negative spaces pop into focus with projected meaning. Rouse likens this to pareidolia, or the human tendency to perceive patterns or faces in otherwise inanimate objects or ambiguous images.
“I don’t go back and ever make revisions,” says Barks. “I don’t ever touch it up and see if I can make it look more like something—more like a face, more like a dancer. I just don’t do that. I leave it however it came after the first gesture. It’s more the gesture than anything else, moving a brush around an empty space.”
A commitment to playfulness is integral to Barks’ creative process. Applying techniques adopted from sumi-e (ink wash painting), both stylistically and philosophically, Barks’ images feel more concerned with channeling the spirit or essence of something in its raw form. Each swirling, twisting, splattered scene simply exists as reflection of the artist’s state of mind in the brief moment it was created.
“I hope people feel the same freedom of expression that I felt as I did them,” says Barks. “I just want to give that away, whatever it is. The paintings seem to work pretty well that way. My granddaughter says, ‘I would know it was you by your sense of playfulness.’”
Barks’ advice to anyone apprehensive of learning something new, especially later in life, is to embrace the growth and allow room for error and experimentation.
“Be generous with your time and your love for being alive,” says Barks. “There’s a kind of grace that happens with that I think. It’s always good to play within that.”
Nestled in between OX Fine Art and ACE/FRANCISCO Gallery in the historic Leathers Building on Pulaski Street, Tiger’s Eye Gallery is a newly established arts space owned by Jessica and Mark Magnarella. The Magnarellas, who met over 30 years ago through an art class in college, are both independent business owners. Jessica owns graphic design firm mPrint Design Studio, while Mark owns vintage cine-lens shop Optical Brilliance and co-owns custom website design firm Eo Studios.
Tiger’s Eye Gallery debuted last November with “light + pressure,” an exhibition that paired long exposure photographs of synchronous fireflies on metal by Mark with embossed abstractions on handmade paper by Rouse. While looking for a gallery to present their work together, the two were quick to find that most galleries had already been booked out years in advance. The Magnarellas then saw an opportunity to transform the lower level of their suite—which also houses their various businesses—into an art gallery.
Eschewing the stark aesthetic of white cube galleries, Tiger’s Eye feels cozy and personalized with its warm wooden floors, gray walls and exposed brick—a perfect palette of earthy tones to complement Barks’ monochromatic works. Barks’ paintings are presented alongside works by Jessica, Mark and Rouse—who co-curated the exhibition together—as well as Noah Leaf Mendelson, Jamie DeRevere and Marla Star.
Barks will offer a poetry reading accompanied by live music during a closing reception at Tiger’s Eye on Oct. 27 at 4 p.m. Additionally, he will give a reading of his work as part of UGA’s 2024 Spotlight on the Arts festival at the UGA Chapel on Nov. 12 at 6 p.m.
Tiger’s Eye Gallery plans to be open during receptions, workshops and other special events, as well as by appointment and on the third Thursday of the month from 6–9 p.m. Visit tigerseyegallery.com for hours and event details.
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