Barbara Rossi (artist) facts for kids

Barbara Rossi (born September 20, 1940 – died August 24, 2023) was an American artist. She was one of the original Chicago Imagists. This was a group of artists in the 1960s and 1970s who focused on making art that showed real objects and people. She first showed her art with them in 1969. Rossi was famous for her very detailed drawings and cartoon-like paintings. She often used a special style of painting called reverse painting on plexiglass. Her art sometimes looked like lowbrow or outsider art.

Rossi also taught art at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her artworks are kept in many art museums around the world.

Life and Art Journey

Barbara Rossi was born in Chicago, Illinois, on September 20, 1940. She grew up in Berwyn, Illinois. She earned her first college degree from St. Xavier College in 1964. Before becoming a full-time artist, she spent several years as a Catholic nun.

Rossi's special drawing style started to develop in 1967. This was while she was taking a class at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. In 1968, she showed a drawing at an art exhibition in Chicago. Later that year, she joined the Master of Fine Arts program at the same school. She finished her studies in 1970. While there, she met other artists who were part of the Imagist group. Soon, she was showing her art alongside theirs. In 1972, Rossi received a special award for artists.

From the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s, Rossi's art explored themes of the human body from the inside. She used different materials like paint on plexiglass and small drawings. She also made quilts and pictures that looked like quilts. Later in the 1970s, her art started to show more outside views. She began painting whole figures and different situations. She also started using masonite and canvas for her paintings.

In 1983, Rossi began traveling to India. There, she created detailed colored pencil drawings. These drawings often had themes from Persian and Indian art. Rossi even helped create a traveling art show about Indian art. She also wrote a book for the show.

Rossi described her art method as "drawing without a set plan." This meant her drawings would grow and change as she worked on them. Some people thought Rossi's art looked strange or unusual. Many of her paintings looked like parts of the body seen from the inside. They often looked like folds of skin. One art critic said her paintings were like "X-rays" that showed "churning inner souls."

Barbara Rossi passed away on August 24, 2023. She was 82 years old.

Major Art Shows

Barbara Rossi's art was shown in many important exhibitions. Here are some of them:

• Barbara Rossi: Poor Traits. New Museum, New York (2015-2016)
• Meanwhile, in Lonesome Valley. Loudhailer Gallery, Los Angeles (2015). This was a group show with other artists.
• Barbara Rossi. Tarble Arts Center, Eastern Illinois University (1995)
• Barbara Rossi: Selected Works, 1967-1990. Renaissance Society, University of Chicago (1991)
• Who Chicago? an exhibition of contemporary imagists. London (1980-1981). This was a group show.
• Made In Chicago. Museu de Arte, São Paulo, Brazil (1973–74)
• Seventy-First Annual Exhibition by Artists of Chicago and Vicinity. Art Institute of Chicago (1968)

Art in Museums

Barbara Rossi's artworks are part of the permanent collections in several famous museums. This means her art is kept there forever for people to see.

• Art Institute of Chicago
• Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, Wisconsin
• Milwaukee Art Museum, Wisconsin
• Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago
• Museum of Modern Art, Vienna
• David and Alfred Smart Museum, the University of Chicago
• Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C.