See ‘Curtis Barnes, Sr., Dayton Icon’ in Dayton

A T-shirt is an unlikely catalyst for an art exhibition, but a new show at the Dayton Art Institute was conceived after curator Jerry N. Smith’s serendipitous encounter with a woman wearing a shirt adorned with a Curtis Barnes painting. 

The woman was Barnes’ daughter, Diana Barnes Cary, and their following conversation quickly turned to exhibit planning. The resulting show, “Curtis Barnes, Sr., Dayton Icon,” runs July 12 through Sept. 14 and features 105 paintings by the late artist, all on loan from the Barnes family and the artist’s friends. The works show Barnes’ vibrant mix of naturalism and abstraction and his penchant for portraits. One example is the 36-painting series titled “Westwood Community Portraits,” which depicts members of his local community center. 

“They range from these kind of abstractions to some a little more detailed — all very colorful images — and they’re just wonderful,” Smith says. “He really does blend abstraction with naturalism in his work.”

Other works depict still-life subjects, jazz musicians, biblical references and African masks. Barnes was born in 1935 in North Carolina and grew up during the Jim Crow era, which shaped his work.

“He’s exploring his African American heritage while at the same time exploring the way Black culture at times has had to mask themselves to fit into the dominant white society,” Smith says. “The masks are about hiding but also celebrating Black culture.”

Barnes co-founded the African American Visual Artist Guild, helped start the Dayton African American Cultural Festival and was a founder of Genesis III, an African American art coalition from the ’70s. He believed in giving back to the community through education and was an art teacher at Dayton Public Schools and a professor at Sinclair Community College. 

“He was in our community, and that kind of thing can be eye opening for people to have that sense of, ‘I could maybe do this.’” Smith says. “It really is an exciting opportunity to share an artist from this community with this community.” 

456 Belmonte Park N., Dayton 45405, 937/223-4278, daytonartinstitute.org

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