New London Day
By Kristina Dorsey
Barkley L. Hendricks: Piles of Inspiration Everywhere
A new book explores where the artist Barkley L. Hendricks worked and lived.
Although people knew him and his work, they didn't know the studio where he created his paintings. The space on the second floor of his house in New London wasn't open to visitors.
A new book provides a peek into his home - which in turn provides a fascinating glimpse into Barkley's
Over the course of his life, Barkley L. Hendricks grew to be a widely acclaimed artist.
Connecticut College
Piles of Inspiration: New book invites readers into the home and mind of artist Barkley L. Hendricks.
At first glance, the images in the blue-velvet hardcover book appear to show the home of an eccentric hoarder. Nearly every surface is covered in seemingly random objects and paraphernalia: There are piles of women’s shoes. Wigs, magnets, pins, paintings. Drums, a bass clarinet, a tambourine. Paint cans, used paintbrushes, cameras. Life-sized cutouts of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. Pages ripped out of magazines adorn the walls, along with ads featuring Vanessa Williams and artistic prints of Marilyn Monroe.
Keep looking, though, and you’ll also see photos of one man in various life stages. In one image, his salt-and-pepper beard and moustache frame his smile while a black bucket hat and sunglasses adorn his head. In another photo, he is younger; his beard and moustache are still dark brown. He dons a tuxedo and a red bow tie and holds a drink as a woman stands next to him.
New York Amsterdam News
By Karen Juanita Carrillo
The new book “Barkley L. Hendricks: Piles of Inspiration Everywhere,” a collaboration between fine arts photographer David Katzenstein and the artist’s wife, Susan Hendricks, offers readers a detailed look inside the home that inspired the artist’s naturalistic paintings.
The book features large, double-page photos of the rooms in the New London, Connecticut, home where Barkley both had his studio and lived for decades with his wife.
Two weeks after Barkley’s death on April 18, 2017, Susan allowed Katzenstein to begin photographing the house. The two say they didn’t want to begin packing up or making changes that would in any way alter what it was like for Barkley when he lived there.
Katzenstein’s photographs are visually stunning: as you turn the pages, several of Hendricks’s rooms are laid out before you. They are filled with bold and diverse colors: posters, books, musical instruments, paintbrushes, notebooks, vinyl records, clothes, and various other objects are in areas that clearly fit within the artist’s mental filing system.
The book includes quotes from what Barkley used to say, are meant to show his perspective and understanding of the rooms the book displays:
“I am part of a very fascinating drama which I record in the mediums of my desire.” “There is an inner vision.”