For more than half a century, Janice Barnes has been painting. Her work has been influenced by the places she has lived and traveled - the Middle East, New Zealand, Canada, Denmark, Romania, Greece, Spain, Ireland, South America, the South Seas and Italy.

From November 23 until December 14, a retrospective exhibition of Janice Barnes’ paintings will be shown at Muskoka Arts & Crafts’ Chapel Gallery.

Born in Long Beach, California, in 1930, Janice lived there until 1947 when she and her parents traveled to the Middle East. For two years, they moved about in Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Iraq but most of the time was spent in Basrah on the Persian Gulf where she met her husband-to-be, Edmond Boyd, an English doctor.

After Janice and Edmond married, the couple lived in London, England while Edmond was a hospital resident. Then, they moved to New Zealand where they lived in Whkatani, a remote town in the North Island and later in the capital of Wellington. New Zealand proved to be too quiet for their urban tastes, so the Boyds decided to move to Vancouver, British Columbia. By now, they had two of their four children and Janice began to paint.

Janice studied with two Belgian surrealist painters who trained her in basic oil techniques with much emphasis on drawing. Later, Janice took courses at the Vancouver Art Gallery. At home, hardly a day would pass without Janice painting in her studio. The neighbourhood was ripe with painters who offered encouragement. Her paintings were exhibited in shows and in a commercial gallery in Vancouver. At the time, Janice was using the name Boyd but a Joan Boyd was in the same gallery and to avoid confusion Janice started to sign her maiden name Barnes.

In the mid 1960s, the Boyd family spent a few months roaming Europe then settled in Toronto where Janice continued to show her work at a variety of galleries.

In 1978, Janice and Edmond moved to Muskoka, spending the winters in a small 14th century house on a narrow cobbled alley in the heart of Seville, Spain.

Avoiding shadows, en plein air effects and true perspective, Janice describes her work as a form of neo-primitive. She remarks: "A painter must never stand still. Even with a style like mine, one must always move forward. That's where the fun lies."

Janice’s show takes place November 23 - December 14, at the Chapel Gallery on 15 King Street in Bracebridge.

The Chapel Gallery is located in Bracebridge at 15 King Street. Gallery hours are Tuesday to Saturday, from 10am to 1pm and from 2pm until 5pm. For more information, please call Muskoka Arts & Crafts at 705-645-5501 or visit their web site at www.muskokaartsandcrafts.com