Bio
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| Self-Portrait 2009 |
Barbara Hall Blumer (pronounced Bloomer) (b. 1955) is an American artist, author, and community advocate based in Corning, New York, USA. She is known for her realistic oil paintings, fine art photography, and her 2023 book People Wall '76: The Mural in City Hall.
Career and Artistic Work
Barbara Hall Blumer holds an Art History degree from Brown University and had a successful business career before pursuing art full-time in the 1990s. She has maintained her own studio and online gallery, BHB Studio, since 2012.
Her artistic media and subjects have included:
- Realistic oil paintings that often incorporate imaginary elements.
- Fine art photography, primarily in black and white, with solo shows such as The Observer at the Arnot Art Museum in 2012.
- Photography books, including Artists in Their Studios (2009), which documented the workspaces of artists in the Southern Finger Lakes region.
- Other media, such as ink and chalk drawings, digital gesture drawings, and mixed media works.
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Community Involvement and Publications
Blumer is very involved in her local community in Corning, New York, USA.
Author: In November 2023, she published People Wall '76: The Mural in City Hall, a book that documents the history and the stories behind the 150 individuals featured in a 1976 mural at Corning City Hall. This project was the culmination of three years of community research and collaboration. The book's proceeds benefit the Corning-Painted Post Historical Society.
- Community Projects: As an extension of the book, she is involved in other projects, including the "Corning Duane Eddy Circle" to honor the musician's birthplace.
- Philanthropy: She and her husband, Tom Blumer, are active supporters and donors to local charities. Their primary areas of support are food insecurity, the arts, libraries and reading, preserving local history and education, like Corning Community College, where they have established several scholarships.
- Food Blog: She also runs a popular food blog, Feast Everyday, which has been active for over 15 years and features recipes and food photography.
OIL PAINTINGS
Her paintings are done mostly in oils, and are colorful interpretations of her view of the world and relationships
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| "The Yellow Awning”. |
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| Farm Cathedral |
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She signs her paintings with her initials, BHB.
GESTURE DRAWINGS (DIGITAL)
INK & CHALK
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| 2024 |
SOUTHSIDE NEIGHBORHOOD TALKS
CORNING DUANE EDDY CIRCLE
She will be continuing her support of the community by researching and sharing more people-oriented storytelling projects. At least two more are in the works. The current one about Duane Eddy, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame guitar legend, inventor of the twangy guitar sound, who was born in her home city of Corning, New York. CorningTwang.com
STREET PHOTOGRAPHY
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| The Priests |
In the past, Barbara has also been a fine art photographer, including a show at the Arnot Art Museum in 2012 entitled The Observer. Her black and white photographs are observations of people and nature which make you think twice and look closer. She has published several photography books, including Artists in Their Studios which was a companion book to her show at West End Gallery with the same title in 2009. As the world moved to digital viewing, she gave up printing photography in 2019 but continues to make images to use on her Feast Everyday food recipes blog and for her other work.
FEAST EVERYDAY (ON GOING SINCE 2009)
Step-by-step recipes and tips for enjoying good food everyday from their home kitchen
ART
Website: BarbaraHallBlumer.com
Instagram: @BarbBlumer_art
ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes
Evelyn Peeler Peacock Gallery
Phone: 607-962-1332
infoARTS@eARTS.org
CORNING COMMUNITY
The People Wall
peoplewallhistory.com
Corning-Painted Post Historical Society
Phone: 607-937-5281
cpphs@heritagevillagesfl.org
Corning Duane Eddy Circle
FOOD
Feast Everyday
feasteveryday.com
Instagram: @barbblumer_food
FRIENDS
Facebook: Barbara Hall Blumer
