Discover Brian Barrer's Whimsical Mixed Media Works

Artist Brian Barrer uses mixed media and photographic assemblage to express an ever evolving imagination.

An old, rusty bus with a faded exterior, topped by four black birds perched on the roof.

These often take the form of vibrant aesthetic experiences that fuse playful abstractions with the intensified realism of captured images – artist statement

Above: Hitching A Ride Series, Bus, oil on board, 2025, 24 x 24“

An artistic representation of a polar bear with two ravens standing on its back, one raven is pulling a fish while the other looks on. — Hitching a Ride Series, Salmon, oil on board, 24 x 24

Barrer says his “use of objects in a new conceptual context then offers the viewer a chance to explore their own imagination and creativity. The compositions of my pieces are usually finalized when the manipulated scene provides enough insight to evoke feelings of dislocated familiarity.”

A group of five oryx standing in a field with cloth hanging from a line between their horns. — From an Artist Closeup-Interview with Mutual Art, here

Brian Barrer’s work is in collections that include Molson Coors, Toronto; TM Design, London England; MacLaren Art Centre Permanent Collection, Barrie ON; Polaroid Canada Corporate Collection, Toronto, and Gallery Paquin, Kapuskasing ON.

A man in a purple patterned shirt stands beside a painting of a vintage red car with several birds on it, in an art gallery setting. The wall features the text 'Where We Gather' and 'BRIAN BARRER'. — Brian Barrer at the opening of his 2026 exhibition, Where we Gather (source), in Callender, Ontario

Based in the North Bay area of Ontario, Barrer’s exhibitions include “Resurrection” Double Door Studio; Gallery Anten Mills ON (2019-solo) and group exhibitions Martello Alley Gallery June/August Kingston ON (2020) and A Leap of Faith be contemporary gallery, Stroud ON (2020).