Artbeat

The Andenken Gallery (2110 Market Street, 303-332-5582) is presenting Works by Dianne Barnes, Michelle Barnes, Tracey Barnes, a group show representing two generations of the same family. The senior Barnes is Dianne; Michelle and Tracey are her daughters.

Dianne’s work, a series of miniature garments and shrines in Plexiglas boxes, is hung midway back in the gallery. The delicately made pieces really appear to be ancient artifacts. The tiny Chinese ceremonial robe will make you think of Barbie’s Dream Temple of the Mind.

Tracey picks up on Dianne’s love of the antique and interest in fantasy, but reaches a very different conclusion. An early member of the Edge co-op, she has contributed three ambitious fresco-like paintings on large thick slabs of plaster. The scarred surfaces, with enigmatic figural imagery peeking through, make the contemporary paintings look like salvage from an old Italian church.

Michelle, in addition to her fine-art pursuits, is a successful illustrator; her work has appeared in the national press, including the New York Times Magazine. In her generally small and intimate pieces at Andenken, she combines found imagery and drawn elements and veils it all under glazes. Like her mom’s and sister’s, Michelle’s pieces, such as “The Fall in Autumn” (detail seen above), conjure up a misty recollection of an imagined past.

The Barnes show closes on November 30.