Geology junior and poet Rebecca Barnett found her passion for art later in life in an art class at the University. In fall 2017, Barnett enrolled in Art 1010 and did a passion project that began her journey into a world of finger painting and Jazz-inspired portraits. 
The Baton Rouge native left professor Eli Casiano’s art class with an unfinished portrait that would eventually turn into a magnificent work of finger paint art, portraying a beautiful jazz musician. Though Barnett felt that her painting was complete, Casiano assured her that it was unfinished and pushed her to take a second look at it. Over the winter break, Barnett did just that. She added texture to the piece and made it vibrantly come to life.
“I wanted to make it more expressive and make it more me,” Barnett said.
Barnett may have had a late start into the art world, but that doesn’t mean she is any less talented. She picks up skills easily. She has been wanting to play the piano since a young age, but only just recently had the opportunity to do so.
“I took a piano class at LSU, I found myself doing most of the real work outside of class,” Barnett said.
Her piano skills, much like her art skills, didn’t take long to master.
Barnett is most proud of her sponge painting, Beach House, a rendition of Agnes Cecile’s Intimacy on Display. The painting features two lovers kissing and encompasses almost every color imaginable. Barnett uses literature, like Henn Kim’s Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita, to kickstart her artistic ideas.
“I get into these creative phases. They come and go,” Barnett said. “A big thing that influenced my painting is poetry. I used to be an English major, so I have to have an emotional attachment to a painting. Poetry does that for me.”
Not only is Barnett a talented artist, but she has also recently learned the piano and is a practicing poet. She hopes to publish a chapbook filled with her poems. She read with the Delta Literary Journal, opened for the Langston Hughes Project in March 2017 at LSU and wants to compete in the national poetry slam. She uses poetry, often her own, for the inception of her artwork.
“I don’t think I’d sell my artwork yet, I’d rather give it to people,” Barnett said. “I’d love to have it hung on somebody else’s wall so they can appreciate it, rather than under my bed where nobody can see it.”
If Barnett could be an artist during any period of history, she would choose the 1960s, specifically the Vietnam War. She feels passionate about the war and its detrimental effects on American society. She even has a poem dedicated to the time surrounding the War.
“I am very in touch with my emotions,” Barnett said. “With all of the changing politics and death surrounding that time period, my poetry and art could express my feelings about that.”
While attending the University, Barnett not only learned to explore new hobbies but to be confident while learning those hobbies. She won a contest that gave her the opportunity to open for the Langston Hughes Project and share her poetry.
“I wasn’t all that nervous, I even began to cry in the middle of it,” Barnett said. “It was such an amazing moment, and I got to share myself and my work with over 200 people.”
Barnett may stick to her major, geology, and do fieldwork in science. However, her dream job is to become a professor of literature at an ivy league school. She also hopes to continue exploring her artistic side with her sketches, poetry, paintings and piano skills.
“When I reached a certain level of comfort,” Barnett said, “I realized that whatever I make is not gonna be the best thing ever, but it’s also not gonna be the worst thing ever.”

Gallery • 5 Photos

Isabella Allen

LSU geology junior Rebecca Barnett showcases a variety of artwork on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018, at Highland Coffees on Highland Road.