Just like Andy Warhol, Barbara Tyler Ahlfield has moved from a thriving career as a fashion illustrator to success as a fine artist. Rather than pen and ink, she works in oil on canvas, preferring the large scale of four feet by five feet. With a strong foundation in formal art training, Barbara studied at Ohio State University, Columbus College of Art & Design and the Schuler School of Fine Arts. Now a resident of Baltimore, Maryland, Barbara says she has been influenced by her turn-of-the-century home in a historic district. “I am surrounded by history, antiques and an environment that echoes a more genteel era,” she says. “I feel that this has infused my artwork with a striving for elegance and classic foundations in my figurative painting.”
Setting her portraits apart is her background in art. As lead fashion illustrator for Lord & Taylor, she saw her double-page illustrations in the Sunday edition of the New York Times. “I have been honing my skills in ‘romancing’ the human face and form for many years … my expertise is in capturing my subjects at their beautiful/handsome best, while still being instantly recognizable with their essence intact.”
