Acme Studios — Barbara Tyrrell

Supporting Artists since 1972


Barbara Tyrrell

Fire Station Residency
1997-2001

Barbara Tyrrell is a multi-disciplinary artist. She studied Fashion and Textile Design at St Martin’s School of Art, Painting at Chelsea College of Art, and Psychotherapeutic Counselling at the University of East London. Barbara’s creative career has been wide-ranging, including work in design and nature conservation. In 2004 she created a permanent four-acre Wildlife Site and community Open Space in Hertfordshire. As a painter, she predominantly works in landscape, attempting to explore expressions of the numinous, the divine and extraordinary, mystical and visionary human conditions and experiences. Her interests in psychotherapy and counselling were coupled with her design experience when she worked as part of a team of clinicians and architectural designers to redesign part of an NHS mental health hospital in Hertfordshire between 2005 and 2007, supported by the King’s Fund.

Barbara’s work has been featured in the following solo exhibitions in London: The Alchemical Journey, Lamont Gallery (1989); The Tavistock Clinic (1990) and Sadler’s Wells Best London Degree Show graduate (1994). Selected group exhibitions include The South Bank Show at Royal Festival Hall, London (1991); Blue Gallery, London (1994); Piccadilly Gallery Cork Street (1994–95); The Hunting Art Prizes, Royal College of Art, London and Glynn Vivian gallery, Swansea (1994–95); Fresh Art 95 in association with the Piccadilly Gallery (1995); Rinus van de Sande contemporary Art, Oorschot (1995) and Gallery Trace Alexander, Maastricht (1995).

Fire Station Residency 1997-2001

Acme's residency at the Fire Station is one of the most directly supportive schemes for artists in the United Kingdom, providing combined studio and living space at low rents, as well as a half rent residency for a deaf or disabled artist. This fixed-term residency scheme is intended to allow artists more time to concentrate on the development of their work and professional careers, and less time working to survive. 1997-2001 residents were selected by artists Tracy McKenna, Cornelia Parker, Adam Reynolds, and Acme co-founder Jonathan Harvey.