Barbara Davies 

I grew up in New England, where I spent my free time drawing, painting and sculpting. I won an art contest in third grade, and earned a summer scholarship to a Boston art school, which fueled my passion for painting. After visiting and sketching at the Museum of Fine Art and the Gardner Museum, studying the old masters and the contemporary artists, I knew I  wanted to someday practice my art full-time. 

After high school, needing to find a “real job”, I went to work for a German based computer company, Nixdorf, with US headquarters in Massachusetts.  At Nixdorf I discovered I had a knack for explaining complex technical information to sales and marketing people.  I because a technical instructor and later became a Product Manager at Nixdorf.  At this time, I went to college in the evenings and studied Computer Science at Northeastern University. 

I was recruited by Honeywell in MA where I managed a computer product line.  I  transferred with Honeywell to their CA offices after traveling here  on a business trip and falling in love with the area.  I was recruited a few years later by a Silicon Valley computer networking start-up, 3Com Corporation, where I became Director of tech support & education.  During my 7 years at  3Com, I travelled extensively throughout the U.S, and Europe.  I frequently used my vacations days to draw and paint in the cities where I found myself (France, Germany, Italy, England).  I became passionate about capturing the cafes, piazzas and storefronts of European villages where the old seems to blend seamlessly with the new.  Eventually, my love for art and the need I had to create it caused me to leave the financial security of the corporate world and enroll as a full time student at the College of Art in Oakland.  I earned a degree in illustration and painting and went on to earn teaching credentials at St Mary’s in Moraga.  I taught art for the San Ramon Valley School district for 8 years before opening my own gallery & studio in Danville, where I sold my work and taught painting classes for children and adults. 

I moved to Sacramento recently and exhibit my work and teach classes at the Kennedy Gallery in mid-town.