I met local artist Barbara Mendes in 2009, after I was elected to the board of the Reynier Village Neighborhood Association (RVNA) to handle communications.
In the Reynier Village Blog, that I started with Deni Mosser in 2009 to celebrate the beauty and vitality of our community, I frequently featured Barbara’s paintings, her gallery and studio on Robertson Blvd.
See Mendes mentioned in the last post that I wrote for this blog in 2021 post COVID, “Novelties on Robertson.”
That same large oil painting on canvas (6’x16’) still covers an entire wall of Mendes studio in the back of what is currently called the Ivan Gallery (which is for rent and Mendes manages).
It is titled “Rapture” from 1987. Mendes describes it as a celebration of African-American women, music, culture and history. It was inspired by the “ladies” she met when she lived in Rialto near San Bernardino, “because women take care of so much every day, the house, the lunches, the babies, and they don’t get a gold medal or a gold watch for doing so.”
“Helen of San Bernardino” from 1989, a play on words on Helen of Troy, is a smaller oil painting (72”x72”), that displays similar intricate details and symbolic imagery.
As does “I Came Among You” from 1988 (68”x 68”), which refers to the Russian Club at her Alma Mater UC Riverside.
“Victory” from 1984 is from that same fertile period in the artist’s life. Subtitled “Many Rivers to Cross” from the 1969 song by Jimmy Cliff, it’s about traveling from her house in Rialto to the downtown LA art scene, and her fascination with Bob Marley and reggae music.
“Abuela” from 1993 (68”by 50”) was suggested by a ofrenda family celebration when the grandmother died.
A supporter of our community, since moving to SORO on January 20, 2000, Barbara Mendes designed the RVNA in 2005 logo and several maps of South Robertson, from Cadillac Ave to Cattaraugus Street, location of the SORO Art Fest.
A prolific artist, Mendes paints every day: the front of the gallery with its changing name, the side wall of the building on Gibson that she dubbed “Angel Wall,” and even the sidewalks. She also paints her artwork on tee shirts, jackets, pants and skirts that she wears.
See the painted sign on top of the gallery at the 20th SORO Fest of 2017 in my post “Enjoy South Robertson.”
And look at Mendes on a ladder painting the Angel Wall in 2012.
On the upper right two angels, Whitney Huston and Marylin Monroe.
Restored in 2023, the sprawling Angel Wall illustrates a wide variety of themes: several angels and queens, and autobiographical images, like a young mother on a horse with her two children.
She represent Barbara with daughters Oma-Annie and Kerby.
“Autobiography” 1994 (98”x 66’’) evokes the same happy period of the artist’s life with her husband Rick and their two children in 1972, when they lived in Oregon.
On April 19 I attended a festive opening at Ivan Gallery where some of Mendes recent work was on display.
Several new paintings depicted Queen-like powerful female figures, such as this one, “Revival Life Family,” that was inspired by musician Seven Elly and his girlfriend, Ebony, who was pregnant. Barbara told me: “She had the cutest green outfit on that showed her belly. And I was so taken, that my arms started to draw her.”
Another recurring theme in Mendes iconography are horses. She always loved painting horses, but it was only lately that she realized 2026 is the Year of the Fire Horse in Chinese astrology.
I am the proud owner of two paintings by Mendes that hang in my house and inspire me every day.
“Tree of Life” (1992)
“Frisky Horses” (2001),
Follow Willy Mendes on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Call her at 323 533-6021 and set up an appointment to meet at her studio, check out the paintings for sale and buy as many as you can afford. We need to support the work of artists who stand up to the male-dominated world of wars.