Baker Artist Portfolios

Andrew Scantlebury is a Barbadian-born palette knife painter whose work is rooted in the landscapes, rhythms, and emotional terrain of his homeland. He held his first exhibition in Barbados at the age of 18, a formative moment that continues to resonate throughout his practice. Raised in a creatively rich environment his father a musician and his uncle a visual artist Scantlebury grew up surrounded by sound, movement, and image, influences that still shape the cadence and texture of his work. His artistic voice emerged from a turbulent upbringing, with painting becoming both refuge and release. Working primarily with a palette knife, Scantlebury applies paint in thick, deliberate layers that mirror the physicality of the Caribbean landscape the weight of heat, the movement of wind and water, and the saturated colors of Barbados. Rather than literal representations, his paintings function as emotional recollections, carrying the spirit of the island into abstracted form. The scenery of Barbados remains a constant reference point—its coastlines, architecture, and light serving as visual memory and grounding force. That early exhibition at 18 affirmed art as a path forward, and its influence continues to surface in his work as an ongoing dialogue with place, identity, and resilience. Beyond the canvas, Scantlebury’s background in carpentry and design reflects a commitment to craft, allowing him to share his creative practice with families across the United States while remaining deeply connected to his Barbadian roots.