Take the Mantel is an intimate curatorial project and online platform for art and ideas, founded by married artists Brian Barr and Lauren Rice in suburban Richmond, Virginia. Focused on bridging the gap between an artist’s work, creative inspiration, and lived experience, our exhibitions invite artists to activate our mantel, fireplace hearth, and adjacent wall as spaces for both presentation and reflection. Each show highlights not just the finished work but also the ideas that fuel artistic practice, offering insight into the creative process. At its core, Take the Mantel is about championing great work and celebrating wonderful people.

Brian Barr is an artist and independent curator originally from Detroit, MI. He is currently based in Richmond, VA where he is an Assistant Professor of Art at Virginia Commonwealth University. He received his MFA from American University and his BFA from The College for Creative Studies. Barr has been awarded fellowships at MacDowell, the Kala Art Institute as well as a residency at the Luminary Center for the Arts in St. Louis. Barr regularly collaborates with his wife, artist Lauren Rice. They have presented collaborative projects at Vox Populi in Philadelphia (PA), Flashpoint Gallery in Washington (DC), Purdue University, Current Space in Baltimore (MD), the Neon Heater in Findlay (OH), and the Artist Alliance Inc.’s, Cuchifritos Gallery and Project Space in New York (NY), and Alabama Contemporary (AL). Barr has had solo exhibitions at Popps Packing in Detroit (MI), Skylab in Columbus (OH), and the Museum of Contemporary Art Arlington (VA). His work was featured in New American Paintings no. 95. Barr was the founder of PASSENGER, an exhibition space in Detroit where he was Director and Curator from 2011-2014. He has curated exhibitions at PASSENGER, ORG Gallery in Detroit, Purdue University, The Museum of New Art Detroit, Delicious Spectacle Gallery (DC), and the Katzen Art Center Museum (DC).

Website: brian-barr.com

Lauren Rice is a visual artist based in suburban Richmond, VA. Rice identifies as a painter, however she most often works on and with paper through the combined modalities of collage, painting, drawing and sculpture. Originally from Atlanta, GA, Rice has made her home in many American cities, including Detroit, Brooklyn, Washington DC and Athens, OH. She has exhibited her work in solo, collaborative and group exhibitions at venues such as Cuchifritos Gallery and Project Space (NYC), Vox Populi (Philadelphia), Tiger Strikes Asteroid (NYC), Neon Heater (Findlay, OH), ICA Baltimore (Baltimore), 1708 Gallery (Richmond), The Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art (Virginia Beach), Transformer (DC) and Spring Break Art Show (NYC), among many others. Rice has been a Fellowship Artist at The Kala Art Institute in Berkeley, CA and an artist-in-residence at The Luminary in St. Louis, MO. Her work has been published in New American Paintings, Maake Magazine, The Southeast Review, Art in Square Magazine and VAST Magazine. She is an Associate Professor of Art at Longwood University. Rice lives with her husband and artistic collaborator, Brian Barr, and their two children in a house with a garden on a street surrounded by big, old oak trees. For better or worse, Rice is a wearer of rose-colored glasses and is an avid supporter of underdogs. 

Website: lauren-rice.com