Barbara Sykes is a Yorkshire-based artist whose practice centres on drawing, exploring the human condition through expressive studies of the figure and face. Working with charcoal, graphite and acrylic on paper and board, she draws inspiration from artists including Käthe Kollwitz and Auguste Rodin.

Her extensive body of work includes a series of heads that examine aspects of human experience through the expressive possibilities of drawing.

Holding a BA (Hons) in Fine Art and an MA in Printmaking and Art Theory, Barbara is a member of Dean Clough Artists in Halifax. She has exhibited widely and received numerous awards, including the Hugh Casson Drawing Prize at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition in 2014.