Huron native puts all of her body into her art

jackson@sanduskyregister.comArt historians like to talk about Pablo Picasso's "Blue Period."Future art scholars studying Huron native Erin Barylski may need to refer to her "Legs Period" or "Full Body Period."Watch videos of Barylski in the players belowErasing the distinction between painting and performance art, Barylski, now a resident of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., uses her entire body and her mastery of dance, gymnastics and yoga to paint large canvases. She's now won a chance to gain an international reputation. She is among several dozen artists who have been chosen for an art exhibition, "La Grande Exposition Universelle," which opens on Oct. 23 at the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France."Oh my gosh, I'm so excited," she said.The Class of 2000 graduate of Huron High School grew up studying dance locally at The Moving Company.She got her first chance to come to national attention on David Letterman's TV show, performing a "Stupid Human Trick" by showing her ability to hop across a map while doing a split. "I got this incredible 15 minutes of fame and was trying to figure out how to capitalize on it," Barylski said.Her friends suggested that she trying using paint in her act."It was kind of a joke. I said, you know what, that would look pretty darn cool," she said.Barylski experimented with a bucket of red paint, liked the results, and began using other colors. Splits Art, as she calls her work, was born.Barylski landed an appearance on "America's Got Talent," where she painted an American flag. She still has a day job in Florida, where she works for a medical staffing recruiting company, but her sideline as an artist is keeping her so busy she may have to devote herself full-time to art.Barylski charges a flat fee of $1,500 for appearances, plus traveling expenses if she has to travel a long way. In return, the audience gets to watch her create a painting in fifteen minutes to about half an hour."People's attention spans don't seem to last much longer these days," she said.Her art created in private can take several hours, even several days. The finished works sell for prices ranging from $3,000 to $15,000.Barylski said she uses children's tempera nontoxic paint. It washes off easily, which is comforting to places not used to her performance style, although Barylski says she uses plastic coverings to provide protection when she is performing. She generally deploys her entire body in creating her art."I did have an entire series I did just with my legs," she said. "I've really embraced using the entire body now. That's become a huge part of the pieces."Videos of her performances at available at her website, splitsart.com.Barylski's tongue-in-cheek biography on her website explains her unusual flexibility and athleticism by claiming that her father was a Gummi Bear.In reality, her parents are Huron residents Brian and Joanne Butler. She's the couple's only child."We're very proud of her," Joanne Butler said. "There's not many people who go from David Letterman to America's Got Talent and then on the Eiffel Tower to display artwork.""She has always, always come up with something different, somebody beyond what anybody else can think of," Joanne Butler said. "She has work very, very hard, and she believes in what she does," she said. "She believes in herself. That is very important for a young person. You have to believe in what you do." Erin Barylski's rendition of the Eiffel Tower.