Abigail Barden is sharing space at the Grace Campbell Gallery in the public library with fellow Carlton student, Isabella Peters. (Image Credit: Susan McNeil/paNOW Staff)
By Susan McNeil
points of view
May 28, 2026 | 5:00 PM
At the Grace Campbell Gallery inside the Prince Albert Public Library, two Carlton Comprehensive High School students are sharing space this month — but not the same artistic language.
Abigail Barden works in bold mixed media and saturated colour, using art as a way to communicate feelings she says were once difficult to express. Isabella Peters, meanwhile, builds from sketchbooks and memory, creating personal works rooted in land, process and interpretation.
Together, their shared exhibit offers visitors a look at two emerging artists at similar points in life, each graduating from Carlton this year, but each arriving at art from a very different place.
For Barden, art became essential early. She said she has been deeply involved in it since she was about seven, describing it as a way to work through the challenges of communication and emotional regulation linked to executive dysfunction.