Jonathan S. Barrett, Founder and CEO

Jonathan S. Barrett has been working within the creative and technology industries in various capacities for the past 18 years.

Beginning in Park City, Utah (2006) he was a part of the team that opened Silver Queen Fine Art to the public. Quickly after its inception the gallery became an international destination for fine art collectors and enthusiasts. Due to its proactive involvement with the annual Sundance Film Festival, it also attracted the attention of a countless number of the most recognizable names within the entertainment industry. Jonathan was given the opportunity to be the featured artist of the opening weekends of both the 2008 (solo) and 2009 (three-man show — San Diego, California, Park City, Utah and New York City, New York) Sundance Film Festivals utilizing the medium of conceptual photography.

Notable personal collectors of Jonathan’s fine art, and subsequent mentors, include Charlie Colin (founding member of Train, Grammy award winning musician), American actor Zach Gilford (Friday Night Lights, The River Why, L.A.’s Finest), John Graham aka Quivver (British record producer, songwriter, vocalist) and Kyle McDonald (Slightly Stoopid). His fine art can be found in private and public collections reaching as far as Finland and Australia. He has been featured in group and solo exhibitions in California (San Diego), Utah (Salt Lake City, Park City) and Colorado (Steamboat Springs, Denver).

From 2010-2013, Jonathan served the University of Wyoming’s College of Engineering and Applied Science as their acting director of marketing and communications. His initial charge was to actively integrate the Strategic Diversity Initiatives Committee into university-wide operations. This committee’s primary objective was to increase the level of social intelligence within the organization’s structure with emphasis on minority populations (ethnic and LGBTQIA+), while simultaneously continuing the building of the university’s relationships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

The highlight of this period was being charged to spearhead the initial visibility of the vision for the now operational Engineering Education and Research Building (EERB). This now completed project accumulated $115M ($110M building, $5M equipment) to Laramie’s and the state of Wyoming’s economies with the intent of continuing to build the college’s reputation as a Tier 1 international engineering school and research institution. Additionally, this included the $76M High Bay Research Facility, also, now fully operational. The University of Wyoming serves staff, faculty and students (undergraduate and graduate) representing all 50 states and 92 countries.

From 2012-2015, Jonathan opened Closer to the Sun, Gallery of Fine Art in Steamboat Springs, Colorado representing 14 selected artists recognized for their talents regionally, nationally and internationally. Artist’s physical locations included Colorado (Steamboat Springs, Oak Creek, Denver), Utah (Salt Lake City), Idaho (Sugar City), Wyoming (Jackson, Laramie), California (San Diego), Illinois (Chicago) and Florida (St. Petersburg). This was a three-year, individually-financed endeavor.

For the 2015-16 year, Jonathan worked the night desk copy editing and designing Steamboat Pilot & Today, Routt County, Colorado’s daily newspaper with press run of approximately 11,000. This also included Moffat and Rio Blanco Counties’ Craig Daily Press with press run of approximately 3,500.

Shortly after moving to St. Petersburg, Florida in 2016, Jonathan was hired as lead and senior developer/designer (full-stack web design and development — MySQL, PHP, JS, CSS, XHTML, etc. ) for Simply Done Tech Solutions. This digital creative agency provides services exclusively to veterinary practices across the United States and abroad. In 2019, this company’s CEO, Eric D. Garcia, touched down in seven countries, providing 53 speaking engagements. In 2018, nine countries and 58 speaking engagements.

In St. Petersburg, Jonathan worked from inside the Tampa Bay Innovation Center.

Beginning in 2022, Jonathan has contracted with Raintree Growth (Denver, Colorado) being charged to build their organic search engine optimization program internally from the ground up. Raintree represents the fastest growing and emerging brands in franchising. In 2023, this organization merged with Franchise Fastlane (Omaha, Nebraska) to become the largest franchise sales organization in North America.

Throughout this duration, Jonathan has continued his work in private practice. Originally incorporated in 2010, as Closer to the Sun International, Inc.

His passions include lifespan development, movement, the arts and being immersed in unfamiliar cultures.

Jonathan lives permanently in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

Primary Objective:

• Organizational Development (OD) and Communications

Professional Affiliations:

• Rocky Mountain Bioengineering Symposium, 501(c)(3)
  • Board of Directors, Webmaster, Registered Agent
• Yoga Alliance
  • RYT500

Formal Education:

• MBA Global Management
• MS Psychology
  • Concentration in individual/organizational growth and development including multicultural integration
• BA Economics
  • Concentration in outdoor/recreational and international economics