‍ ‍ “The Nature of Pear”

We did not choose this metaphor. It was chosen for us - just as so many other crude cliches and visual shortcuts have been imposed on women. In this series I consider the parallels between ourselves and the visual metaphor of aging pear. 

-J. Burke ‘26

Burke has always been interested in discovering and revealing the beauty in everyday life and the human condition. Her style and the subjects she chooses are indicative of a contemporary Ashcan approach to making art. She strives to distill the mundane into a pure and divine concentration of humanity.
Her mediums include Oil and Acrylic Paint, Printmaking, Sculpture, and Drawing.

Currently residing in Richfield, NY, Jan Burke holds an AAS in Fine Arts from the Fashion Institute of Technology, New York, NY and an AAS Advertising Design and Production from as well as a Certificate in Photography from MVCC, Utica, NY, with a BA in Fine Art and Communication Design from Empire State College, Saratoga, NY.

In addition to her formal training, Burke has studied under  Charles Emerson, William Elston and Dionne Haroutunian; Seattle, WA based artists, and James McDermid, of Rome, NY, focusing on painting, printmaking and sculpture.

Community Projects: Owner/Director; Neptune Studio, Utica, NY, Producer; Art Studio Tour/Guide, Mohawk Valley, NY, Co-Director; The Other Side Gallery, Utica, NY, Studio Assistant Hamilton Center for the Arts, Hamilton, NY, Stage Assistant the Little Theater, Ilion, NY.

Burke is currently re-organizing Neptune Studio and Gallery as an Art Retreat setting on her family farm in Richfield.