LIGHT BEFORE SHADOW

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An exhibition of figurative paintings at BRIAN BURKE HOUSE, the late painter's last studio/house in Murray Harbour, Prince Edward Island presents its third exhibition of 30 enigmatic paintings by Brian Burke. It includes paintings which were never exhibited before. They are are exhibited throughout the house built in the 1880s, which the artist set up as his studio. It remains as he left it.

 

Brian Burke included in his figurative compositions repeatedly visual symbols like: polka dots, flags, light fixtures, flowers, frames, mirrors, pictures in pictures, halos and shadows ... In this new selection of paintings, the power of light and colour precede the shadows. One finds in this thematic thread the questions about our being. It was the driving force in an intense act of painting throughout the artist's work. "... I'm concerned with directing the viewer's attention to the results of a painting process itself. To this end, the work fails to provide the viewer with definitive answers - so form takes precedent over content.". 

Brian Burke, 2013

 

Brian Burke, 1952-2017, was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. He drew inspiration from his many studios over the years with extended stays in New York and Europe. In his last six years he worked both in Lucerne, Switzerland and Murray Harbour, Prince Edward Island. His work was extensively exhibited in galleries in North America and Europe, including a retrospective in 2019 at Confederation Centre Art Gallery, Charlottetown. His paintings can be found in numerous collections including Confederation Centre Art Gallery, Charlottetown; The Canada Council Art Bank, Ottawa; Art Gallery of Nova Scotia; The Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Fredericton and Kunstmuseum Lucerne, Switzerland.