Mary Burke is a Niagara artist living in Port Colborne, Ontario and is a member of the Visual Artists of Welland, South Niagara Artist group and The Arts Place Gallery in Port Colborne. In the fall of 2022 Mary will be having a presentation of her small-town Ontario painted boards at the Bruce County Museum and Cultural Centre in Southampton, Ontario. Rediscovering her passion for the arts after a long hiatus from the field, Mary recently completed courses in the Art and Design Foundation program at Niagara College. Mary painted as a hobby during her teen years, into her 20’s, then as she says “life got in the way” as she raised her five children. She’s back now and looking to break into the local and Ontario wide art scene.
Half of Mary’s family is native to the Niagara region, and thus Niagara has always played an integral role in her artistic style. The main subject matter of her work involves depicting the main streets / highlights of city centers located throughout Ontario. Capturing the nostalgic beauty of the buildings that line the downtown cores, Mary’s work recalls the grace and elegance of yesteryear. In executing her works, Mary utilizes both oil and acrylic paint on a variety of textured mediums including driftwood, bottles, and even breadboards. Presently her main focus is working on lumber.
More recently, Mary’s has begun to create on bigger pieces of live edge wood, a variety of different subject matter from ducks to geese to snails with a hint of surrealism! You just never know what is coming next!
Her artistic style has found tremendous success with the public and her work can be seen at The Nook in Grimsby, Newton’s Art Barn in Victoria Harbour (near Midland Ontario), the Arts Place Gallery and Niagara Crafters in Port Colborne. Along with exhibiting her work, Mary has occasionally facilitated art workshops for The Willow Community Support Services in St. Catharines, and Bridges Community Health Centre in both Port Colborne and Fort Erie. She is a passionate advocate of the arts in the Niagara Region.
To view Mary’s work online check out these sources:
Website: reflectionsofniagara.com
Facebook: @maryburkebreadboardcreations
Instagram: reflections_of_niagara
Twitter: @MaryBurke2006
