Make Art: Jesse Burgardt, Artist at Home
Jesse Burgardt shares her beautiful pastel portraits that celebrate important moments in her life. She is a member of the Blacksburg Regional Arts Association and Chair for the New River Biennial, which the Fine Arts Center is hosting in 2021.
I love to make soft pastel portraits, usually in large sizes. Lately, the use of “narrative” inspires me. In that, I include elements both technical and subjective which help me tell a story. Jesse is an official freestyle artist for the annual Floyd Fest.
Her dream is to collaborate with others to develop an education system that uplifts students in areas including social responsibility, finances, creativity, physical and mental health, outdoor education, as well as the invaluable branches of learning already in session, such as language arts, math, social studies, and other core areas of study.
The portrait of my husband, Robb, was made after our trip to the Cascades, in Pembroke, Virginia. Using a soft blending stick, with circular patterns, I try to create a haze, to show how the cascades produce a mist that spreads along the horizontal plane.
In another drawing is a girl holding a toad, which is climbing up to her shoulder. This is my niece, Madison Ann. The toad (unnamed), in the center of the drawing, acts as the main character. Maddie is my muse, and the memory of that trip to visit them is the inspiration.
The young girl with bubble gum, and stark shadow, is of my sister, Aysha. When we were growing up -kids in the ‘80s—our stories mingled together often. Camping, crawdad hunting, and playgrounds all bring up stark childhood memories, which I love!
The last is a self-portrait. This was during our photoshoot to announce that Robb and I were getting married. For me, that is a memory both vivid and happy.
I love learning and get involved in education programs as much as possible. For example, I am teaching a Lifelong Learning Institute class with Virginia Tech this fall on pet portraits. My future projects are collecting in my mind as I type. I can’t wait to show them to the world!
You can find out more about Jesse’s work at the following websites: AreteJesse.com and NolleyArtHouse.com. You can also follow her on Instagram @nolleyarthouse, Twitter @ArtNolley, or Facebook: @ArtNolley.