The three genres of burkhardt
FOUNDER OF THE NOTISM MOVEMENT
Ron is the founder/originator of three genres of contemporary American art which began with his first Notism solo show in March of 2001, mere months before 9/11 changed so many lives forever.
Notism-Ron’s initial art form takes us back to the walls of early Mesopotamia cave dwellers. The work appears to be “hieroglyphic scribbles,” but upon deeper analysis, these primal scrawls are revealed to reflect our multi-tasking society on a broad scale, and illuminate the intimate memory fragments” of one’s daily inner live.
Notism grew out of Burkhardt’s lifelong penchant for incessant list-making, first as a college student and then as a New York ad agency owner where the many disparate pulls on one’s soul resulted in this chaotic, yet controlled, method of coping with an intense, urban world.
CREATOR OF LETTERSCAPES
These bold, hard-edged geometric color field paintings continue Ron’s lifelong fascination with words and letterforms. Evolving out of his Notism work with the hieroglyphic scribbles and scrawls documenting memory fragments, each unique set of color blocks spells a word, using his own abstract alphabet to create precise letters that reference cities, people, events and emotions.
LetterScapes-represent a third unique medium in stark juxtaposition to Burkhardt’s boldly designed, geometric color fields that spell unique phrases. These “word portraits” are incredibly precise, hard-edged semiotic symbols that make powerful statements. They were first conceived in 2013, after Ron suffered a detached retina/macula and was forced to keep his head down for six weeks. With no other outlet and no ability to throw paint at large canvases, he started doodling with lines and words and ultimately created his own abstract alphabet, thus turning lemons into sparkling lemonade!
His process is that of a draftsman, working with pencil and rulers to measure and design the words, then taping the lines to add several layers of acrylic or oil paint to each section. When this is finished, it takes weeks to perfect the tiny flaws left behind when the tape is removed. When finished, the art looks like it was created by a computer, rather than by the human hand of a fanatical perfectionist.
"My fascination with rich colors shows up in all three of my art genres, and can be traced to my idyllic childhood in Jackson, Michigan. Many days I would walk the two miles to school, always going past the stunning Cascades Falls, one of the largest man-made colored waterfalls in the world. From spring to fall each year, the hills would come alive with ever-changing primary colors and contrasting fountains shooting spires of sparkling water into the sky, while an orchestra played below and fireflies lit up the verdant hillsides.
"Somewhere along the way, I also became enamored of the color Blue and it has become my brand identity. Perhaps it was the water, sky, or western denim that initially caught my eye and intrigued me. But it has become a special, soulful symbol of serenity for me."
- Ron Burkhardt
ORIGINATOR OF EARTH ART
In a startling departure from his work with words and letters, Ron has literally broken new ground with his Earth Art series. Rooted in earth’s gritty reality, his primal new art form reveals intriguing depths and layers of textural substrates and residues forged from raw earth.
Earth Art was a near opposite approach to Notism, creating raw, enduring beauty forged by nature. While working outdoors on large-scale, unprimed canvases at his Long Island home, Ron one day grew frustrated at the undefined mass of colors and shapes taking form on the lawn, so he picked up a large bag of potting soil, dumped it on the canvas and suddenly realized a daringly different approach to making art-to “let nature do the painting.” After years of detailed experimentation, Earth Art works are sprawling and colorful fusions of acrylic, enamel and indigenous soil soaked in water and bleached in the sun.
To create these large, organic paintings, he fuses acrylic, enamel, indigenous soil and on to unprimed canvases, then soaks it all in water and bakes it in the sun for weeks as nature creates its own startling design palettes, forming otherworldly shapes and powerful colors that exude a distinctive, weathered look. When finished, each is signed and dated on the back, identifying the region in which the art was originally formed.
MUSEUMS & PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS THAT OWN BURKHARDT ART:
Eisenhower Medical Center/Rancho Mirage, CA-George Bush Presidential Library/Houston, TX-Ella Sharp Museum/Jackson, MI-Canvas Outdoor Museum/West Palm Beach, FL-Miss America Organization/hard rock hotel in Atlantic City, NJ-Museum of Coral Springs, FL-Shacknow Museum/Plantation, FL-Water Mill Museum/Water Mill, NY-Stony Brook Hospital/Stony Brook, NY-The One Club/New York, NY-Southampton Hospital/Southampton, NY.
Ron’s early childhood inspiration.
EDUCATION
Graduated w/BBA from Western Michigan University.
studied at Art Students League of New York and National Academy of Fine Art/New York.
Over the Years
Ron Burkhardt grew up in Jackson, Michigan, home of the world-famous illuminated Cascades Waterfalls, which he passed daily on his way to school, and which was the foundation of his fascination with color. He has shown in over 100 exhibitions worldwide and received over 200 awards for creative excellence. his work has been recognized or honored by The United Nations, The Art Directors Club of New York, The One Show, Andys, Creativity, CLIOS, Gold & Silver Effies, IBA, Palm Springs International Film Festival, Addys, Tellies, Mobius, Hollywood International Broadcast Awards, Cannes, Black Book Awards, CA Annual, Outstanding Young Men of America, and the Presidential Order of Merit. Burkhardt’s abstract artworks have also been featured in “Who’s Who in American Art,” ART and Living Magazine, Gotham Magazine, Southampton Press, Hamptons Magazine, Promenade, and Dan’s Papers; and on CNN Headline News, NBC “Today in New York” Show, Hamptons TV/WVVH, Inside Edition, American Journal, Aspen PBS-The Changing Paradigm, MNN-57, Plum TV, CNN Business Unusual and NBC/New York Channel 4 News. He has judged the Stephen Kelly Awards, Andys, CEBA, International TV & Film Festival, Creativity, Addys, Mercury Radio Awards and The CLIOS.
AFFILIATIONS
Charter Member Miami School Of Art Movement, Miami, FL
Member Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
Member Whitney Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
Member Guggenheim Museum, New York, NY
Member Laguna Beach Museum of Art, Laguna Beach, California
Member Parrish Museum, Water Mill, NY
Member Guild Hall Museum, East Hampton, NY
Member The One Club, New York, NY
Elected to Board of Directors, Serving as Branding Chair & TV Co-Chair,
Miss America Organization, Atlantic City, NJ. (2003-2010
Philanthropy
Donor to Southampton Hospital/Southampton, NY; Ivy Cup Polo/Greenwich, CT; Benefit Committee for Sheltering Arms Children’s Society/NY; Eisenhower Medical Center/Rancho Mirage, CA; Feeding the Hungry Charity/Palm Beach, FL; Childrens’ Cancer & Blood Foundation/New York, NY; empty bowls delray beach, fl; Pap foundation of boca raton, fl; Edwin Gould’s “ARTrageous” Children’s Charity of New York; Ft. Worth Symphony “Painted Violins”/Ft. Worth, Texas; Children’s Development Center of the Hamptons; East Side Settlement House & International Auto Show/NY; Positive Resistance for Foster Children/Newport, CA; Beta Foster Care/Irvine, CA; African Child Foundation/Newport, CA; Project Angel Food/Los Angeles, CA; and pro bono creative work for Korean War Veterans Memorial Committee; Save America’s Forests; Miracle House; and Robert Kennedy Jr.’s RiverKeeper, all New york.