Photo by Jenn Finch, 2024
STATEMENT
Having grown up in Southern Baptist culture, the questions of control, sin, and self-acceptance recurred as themes throughout my development. What was truly “holy”? What did it mean when you saw Southern hospitality swapped for power and oppression? These metaphysical questions ultimately led me away from Christianity into a deeper desire to understand spirituality through the lens of human evolution: what emphasis did environment and cultural context have on my emotional, mental, and spiritual disposition? Why were so many people who called themselves Christians devout but deeply unhappy? Why was I so deeply unhappy?
Through the process of eliminating conditioned thought patterns, I recognized a new problem. What was I going to put in their place? As I began to exorcise the God-void, I was greeted with a new suitor: The Internet and All Its Reverberating Thoughts. Thoughts that relentlessly and seamlessly read my mail out loud to me everyday, always. An endless mirror:
“Are you good enough? The numbers don’t lie.”
My obsession with the internet and its spiritual effect on humans ultimately led me to discover the concept of “Metaphysical poetry:” a genre of poetry that muses philosophical concepts through intense and dissonant imagery, complex metaphors, and perhaps even whimsical or contradictory language to pontificate about the human experience. With the social sphere of the internet being shepherded by the company “Meta” and my bend towards craft to make my ideas “physical”--I use the traditional, intimate, and intentional technologies of the human experience (textiles and ceramics) to dissect my philosophical discussions about the fleeting yet pervasive effects of cellular devices and other ethereal digital platforms on Homo Sapiens. Does our time on the Internet provide a mental framework that mirrors the magnitude of effects that an intense religious upbringing can have on a person? How easy is it for me to fall into that framework, and how do I wiggle away if I want out? By switching from ethereal textile works to heavy ceramic mosaics, I can empathetically force the viewers into bodily responding to the weight, heaviness, or intangible nature of a spiritual or philosophical idea, paving way for a greater connection with our felt sense and ability to critically tap into a side of ourselves that is often shut away in today’s society.
BIO
Kate Burke (b. 1994) is an Atlanta-based musician, artist, and performer. After receiving her BFA in Fabric Design in 2016 with honors from the University of Georgia, she moved to Atlanta in 2017 and shortly thereafter immersed herself within the Atlanta art community. Her solo career has developed steadily since moving to Atlanta, with solo and group showings throughout the United States in spaces such as the Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia, the Atlanta Contemporary, Hartsfield Jackson International Airport, Lyndon House Art Center, the Dalton Gallery at Agnes Scott, Tiger Strikes Asteroid Greenville, Free Market Gallery, ATHICA, whitespec, Art Fields, Waiting Room Art, and Mint Atlanta. Kate has received distinguished awards such as the ArtFields Category Award for textiles in 2019, and has a growing list of fellowships including being a two-time Hambidge Center fellow, a former member of the Atlanta Contemporary Studio Artists, a resident at Long Meadow Artist Residency, and a Leap Year Artist with MINT in Atlanta, GA. Kate is currently a part of the Creatives Project Residency in Atlanta, GA through 2025.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2025
THE SONG I SANG AS YOU SWAM AWAY, Solo show curated by Jacob O’Kelley, Swan Coach House, Atlanta, Georgia Jan 2025 - Feb 2025
2024
ONE LIFETIME IS ENOUGH TO LEARN LIFE’S PRECIOUSNESS, Curated by Phillip McClure, Blue Boy, Savannah, Georgia Oct 2024 - Jan 2025
LITTLE THINGS, Group show curated by Jacob O’Kelley, Swan Coach House, Atlanta, Georgia Oct 2024 - Jan 2025
SPRUILL GALLERY’S CULTURAL BOOTH, Group show curated by Shannon Morris, The Atlanta Art Fair for Spruill Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia Oct 2024
EPHEMERAL MEMORIES, Group show curated by Dawn Tresh, The Atlanta Art Fair for Dunwoody Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia Oct 2024
BOUNDARY LINES, Group show curated by Shannon Morris and Kate Chesnut, The Supermarket, Atlanta, Georgia Oct 2024
After an endless embrace, Two-person show with Aineki Traverso, Spruill Gallery, Dunwoody, Georgia Sept 2024 - Oct 2024
1,400,000,000 - 4,000,000,000, Group show curated by Alexander Hawkins, Hawkins HQ, Atlanta, Georgia Jun 2024 - Jul 2024
Group Studio Show, Group show curated by Jennifer Herman-Feldman, Long Meadow Artist Residency, The Berkshires, Massachusetts May 2024 - Jul 2024
2023
OFFERINGS, Curated by Jacob O’Kelley, Atlanta, Georgia Oct 2023
WOVEN TOGETHER, Curated by Honey Pierre, Peters Street Station, Atlanta, Georgia Oct 2023
SOUTHERN VOICES/GLOBAL VISIONS, Artfields and SouthArts Collaborative Group Exhibition, Lake City, South Carolina Sept 2023
ARRIVALS, Hapeville Depot Museum, Atlanta, Georgia Sept 2023
SOUTH CAROLINA FESTIVAL OF FLOWERS JURIED ART SHOW, Curated by Jennifer Smith, The Arts Center of Greenwood, Greenwood, SC Jun 2023
SWAN COACH HOUSE SUMMER INVITATIONAL, Swan Coach House, Atlanta, GA May 2023 - June 2023
ARTFIELDS 2023, Lake City, SC April 2023 - May 2023
ENTWINED, A group exhibition of textile and fiber art, Curated by Madeline Beck, Marietta Cobb Museum, Marietta, GA, Apr 2023 - June 2023
Art Papers Auction, Atlanta, GA, Feb 2023
It doesn’t keep you warm, Solo outdoor installation, Atlanta Contemporary, Atlanta, GA, Jan 2023 - Dec 2023
2022
A Pattern of Moments, Group show with Rebecca Kreisler and Sylvia Schaefer, Lyndon House Arts Center, Athens, GA, Nov 2022 - Mar 2023
SHINE, Group show at Echo Contemporary Art, Atlanta, GA, Nov 2022 - Dec 2022
PROLOGUE, Group show at Echo Contemporary Art, Atlanta, GA, Sept 2022 - Nov 2022
Subjective Objects, Group show curated by Megan Hueble, Tiger Strikes Asteroid GVL, Greenville, SC, Jun 2022 - Jul 2022
Eyes Can Only See So Much, Group show curated by Eso Tilin Projects, Tiger Strikes Asteroid GVL, Greenville, SC, Apr 2022 - May 2022
Never let me go, Solo Show, MINTATL, Atlanta, GA, Apr 2022 - May 2022
PLUSH: UGA Textiles and Soft Sculpture Invitational, University of Georgia, Lamar Dodd School of Art Glass Gallery, Athens, GA, Apr 2022
ARTFIELDS 2022, Lake City, SC April 2022
Gathered V: Georgia Artist Selecting Georgia Artists, Juried by Gregor Turk, Krista Clark, Lucha Rodriguez MOCA GA, Atlanta, GA Jan 2022 - Mar 2022
&yet again, Curated by Veronica Kessenich, Yu-Kai Lin, & Joe Peragine, Dalton Gallery of Agnes Scott College, Atlanta, GA Feb 2022 - Mar 2022
2021
MerriMINT 2021, MintATL, Atlanta, GA Nov 2021 - Dec 2022
STUDIO APPRENTICES: FROM THE 2019/2020 WORKING ARTIST PROJECT, MOCA GA, Atlanta, GA Oct 2021 - Jan 2022
MULTITUDES, Curated by Lynne Tanzer, Free Market Gallery, Atlanta, GA Oct 2021 - Dec 2021
HOLD US TIGHT, Curated by Benjamin Merritt, Fresh Eye Gallery, Minneapolis, MN Sept 2021 - Nov 2021
ATHICA: SOLO, DUO, TRIO, ATHICA, Athens, GA July 2021 - Aug 2021
EngageMINT, Curated by Jessica Helfrecht & Jacob O’Kelley, fundraiser for MintATL, Atlanta, GA Jun 2021
camedowndifferent, Curated by Kristina Johnson, Waiting Room x homeroom, Minneapolis, MN Jun 2021
SWAN COACH HOUSE SUMMER INVITATIONAL, Swan Coach House, Atlanta, GA May 2021 - June 2021
DECATUR ARTS ALLIANCE JURIED SHOW, Dalton Gallery, Decatur, GA May 2021 - June 2021
A COMMON THREAD: TEXTILES PAST & PRESENT, Curated by Jennifer Smith, The Arts Center of Greenwood, Greenwood, SC Nov 2020 - Jan 2021
2020
SPACE / 2020, Curated by Hannah Israel, ATHICA, Athens, GA Aug 2020 - Sept 2020
meIRL, Virtual exhibition in light of Corona Virus pandemic, Curated by Melissa Huang, Apr 2020
&yet, Dalton Gallery, Agnes Scott College, Atlanta, GA Feb 2020 - Mar 2020
WOMEN’S WORK, Curated by Kristen V. Cahill, The Lola, Atlanta, GA Jan 2020 - Apr 2020
2019
HAMBIDGE ART AUCTION 2019, Atlanta, GA Oct 2019
PRIMAL HONESTIES, Solo Exhibition, Whitespec | Whitespace Atlanta, GA June 2019 - July 2019
2019 DOGWOOD ARTS REGIONAL ART EXHIBITION, Curated by Kate Creason, Emporium Center Knoxville, TN June 2019
artintheATL, Curated by Hope Cohn, Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, Atlanta, GA Jan 2019 - Jan 2020
ARTFIELDS 2019, Lake City, South Carolina, Apr 2019 - May 2019
2018
SERENDIPITY, Curated by Gabi Madrid, The B-Complex, Atlanta, GA, Nov 2018
MIDDLEGROUND: BETWEEN SCREEN AND FACE, Curated by Phillip McClure, Lamar Dodd School of Art, Athens, GA, Sept-Oct 2018
MOCA GA PIN-UP SHOW, Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia, Atlanta, GA, May 2018
GEORGIA ARTISTS: A JURIED EXHIBITION, Curated by Michi Meko, Abernathy Arts Center, Sandy Springs, GA May 2018 - Jun 2018
2018 CALLANWOLDE JURIED ART EXHIBITION, Curated by Stephanie Smith, Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, Atlanta, GA Mar 2018 - May 2018
TEXTILE LANDSCAPES, Sulfur Studios, Savannah, GA Jan 2018 - Feb 2018
2017
KALEIDOSCOPE, Curated by Jaime Bull, The Classic Center, Athens, GA Dec 2017 - Jun 2018
BEST OF THE BEST, ART IMPACT USA NOTABLE ARTIST CATALOG, Aug 2017
ON A WHIM: SOLO EXHIBITION, Lyndon House Arts Center, Athens, GA May 2017 - Aug 2017
42ND JURIED EXHIBITION, Curated by Susan Krane, Lyndon House Arts Center, Athens, GA Feb 2017-May 2017
2016
ATHENS INSTITUTE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART 2016 JURIED EXHIBITION, Curated by Annette Cone-Skelton, ATHICA, Athens, GA
Oct 2016 - Nov 2016
GEORGIA SEWN / ATHENS FASHION COLLECTIVE SPRING SHOWCASE, One Press Place, Athens, GA Mar 2016
Residencies
Long Meadow Artist Residency, The Berkshires, MA Feb-May 2024
Foundation House, Greenwich, CT Oct 2023
Volatile House Artist in Residence, Montezuma, GA May 2023
The Creatives Project, Atlanta, GA Feb 2023 - Feb 2025
The Hambidge Center, Rabun Gap, GA Oct 2022
The Hambidge Center, Distinguished Fellow, Rabun Gap, GA Feb 2022 - Mar 2022
Leap Year Residency, MINT ATL, Atlanta, GA Jul 2021 - Jun 2022
The Hambidge Center, Distinguished Fellow, Rabun Gap, GA Sept 2019
Awards
Faculty & Juror Award at &yetagain Apr 2022
3rd Overall at the Decatur Fine Arts Alliance Juried Show May 2021
ArtFields 2019 Category Award: Textiles Apr 2019
Hambidge Center Fulton County Scholarship Sept 2019
Bibliography
Meet Kate Burke, Voyage ATL (http://voyageatl.com/interview/meet-kate-burke-kate-burke-studio-southwest-atlanta/) Feb 2019
Q & A: Artist Kate Burke, Common Creative ATL (https://www.commoncreativatlanta.com/?p=9696) Aug 2018
Speaking
MOCA GA Young Professional Ambassadors Panel December 10th, 2021, Panel facilitator Rachel Irvani, Panel participants: Shawn Campbell, Kelly Taylor Mitchell, Eric Kaepplinger, & Kate Burke