Joseph Burke 1948 -2007

Accomplished coach painter and sign writer on monumental masonary before studying sculpture at Wolverhampton. Since finishing his degree, he taught art related subjects in a range of schools and colleges in and around Manchester up until his death. He was also an accomplished printmaker and had incredible drawing skills. 

Joe took a studio space with Woodend Artists Association in 1993, and was one of the first to work here as an artist. Joe was a quiet and unassuming man who had a wicked sense of humour and a huge knowledge of the history of art and contemporary art scene.

When not teaching and visiting galleries, he spent his time in his studio painting huge canvasses.

At the time of his death, Joe was also working on a new range of paintings. These were his Satellite paintings, they were three dimensional and quite small in comparison to his other work.

Works by Joseph Burke were discovered in 2018. They have been professionally cleaned and are available to buy from The Forgotten Gallery.

Earth, land and sea form the basis of the work. The pieces are intended to be contemplative as it is the feeling of nothingness that is found in nature and its vastness that influences the use of colour and shape.

This is the world as imagined and not as it is seen, though reference is often made to the weather and the erosion of land and sea, by nature and by man

Joseph Burke