"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochrome color. Using press molds, hemp branches, sand, gravel and many layers of hand-mixed pigment, Burns creates surreal, botanical landscapes that balance the delicate imagery of flowers and plants against the strong tactile qualities of concrete, plaster and grit.
In this work entitled "Ultrablue Garden 05,” three-dimensional elements cast shadows across a bluer-than-blue surface, drawing you deep into the wall of color and recreating the “push and pull between your body and the natural world” when the mind is quiet and at peace with its surroundings. Personal mementos and found objects unearthed while gardening are buried beneath the vibrant color, layering the work with hidden details and artifacts of a shared past. Tucked within the branches are lost race cars, scrap hardware and little toy soldiers – a keepsake of Burns’ tough, masculine upbringing. A process of introspection and self-discovery, the colorful garden invites us to explore the tangled narratives embedded within ourselves.
"Ultrablue Garden 05," 2024
Patrick Burns
Pigment, gesso, acrylic paint, plaster, concrete, and found objects on wood board. Unframed.
