As an interior designer, Mary Burkhardt is surrounded by beautiful
colors, shapes, patterns, and textures. These elements of design—along
with a passion for travel, cooking, and fashion—naturally inform her art.

Her current work is a collection of female figures standing, walking, or
spinning on the shores of Lake Erie. The mood of each painting is reflected
in the color of the sky, signaling an approaching storm or a glowing sunset.
An element of surprise in each composition creates a sense of safety or
danger. The anonymous women, all wearing breezy dresses, take on the
viewer's own narrative of risk and refuge, real or imagined.