Bobbie Burgers is a Vancouver artist best known for her large scale paintings. You might know her best for her painting that was hung in The Jervis Display Home.
What inspired you to paint flowers?
“When I first started painting it was all flowers and landscapes, very literal and traditional items,” says Bobbie. “I think of myself as a colourist, so flowers have always been a great output. There are so many colours and movements that can be explored. Over time my art has rebelled from the traditional and taken on a more imperfect, abstract form. My hope is that the work is seen as more alive and that florals aren’t necessarily the first thing to come to mind, but instead the idea of movement or transition.”
What was your inspiration for Harmony #1, the painting displayed in The Jervis Display Home?
All homes at The Jervis where designed around the idea that you could put real, house sized furniture and art in your home. It was agreed that we needed a stellar art piece in the space to show this. Nancy Bendtsen had the idea to reach out to Bobbie and ask her if she would be interested in creating a piece for the space.
“I actually created three pieces and Nancy picked her favourite,” says Bobbie. “The painting is inspired by a previous painting I’d done. I chose something with bold, primary colours to add life to the space.”
Needless to say, Bobbie’s piece has been a hit and it now lives in the Intracorp head office.
I read that you have a studio in Vancouver and the Okanagan. How do these studios differ?
“The Vancouver studio is 3000 sqft. It’s where I do the majority of my work. I use the space to store art, work on multiple pieces at once and let pieces I’m working on rest.”
“[The Okanagan] studio is a great space for inspiration. It’s located on an orchard. I’m able to spend time wandering the orchard and working in my garden. The work I do here is usually smaller scale and even some drawings.”
What is your connection to this years Interior Design Show Vancouver?
“IDS is doing something a bit different this year. They’ve paired local designers with a designer from the Netherlands for a series of talks called The Mix. I’ve been paired with two women, Stefanie van Keijsteren and Renee Menen of Studio RENS. RENS is a research-based design studio that undertakes projects strongly influenced by colour. They do lots of work with the dying and dipping of carpets, pottery and wall hangings. Our tie will be that we both work closely with colour. Also, the events takes place at my studio. This is exciting because how often do you get to tour a working studio?”