Wow… can I just say WOW. I have been using wordpress for ages and upgrading has ALWAYS been annoying and nerv racking. Well now ladies and gents, it really is easy as pie. If you haven’t already seen this I suggest you give it a look as it is amazing. Anywho… its amazing.

Burke Shartsis

So my senor gallery show is now open. It has taken a lot of work but now you can come and check it out.

Fake Empire is a visual responce to one question. What happens when the communication systems and media outlets that we currently rely on are severed?

The reception is tonight at 7pm and any one is welcome to come out and take a look. All the galleries will be open. Fallowing the reception I will be heading out for dinner and some drinks at a location to be announced tonight.

The gallery will be open until Thursday so feel free to stop by at anytime. Just leave a comment if you plan on coming to I can arrange with you to make sure the gallery is open.

Burke Shartsis

Start Time: Monday, April 28, 2008 at 10:00am
End Time: Thursday, May 1, 2008 at 5:00pm
Location: Gallery 5, SJSU Art Building
City/Town: San Jose, CA

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So I just got done doing some late night work on campus. Expect pictures soon. Also mark your calenders and start your countdowns because my gallery opens in one week. The official part is Tuesday night at 7am, Gallery 5 in the SJSU art building. I don’t care who you are, show up and have some free food and drink.

In other news, I am still looking for an awesome graphic design job come graduation. Print and/or web I don’t care, I’m flexible. Anyone with connections and or recommendations contact me.

Burke Shartsis

Art is made in many ways and as such is manifested in many forms. Music, next to God, is probably the biggest influence in my life. Unfortunately I can not hold a tune to save my life and as a result have no musical talent whatsoever. What that does make me is a huge music fan. I listen to a lot of music. It is way more then just sounds to me and as an artist I fuel off of it. I mention all of this because while many view music as an art form it seems like it is never given the same kind of credit as other art mediums. Understanding the relationship between the artist, the works they create, and the inspirations behind them is one of my favorite things to study. Truth be told its the only way I can approach art history. But what I am getting at with all this is really just about something I experienced, or should I say experience on a regular basis. You see, if you haven’t listened to Sigur Rós then you are missing out a true musical experience. Recently, they released a DVD entitled Heima. There were many purposes to the film all of which are explained when watching but what I find interesting is the placement of imagery with sound. The choices of colors and movements of the camera make for an interesting thought.

This is what of course drew me to the film but what brought me to blog was a description comment made during the film about how they make their music. They talk about how they sit down and just start playing in different spaces. How the sounds they create are the result of the atmosphere they create in that space and how it makes them feel. What struck me about this was that it is exactly how I create my art. I just found the whole thing rather connected.

Below is Heima in its entirety as it was graciously uploaded by the band themselves to YouTube. It’s pretty amazing so give it a watch or better yet, go out and buy it.

Burke Shartsis

I updated my portfolio to include a few new projects. Graduation is around the corner and its time to start looking for job opportunities so I threw a small little update into the portfolio. Go check out the portfolio and let me know what you think.

Burke Sharsis

So I have been at home for the holidays and with it came some free time. I put it to good use by finishing up Sugarhill’s new online store. It went live two days ago and has been drawing lots of attention. With it came a small update to the website as well. Keep an eye on Sugarhill’s site and store as there will be periodic updates. So go take a look and help me out and buy something!

Burke Shartsis

Well ladies and gents, this project has come to an end today. It has been a great week of true reality television but unfortunately all great things must come to and end. For What is Reality’s last day on the SJSU campus I decided to do something a little different and see if anybody would notice. Rather then the typical bench scene I have been using I decided I would place it in a very public space that allowed for viewers to walk around the piece. My hopes was that people would end up looking through to see someone standing on the other side looking back in a much closer proximity then the scenes from other days allowed. But, thats all done now. As for the future, this sculpture is looking for a new home. Anyone interested in purchasing this piece for their private collection or for public display else where is more then welcome to contact me. All funds raised from the sale of this project will go to the Help Burke Travel Fund as it is in desperate need of funds. Anyone looking to donate to this lovely charity is also encouraged to contact me. Below is a finalized map of my installations various locations on the SJSU campus from this week as well as pictures from Friday’s location. For anyone visiting for the first time a complete description of the project can be found here. Lastly, I am looking for an accomplished photographer willing to take some interesting photos of this piece as photography is not my strong suit. Anyone interested please contact me ASAP. Thank you to everyone who has supported me in this project, helped with its construction, provided feedback, and/or simply accompanied me in the middle of the night while I moved it. You are all appreciated…

Burke Shartsis

Day three has come and gone and What is Reality? will be staring in its last roll on the SJSU campus tomorrow so be sure to find it if you haven’t already. This week long exhibition has been a real fun experience for me and thank you to anybody who has taken the time to speak with me about the piece or sent me emails in regards to it, you are all very much so appreciated. Below are pictures from today and an updated map for those wondering where it might have been. For anyone visiting for the first time today looking for more information on the project there is a complete explanation posted here. Thank you again for your time and I hope you can make it out to see this piece one last time tomorrow.

Burke Shartsis

What Is Reality? made its third appearance on the SJSU campus today. From what I could tell people enjoyed it. I have yet to get any comments here on the blog so I can’t really tell what people think outside of what people have told me in person while I was shooting pictures. There was a family of squirrels around while I was shooting pictures so I couldn’t resist taking a few pictures. I threw them up in the gallery for anyone interested. Also, I would like to apologize for anybody who visited the site earlier today only to find out it was down. There were a few issues to be taken care of but all is settled. Anywho… for those who missed the piece today there is a map below showing its last three locations and be sure to keep an eye out for it tomorrow as it will, of course, be somewhere new. For anyone who discovered this project today and is looking for more information there is a full description of the piece posted two days ago here. That is all for now…

Burke Shartsis

As promised here are some pictures of my project What Is Reality? and its latest location. For those of you who are visiting for the first time, a project description can be found here in yesterday’s post. That is all for now… keep an eye out for it tomorrow as it will, of course, be in a new location providing a different look at the reality that surrounds us.

Burke Shartsis