Artist’s Statement: Innerscapes — Bernie Wilke
My recent paintings and installations feature intense colors and strong dark/light contrasts
to show life and energy inside traumatized physical bodies. The work reveals vibrant and vast
spaces beyond the scarred and bruised surface of the skin to show vitality that exists deeper inside us.
Unseen sources of light pervade the internal areas of the body, alluding to an expanse of space
that may suggest a larger, healing perspective in the midst of carnal pain.
Seeing beyond surface appearances has always come naturally to me. Part of my practice
as an artist is to look deeply at everything. When it comes to our bodies, there is so much
going on inside us — motivations, pains, processes — that remains hidden to the outside world.
The Innerscapes series illuminates the inner life inside us, while showing both real and symbolic
wounds we bear on our bodies.
My recent paintings and installations feature intense colors and strong dark/light contrasts
to show life and energy inside traumatized physical bodies. The work reveals vibrant and vast
spaces beyond the scarred and bruised surface of the skin to show vitality that exists deeper inside us.
Unseen sources of light pervade the internal areas of the body, alluding to an expanse of space
that may suggest a larger, healing perspective in the midst of carnal pain.
Seeing beyond surface appearances has always come naturally to me. Part of my practice
as an artist is to look deeply at everything. When it comes to our bodies, there is so much
going on inside us — motivations, pains, processes — that remains hidden to the outside world.
The Innerscapes series illuminates the inner life inside us, while showing both real and symbolic
wounds we bear on our bodies.
Artist Bio – Bernie Wilke
Bernie Wilke has established himself as a visual artist who is committed to working in community settings.
A desire to work with communities to bring inspiring art into shared spaces has been the driving force in
his career. After completing his B.A. in Visual Arts from Antioch College, Bernie received his M.F.A. in Studio
Art from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2001. Since then, Bernie has completed over 80 community
murals in places such as schools, main streets, community centers, nursing homes, and churches.
Part of his vision is to continue to utilize the power of art to strengthen communities and cultivate
personal and societal wellness through beauty and collaboration.
Sharing his love for art has led Bernie to be an active teacher since 1997. Along with grade schools and colleges,
he has prioritized teaching in therapeutic settings such as youth homes and prisons. His artist residencies involve
leading students in permanent curriculum-based murals, where the students do most of the work from design
to completion. Students creatively explore with a wide range of materials and media, including video and
movement, to help synthesize what they are learning. These explorations provide a flow of ideas that are useful
for developing the mural and the students’ own artwork.
Bernie also pursues his individual studio work -- a body of paintings and mixed media works (called Innerscapes)
that show life, color, and energy inside traumatized physical bodies. The Innerscapes series reveals vibrant
spaces beyond the scarred and bruised surface of the skin to show vitality that exists deeper inside us.
His studio work has been featured in over 35 juried exhibitions, with 5 being solo exhibitions.
Bernie Wilke has established himself as a visual artist who is committed to working in community settings.
A desire to work with communities to bring inspiring art into shared spaces has been the driving force in
his career. After completing his B.A. in Visual Arts from Antioch College, Bernie received his M.F.A. in Studio
Art from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2001. Since then, Bernie has completed over 80 community
murals in places such as schools, main streets, community centers, nursing homes, and churches.
Part of his vision is to continue to utilize the power of art to strengthen communities and cultivate
personal and societal wellness through beauty and collaboration.
Sharing his love for art has led Bernie to be an active teacher since 1997. Along with grade schools and colleges,
he has prioritized teaching in therapeutic settings such as youth homes and prisons. His artist residencies involve
leading students in permanent curriculum-based murals, where the students do most of the work from design
to completion. Students creatively explore with a wide range of materials and media, including video and
movement, to help synthesize what they are learning. These explorations provide a flow of ideas that are useful
for developing the mural and the students’ own artwork.
Bernie also pursues his individual studio work -- a body of paintings and mixed media works (called Innerscapes)
that show life, color, and energy inside traumatized physical bodies. The Innerscapes series reveals vibrant
spaces beyond the scarred and bruised surface of the skin to show vitality that exists deeper inside us.
His studio work has been featured in over 35 juried exhibitions, with 5 being solo exhibitions.
