August Burns is an American realist painter. She was inspired by the tradition of classical Renaissance art as well as nineteenth century European figurative painters. She was mentored as a teenager by artist Charles Nevad and has since studied with some of the best contemporary figurative artists. Burns’ work focuses on the human figure and portraits.
“The focus of my life and my work has always been people, that tiny nuance that makes each person unique. What is that slight shift of line or shadow that creates the recognizable image, that allows the individual to shine through. My process is to paint or draw from life, interviewing my subject and listening, and in some way capturing their stories through marks on paper or canvas.”
My parallel life has been in global women’s health, delivering hundreds of babies and caring for women from Vermont to Bolivia to Tanzania. Each child, each person has their own story, no two faces are alike. My goal is to find that person through portrait and share their story through their gaze.