“The arts are the heart and soul of a community”: An interview with visual arts instructor Jo Ellen Burke

“The arts are the heart and soul of a community. We learn about each other, about differences and similarities, about struggles and human nature.”

For decades, Jo Ellen Burke has been a leading voice for our region art’s community. In addition to being the president of the Eau Claire Public Arts Council, she’s also assisted and overseen the Eau Claire’s sculpture tour, among other community-wide efforts. When she’s not creating her own art, she’s supporting her fellow artists by way of 200 Main, a gallery and wine bar she co-owns with artist Terry Meyer. Next summer, make something great alongside Jo!

1.)   Tell us a bit about your “art origin story”.  When did you first fall in love with your art?

I had this propensity for art at a young age– drawing especially, and was encouraged by my parents, especially my mom who did fashion drawing for some magazines. I thought I’d gotten this ability from her, until watching my grandpa (on my dad’s side) do some doodling and realized he was talented as well. Way back in the ‘dark ages’, there were few options for careers for women, other than nurse, teacher, and ‘well’ they’d say, ‘maybe you could be an artist if you don’t want to earn any money’. I decided to go to college in that field (who needed money in the 70’s, right?), receiving an art degree from UW-Madison. I later got another degree and masters in teaching, not following the art path until I retired, 25 years later!

At this point in my life, I’ve been privileged to follow my heart, and plunge into the world of art, recently establishing an art studio for teaching kids, and more recently opening an art gallery. I love being around art, but need the practice of doing my own art as well. I feel most alive when I’m creating, using my hands and my imagination. 

2.)   What role have teachers played in your development as an artist?  Any one stand out?

Having been a teacher for many years, I have the utmost respect and admiration for those inspirational and compassionate teachers. It took just a little encouragement from a high school art teacher to give me motivation to fuel my passion, and off I went! I try to remember this as I work with children; the power of a teacher and his/her words is tremendous. 

3.)   Can you share a bit about your pedagogical approach?  How do you create a supportive and creative atmosphere in the classroom?

What a great question! Having taught elementary and middle school, I admit to often preferring children over adults. Their candor, authenticity and energy make for such inspiring interactions. In the early 80’s I was fascinated by the differences in my own daughters’ learning facets; how they problem-solved, what challenged them, etc. Through this, and my work with students, I embraced Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligence Theory, which essentially honors the complexity of our intelligence, and the multi-faceted way of ‘being smart’. The question ‘how smart are you’ evolved to more inclusively ask, ‘how are you smart’, with 8 different identified intelligences instead of one. I ultimately shared these theories as a consultant for universities and other educational groups.

Within that realm of intelligence emerged approaches to teaching that provided for project-based learning, recognition for constructivist settings, away from private toward authentic, public culture. There’s a recent term that describes my pedagogical approach, creating an atmosphere of community in the classroom, which I believe is essential to real learning: Placed-based Education. It’s really just a foundation of local culture, history and heritage, recognizing the need for students to truly participate in projects that serve their local school and community.  This practice, coupled with a core of respect and compassion in the classroom opens the door to learning and, as important, application of learning to our larger world. 

4.)   What excites you most about the Midwest Artist Academy?

What an honor to be a part of the Academy!  With B.J. heading this endeavor, there was no doubt in my mind that it will be successful. I’m most excited about the collaborations with other people and institutions, the chance to foster creativity and learning in students, and the likely ripple effects it will have across our communities. What is really cool, is that it is so inclusive of so many types of students!

5.)    How can art make the world a better place?  Can you share a personal example?

It seems that the healthiest, strongest and most thriving cultures are those which embrace the arts. The arts are the heart and soul of a community. We learn about each other, about differences and similarities, about struggles and human nature.

'“Without art, without our museums, without the bands and choirs from our schools, without the empathic plays and dance from our theatres, or the books from our libraries, or the festivals of literature and painting, we’re left with a society bereft of national conversation, about its identity or anything else,” said Sir Peter Bazalgette.

Once, as I was facilitating a project for 8-to-12 year olds which involved studying our sister city, Lismore, Australia, we created a large 3-dimensional piece celebrating Lismore’s indigenous ‘didgeridoos.’  A student commented, “Do you suppose the kids in Lismore, Australia might be making something to celebrate our City, like Paul Bunyan or something?” Art makes