Leroy Burt More Art

Artist Comments
People bustle past each other, filling the sidewalks of 42nd Street in New York City. On this sunny winter afternoon, storefronts dazzle with colorful advertisements, while theater marquee lights reflect off restaurant windows. The sounds of traffic mix with the lively beat of Spanish rock music from boom boxes, infusing the air with the vibrant pulse of urban life.

About the Artist
Artist Leroy Burt paints playful, offbeat landscapes and portraits based on his experiences living in Milwaukee, New York, Costa Rica, and currently Rochester, Minnesota. "I think of my paintings as short stories," he says. As a young child, Leroy faced a number of obstacles. His parents divorced when he was four years old and he was raised by his grandparents in a three-room shack without running water or electricity. Leroy worked hard to pull himself out of poverty. He studied graphic design and painting, which led to a 30-year career in graphic design - five years at WMVS, the PBS television station in Milwaukee, fifteen years at city hall in Milwaukee, and ten years at WNET, the PBS station in New York. In 2015, Leroy retired to focus his energy on painting. Today, he works from a tiny studio filled with half-finished paintings stacked against every wall. "There are photos and sketches for future paintings taped everywhere," says Leroy. "My windows are filled with orchids. There are books, films and music CDs in every corner. And the room is dominated by a black and silver Andy Warhol silkscreen...

Artist Comments
One of the vibrant sights of New York City's Chinatown is the wall of posters. Brightly colored layers overlap and peel away, revealing a dynamic mosaic of colors and images. In the painting, bold characters fading from yellow to orange spell out "BIG DISCOUNT," while the smaller text reads "EXCELLENT QUALITY FOOD."

About the Artist
Artist Leroy Burt paints playful, offbeat landscapes and portraits based on his experiences living in Milwaukee, New York, Costa Rica, and currently Rochester, Minnesota. "I think of my paintings as short stories," he says. As a young child, Leroy faced a number of obstacles. His parents divorced when he was four years old and he was raised by his grandparents in a three-room shack without running water or electricity. Leroy worked hard to pull himself out of poverty. He studied graphic design and painting, which led to a 30-year career in graphic design - five years at WMVS, the PBS television station in Milwaukee, fifteen years at city hall in Milwaukee, and ten years at WNET, the PBS station in New York. In 2015, Leroy retired to focus his energy on painting. Today, he works from a tiny studio filled with half-finished paintings stacked against every wall. "There are photos and sketches for future paintings taped everywhere," says Leroy. "My windows are filled with orchids. There are books, films and music CDs in every corner. And the room is dominated by a black and silver Andy Warhol silkscreen...

Artist Comments
"On hot summer afternoons on the East Side of Milwaukee, a young man could often be seen carrying his pet Tegu lizard to Bradford Beach so it could bask in the sun," says artist Leroy Burt...

Artist Comments
A detailed still life of a shop in Chinatown in New York, in the style of David Hockney and Edward Hopper. "One of the many gifts shops in Chinatown that cater to tourists," says artist Leroy Burt...