Casey Burge paints murals, also illustrates for children’s book company
LYNDEN — Casey Burge is an artist. Burge enjoys art. Maybe more accurately, art “is more on the verge of a gripping obsession” for Burge.
When she was quite young, Burge would “hyperfocus on my drawing and would have to be reminded to take breaks to eat, hydrate or even use the restroom.” To this day, Burge needs to make art regularly “or else I tend to feel as though I’ve lost a part of myself, my identity.”
Recently, Sahara Pizza opened its 18th restaurant, this time in Lynden. Dan and Tiffeny McDowell, two of the location’s owners, live near Burge and her family.
“I mentioned we’d like a mural done, as we also have one at our Birch Bay location, and I love supporting real artists as I happen to be one myself,” Tiffeny McDowell said. “I knew Casey had done Black Sheep in Bellingham’s logo and asked if she would be willing to do a mural for us and she was immediately for it. We’re truly thankful for her, her talent and professionalism.”
Tiffeny said she and Dan “had a very rough idea of what we wanted” for the mural.
“Dan specially wanted a windmill with pizza slices,” Tiffeny said. “But we did know we wanted it to describe Lynden and include what Lynden stands for but also include pizza, of course. Casey took what we had and elevated it. I have to say the Dutch girls eating and delivering pizza are our favorite.”
Burge said the Sahara mural “was something that fell into my lap.”
“As we got to know each other, it came up that I am a professional illustrator and artist,” Burge said. “I immediately started on an extremely rough sketch of an idea I had to implement pizza into a map of Lynden and from there I found a color palette I thought would match both Sahara and Lynden’s cheerful vibes and hand-mixed all the colors myself.”
Burge explained that while at home she decided to include iconic images showing off Lynden’s Dutch heritage such as the windmill and some Dutch women in traditional clothing.
“So I drew them on paper and then transferred those drawings to the wall at Sahara,” Burge said. “Painting came next, which took two months (and some change) to complete, for which I am very grateful to the staff at Sahara Pizza for their patience.”
A professional artist, illustrator and logo designer, Burge has had a passion for art pretty much from the start. Her mother introduced her to artists such as Cassat, da Vinci, Matisse, Monet and Picasso.
“We always had books in our home that I would weave through regularly with pictures of their work,” Burge said. “She was always coming up with some new craft for my siblings and I to do and never tired of seeing my artwork. She has always had a smile and encouragement, even when my drawings were simple stick figures at the age of 3 or 4.”
Although she said she’s always been interested in art, Burge’s first career aspiration was to become an astronaut.
“I was raised on plenty of science fiction novels and films and fell in love with space,” she said. “But drawing never ceased for me. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever stopped drawing or painting for more than three months.”
Burge also grew up playing soccer. In fact, she played collegiately at McNeese State University in Louisiana. At the time her plans included an English major with a focus on creative writing. However, a telephone call with her mother helped redirect Burge.
“She posed the question ‘what would you regret not doing?’ Burge recalled. “I knew the answer before she had asked.”
Burge took a year off after college — then committed to the New York Academy of Art to pursue a Masters in Fine Art with a focus in painting.
“I had very little experience with paint as a medium and wanted to learn more,” she said. “To me, that’s what school is for, not simply a piece of paper and some title.”
At the art academy, Burge studied artistic human anatomy and figure drawing classes, “even an array of animals as well as a chance to draw cadavers from life at a local college.”
Because Burge has always been a reader, one of her goals as an artist is making illustrations for children’s books.
Recently, that desire was realized when she signed a contract with a new children’s book publishing company called Lavender Book Co.
“I have always felt that books had a large effect on my upbringing and decision in remaining creative and I am now a mother of two young children whom I hope to inspire to live their passions,” Burge said.
Catherine Parry is the owner and founder of the Lavender Book Co. She said she has a goal of making classic feeling children’s books.
“A huge portion of that is having physical illustrators only,” Parry said. “I adored Casey’s paintings. She had a very clear signature across all of her pieces, she loves to play with color — almost bending reality in color — and I was enthralled at the texture her work brings. There is so much emotion tied up there.”
Parry explained that she and Burge “both found ourselves frustrated with a majority of modern children’s books and wanted to make a change.”
“It was ultimately her passion and pure love for creating that let me know I had to bring her on,” Parry said. “I can teach almost anyone the technical side of constructing a children’s book, but the innate love for something so pure as art cannot be taught.”
Burge said she also will continue to ask local businesses if they would like to wholesale her art prints, bookmarks, greeting cards and stickers, to name a few things, with a plan to “diversify my income to better strategize and support my passion as well as my family.”
“I have shown my work in a couple galleries in New York, Louisiana and even in England,” she said. “But I am currently not focused on specifically exhibiting in formal galleries until I have more time and financial stability to do so.”
Burge and her husband Zach have two daughters, Finley is 3 and Indy is 6. She explains her youngest only recently showed an interest in drawing, the eldest “has been drawing since she was introduced to it as a baby.”
Although Burge doesn’t sketch as much these days “as a busy mother and business owner,” she recently began to work with gouache paint. Pronounced “gwash,” Burge said she likes the medium “as it dries quickly and it is more challenging for me to muck up the colors which are incredibly vibrant in gouache.”
“I have to work quickly and I’ve found this suits me far more than oils,” she said. “Though my deepest love will always remain graphite pencil on paper.”
See Burge’s mural at Sahara Pizza, in the Bender Plaza at 8874 Bender Road, Suite 109A.