My bio and artists statement

About Me... My name is Peggy von Burkleo, I am an Irish and German American, and have been an artist for most of my life. It was when I was 17 that I fell in love with Celtic Knotwork. My mother and I were on a trip to Ireland and the beautiful designs all over the ruins of Ireland captivated me. There are a lot of ruins in Ireland. History is everywhere, and every place and everything has a story behind it. There is a sense of continuity as well. a sense of connection to place, to family, to history that is lacking in America. As a teenager, it made a big impression on me, and going across the ocean to a place where the people, the land, even the weather were how I felt in my heart home is has never left me. I have always loved stories, mythology, legends, and fairytales, and as an adult I have developed a fascination with the symbols that cloak fact in cultural icons, be they myths, legends, or folktales. The meanings behind symbols often represent larger truths that carry the heart of the cultures values and beliefs in them. Celtic knotwork is inherently full of symbolism and it's images relate to the mythos of the celtic people. In traditional Celtic cultures, there is no sense of division between the mundane and the transcendent. Energies flow freely between one and the other. Celtic artwork is no exception. Beautiful images of powerful spiritual truths are found on the most ordinary objects. I include references to these symbols beside each image in my shop as a way of sharing with people the wealth of truths found in the mythos of the celtic people.