W. Eugene Burkhart, Jr. is an international floral designer, lecturer and pressed flower artist having entered flower shows since he was six years old (1953) throughout the United States and the world. As an exhibitor he has won over 1,500 prizes, ribbons, trophies and certificates including several Best of Show Awards and the Artistic Sweepstakes at the Philadelphia Flower Show (1994 through 2001, 2003 through 2005). Eugene received the 2005 Pagoda Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Arts given by the Berks Arts Council. In the fall of 2005, he moved his studio to the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts in Reading, PA. At the center, he offers classes and workshops for children, adults, and educators in pressed floral art.

He is a graduate of the State University of New York Agricultural and Technical College in Alfred, with a degree in Floriculture Merchandising. Eugene also earned a degree in Horticulture and Science from the University of Georgia. He completed his graduate studies at Kutztown University in Kutztown, Pennsylvania and received his Special Education and Science Certification. Eugene is a retired special education teacher, having taught children for 35 years. Since 2004, Eugene has been a Junior Achievement Consultant in the elementary schools.

In 1983, he received the Emalyn R. Weiss Educator of the Year Honor Award from the Berks Chapter #806Federation Council for Exceptional Children. In 2000, Eugene was inducted into the Muhlenberg High School Hall of Fame for his international achievements as a pressed flower artist and floral designer. In 2001, Eugene received the Annie Sullivan Educator of the Year Award. He was an instructor for Reading Area Community College for 15 years. The college offered courses in Floral Design, Holiday Decorations and Horticulture. Eugene created and produced two programs for television on Decorating for Christmas. These Programs were televised throughout the Southeastern United States. He has also been seen on PM Magazine, WPVI-TV Philadelphia, WGAL-TV Lancaster, WTVE-TV, WFMZ-TV, Comcast Tonight and several other stations. He has been a guest on several radio programs. In 1999, Eugene became the producer/host of Your Berks Craftsmen on Berks Community Television.

Eugene is a juried member of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen, the Reading-Berks Chapter and the Lehigh Valley Chapter in pressed flower design. He is also a member of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the Berks County Horticultural Club, the Pressed Flower Guild of Europe, the Berks County Arts Council, the Keystone Handicrafters and the American Gardner’s Writers Association. Finally, Eugene is one of the Permanent Managers for the International Pressed Flower Art Society. He is the author of “Decorating Christmas Trees”. Eugene’s designs were selected for the 1st International Pressed Flower Exhibition in Nagano, Japan for 1997. Eugene also lectured at the Exhibition held in the White Ring in Nagano, Japan, and he has been the keynote speaker at the Philadelphia Flower Show. His work has been chosen on several occasions for the Directory of Traditional American Crafts in Early American Home Magazine.

Two of Eugene’s pressed flower designs were chosen for the Second International Pressed Flower Exhibition in Tanabe, Japan for 1999. Also, in 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2001 Eugene’s pressed flower card designs have received several awards in competitions throughout Japan. In these competitions the entries numbered over 14,000 from 14 countries. Eugene's designs have also been on exhibit in England, during the conferences held by the Pressed Flower Guild of Europe. He received the Overseas Award at the conference. In 2001, several of his pressed floral designs were selected for an International Exhibition at the Royal Horticultural Halls in London. In 2003 through 2005, Eugene has won the award for Most Creative Use of Materials in the Best of Pennsylvania Crafts.

Articles and photographs of his designs have been published in The Fertile Press, The Pressed Flower Guild of Europe, The Pennsylvania Crafts, The Philadelphia Flower Show Program, The 1999 Philadelphia Flower Show Video, The Green Scene, Oshibana Art, My Flower Life, Florist Review, International Pressed Flower Designs Vol. 1, American Home Magazine, International Pressed Flower Designs Vol. 3, The Reading Eagle/Times, The Morning Call, The Kutztown Patriot, The Muhlenberg Story 1851-2001, TV Times and the book The Philadelphia Flower Show.

Eugene’s philosophy is “The way nature has fashioned flowers gives us great but short-lived pleasure and delight. I enjoy capturing this delight by pressing and drying plant material to have the perfect medium for creating pictures, designs and decorative items for lasting beauty.

Eugene’s creations can be found in private and corporate collections and galleries throughout the United States, Europe, Japan, Russia and New Zealand.

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