Jacquie Dyrke uses acrylic to paint rock animals. Her late husband, Wayne Dyrke, created watercolor and acrylic paintings.
Wayne painted landscapes, cityscapes, still-life and portraits. He exhibited in invitational shows, art fairs and galleries since the early sixties. His painting, “The Port of Galena,” was used for the 2004 Grand Excursion advertising campaign.
Jacquie uses naturally formed granite or limestone rocks as the canvas for her rock animals that are preserved with three layers of flat acrylic finish coat. Her animals were featured at the Brookfield Zoo in the Chicago area for many years, seen in galleries from the East Coast to the Midwest, and displayed in collections around the world.
The talented couple moved to the Galena area in 1990 from Chicago, the source of their art education. Wayne Dyrke attended the American Academy of Art in Chicago and was a commercial illustrator for 40 years. Jacquie Dyrke received her art education at the Art Institute of Chicago and worked as a commercial artist in Chicago for 12 years.