Bio 

 

Hannah Burnworth is the artist behind Milk House Studio and founder of Milk House Gallery in North Manchester, IN.  Burnworth has degrees in both art education and studio art.  She has been teaching art in the Indiana public schools and through private workshops for the last 20 years.  In addition to teaching, Burnworth loves to create all things paper.  Her collage and stitched paper pieces celebrate creativity and design, bringing together a love for texture, color, nature and experiences in motherhood. 

 

 

One of Burnworth’s greatest accomplishments is sharing her love of art with her students and she is honored to have been recognized as Outstanding Educator of the Year through Fort Wayne’s Scholastic Art and Writing Region multiple times. 

 

Burnworth has had the honor of showing solo at Artlink Gallery in Fort Wayne, IN, Wunderkammer Gallery in Fort Wayne, IN and 3rd on 3rd Gallery in Jamestown, NY.   Her work has been displayed as part of many group shows including the annual “Painting at Night” exhibition in Troy, NY and “Modern Craft” at the Indianapolis Arts Center.  In 2024 Burnworth’s work was featured at the Indianapolis State Museum as part of IN the Abstract, a celebration of abstract works across Indiana.  Burnoworth’s work has been published through Uppercase Magazine, Candy Floss Magazine, Visionary Arts Magazine and has been featured on I Like Your Work Podcast and Artist/Mother Podcast.  Most recently, Burnworth’s work was highlighted by The Jealous Curator.

 

Artist Statement

 

Burnworth’s stitched and painted collage pieces explore routines, rhythms, and cycles found in both the natural world and in the lives of women, especially mothers. Bits of paper remain flexible, able to be shifted, layered, and rearranged as needed. Thread literally and figuratively binds the work, much like a mother binds her family together. The act of stitching offers a quiet nod to traditional women’s work, honoring the generations of labor, care, and creativity that have often gone unseen. 

A series of paper symbols reflects my long-standing fascination with the vessel and its deep relationship to the body and the feminine. Mothers become vessels, carrying children before birth. They carry hope, responsibility, laundry, and milk. They anoint, nourish, and sustain. They pour out, dry up, and refill. Mothers protect and water the seed, trusting that with time something will grow from what has been planted. The recurring paper vessels and botanical forms become unique expressions of that growth and endurance. Women often become nourishers—not only of children, but of grandchildren, students, friends, mentees, and entire communities. l generosity.

In addition to vessels, paper plant and animal forms represent layered ideas connected to both motherhood and the natural world. Deer suggest tenderness, gentleness, and attentive care. Birds symbolize freedom, hope, and the delicate balance between earth and sky. Plant life, of course, highlights the intricate cycles embedded in all living things—seed, root, bloom, decay, and renewal. These natural elements mirror the repetitive yet transformative rhythms of daily life.