User:Jharke

Jerry Harke - Photographer and Novelist
Jerry Harke is a prominent photograher whose work has been recognized worldwide. He is the owner of JR Harke Photography, Inc. and lives and works in Northern, Virginia. He was born March 19, 1948 in Beaver, Oklahoma and grew up in the midwestern part of the United States. Harke calls photography an inspiration, a creative labor requiring both heart and soul. His professional life has placed him in the related worlds of advertising, publishing, communications, and art and he continues to remain in the presence of and work closely with others involved in photography, modeling, print, broadcast, graphic arts and design. Harke's work is frequently exhibited at the MOCA DC Gallery in Georgetown, Washington, DC, as well as other area galleries. His photographic interests encompass a wide variety of subjects including still life, landscape, commercial product advertising, architecture, portraits, fine art and nude figure art, flowers, animals, and travel locations. Harke's work often involves beautiful models posing for retail fashion shoots as well as figure art. Jerry Harke has published two books showcasing his photography. The first was The Edwardian Lawn Dress: Gentle and Timeless. The second is a book that explores the beauty of love between women titled In Sappho's Secret Garden: A Thesaurus of Love, and the third is a classic book on nude figure art titled, Nu Figure Art en Noir et Blanc. The first book, featuring the Edwardian Lawn Dress, was published in 2007 and includes the poetry of Keith Winston which accompanies Harke's images of modern-day women wearing Edwardian Lawn Dresses from the period 1898-1910. Winston's poetry also appeared in Harke's second book and the two are collaborating on Nu Figure Art en Noir et Blanc, which is scheduled for publication in late 2008. Harke is also a novelist and has published two works of fiction. The first is titled Lock Knot. It is a book of espionage, detective work, romance, and murder, all set in the year 1942 at a time when events were taking place that would determine the outcome of World War II. His second novel, On Hell's Doorstep, tells the 1935 story of a farm family, murdered en masse, at their farm home on the High Plains during the Great Depression. Harke drew heavily from his own experiences growing up on the High Plains and includes real-life bank robbers in the story including John Dillinger, Bonnie and Clyde, and others.