Gregory Burns, MFA, (born 1957) is an American athlete, painter, author, motivational speaker an
member
of Art of the Olympians. As a competitive

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

, Burns represented the USA in the

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

, and

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

Paralympic Games The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

, winning two gold, two silver and one bronze medal; he has set 5 World records and numerous American records. As a contemporary artist, his paintings have been exhibited in over 80 solo exhibitions and group exhibitions in 15 different countries; Burns has conducted 40

Artist-in-Residence Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...

programs around the globe. He is the recipient of the United States Sports Academy’s 2016 Sport Artist of the Year award, (painter). As an author, Burns has published three books in English and Mandarin. As a motivational speaker, Burns has inspired thousands of adults and children while covering a wide range of interests such as sports, arts, motivation, mental wellness, business, culture, and creativity.

Biography

Gregory Burns was born in Washington, D.C. in 1957. His father, Robert J. Burns, served in the diplomatic corps, and as a result he spent 10 years of his childhood abroad. He contracted polio in Jerusalem in 1958, which left him paralyzed from the waist down. At age three, he took to the water to learn to swim. At age six, he began painting lessons while living in Paris. His early schooling took place in France, Germany, Maryland, and the Netherlands. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies with a minor in Fine Art from the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduate ...

(1976-1980), and a Master in Painting (MFA) in 1999 from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Australia. As a competitive

, Burns represented the USA in the

(

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

(

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

), and

(

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

)

, winning two gold medals, two silver medals, and one bronze medal. He set 5 world records in Paralympic swimming and numerous national records. Retiring from the Paralympics in 2004, he transitioned into endurance sporting events; Burns completed the 2006
Korea IronMan race
and th
Singapore Half-IronMan races
in 2007, 2010, 2011, and 2012. Burns is also an avid scuba diver, surfer, hiker, hand cyclist and sit-down snow skier. As a contemporary artist, Burns has been described as an

abstract impressionist Abstract Impressionism is an art movement that originated in New York City, in the 1940s.Eduoard Malingue Gallery. ''Impressionism to Modern Art.'' Hong Kong: Eduard Malingue Gallery, 2011. 10. It involves the painting of a subject such as real-li ...

. Burns conducted postgraduate studies at (1) Cabrillo College, near Santa Cruz, California, studying commercial and fine art (1982-1984), (2) Chung Da University/ National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taiwan, studying Chinese painting & calligraphy and history (in Mandarin; 1984-1985), and (3) Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Melbourne, Australia, earning a Master of Fine Art in Painting (1998-1999). His paintings have been shown in 80 solo exhibitions plus dozens of group exhibitions in 15 countries. Burns has conducted 40

programs around the globe. He is the recipient of the United States Sports Academy’s 2016 Sport Artist of the Year award (painter). As a philanthropist, since 1984, Burns has supported numerous disadvantaged children’s groups and communities throughout Asia and the USA. For several years, the US Embassy sent Burns deep into the fabric of China, Mongolia and Singapore as a Cultural Ambassador to share his uplifting message with thousands of locals. In the spirit of Robin Hood, Burns has endeavored to inspire people with disabilities and children who have experienced trauma or poverty to rise above their limitations. During a charity auction in Beijing, one of Burns' paintings sold for USD $90,000 which was used to build a school in rural China. As an author, Burns has published three books: ''Painted Journey'' (2005) and ''The Art of Mindfulness'' (2014) in English, and ''Color Your Life'' (2008) in Mandarin. As a motivational speaker, Burns' topics include the following: • Beyond Limitations, One Step at a Time: Going beyond self-imposed limitations. • The Hero’s Journey: Referencing Joseph Campbell’s seminal writings on the stages of life. • Adapting & Balancing Work and Personal Life: Maintaining a holistic view of one’s personal and professional activities. • The Artist’s Journey: Embracing the artist within. • Disability Awareness: Embracing disability and diversity. Burns also conducts arts-based, team-building, and creativity workshops with the following themes: • Visualizing Company Culture through Art: Hands-on art-making workshop. • Shared Mind-sets of Great Leaders & Artists: Identifying 6 critical approaches to business and creativity, which successful Leaders and Artists have in common.

Medals

* 1992 IX Summer Paralympics,

** Men's 100 m Breaststroke SB4, Silver Medal ** Men's 4×50 m Medley Relay S1–6, Bronze Medal * 1996 X Summer Paralympics,

** Men's 100 m Backstroke S6, Silver Medal ** Men's 4×50 m Freestyle Relay S1–6, Gold Medal ** Men's 4×50 m Medley Relay S1–6, Gold Medal

Records

World Records in Swimming The world records in swimming are ratified by FINA, the international governing body of swimming. Records can be set in long course (50 metres) or short course (25 metres) swimming pools. FINA recognizes world records in the following events fo ...

** 1981, Men's 50 m Backstroke,

International Stoke Mandeville Games The International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports (IWAS) World Games (or IWAS World Games) are a multi-sport competition for athletes with a disability, which were the forerunner of the Paralympic Games. The competition has been formerly known as t ...

, England ** 1992, Men's 100 m Breaststroke SB4 (Time in qualifying heat: 1:44.21), IX Summer Paralympics,

** 1996, Men's 100 m Backstroke S6 (Time: 1:20.65), X Summer Paralympics,

** 1996, Men's 4×50 m Freestyle Relay S1–6 (Team Time: 2:38.13), X Summer Paralympics,

** 1996, Men's 4×50 m Medley Relay S1–6 (Team Time: 2:39.28), X Summer Paralympics,

* American Records in Swimming ** 1977, 5 USA Records, USA Nationals ** 1992, Men's 100 m Breaststroke SB4 (Time in qualifying heat: 1:44.21), IX Summer Paralympics,

** 1996, Men's 50 m Breaststroke SB4 (Time: 47.50), Indianapolis ** 1996, Men's 200 m Individual Medley SM6 (Time: 3:19.68), X Summer Paralympics,

** 1996, Men's 100 m Backstroke S6 (Time: 1:20.65), X Summer Paralympics,

** 2000, Men's 200 m Backstroke S6 (Time: 2:55.07), Minneapolis ** 2000, Men's 4x50 m Freestyle Relay 20 pts. Class (Team Time: 2:52.79), XI Summer Paralympics,

Bibliography

* ''Painted Journey'', Gregory Burns, Singapore, 2005. * ''Color Your Life'' (Mandarin), Gregory Burns, Taiwan, 2008.

References

External links