Andrea is an artist who lives outside of Pella, Iowa.  She does commissioned work for patrons as well as her own works of art.  During her 38 year career as an art educator, her paintings demonstrated a wide range of media and techniques.  She participated in many workshops, then shared those new found skills with her students.   She believes art history is an important aspect of art education and as she taught different artist techniques with her students, she fell in love with the work of Georgia O'Keefe and Helen Frankenthaler.  She also became interested in architectural forms and how light and shadow played a crucial role in the composition like the work of Winslow Homer. The combination of these interests and artists has culminated into Andrea's most recent work, acrylic ink stain paintings on raw canvas depicting organic and architectural compositions.  

 

Andrea is working on a body of work depicting scenes from her travels as she continues to study and photograph the architecture, nature and culture wherever she goes.  Andrea served as a teacher leader for a student ambassador organization which allowed her to travel with students to France, Germany, Spain, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Greece, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Australia, and New Zealand.  She was influenced by the art and architecture of all of these countries and shared what she experienced with her students.

 

The daughter of a Reformed Church minister, Andrea was influenced by urban culture on the East Coast as she grew up but appreciated the organic roots of her ancestors in the Midwest, learning the art of craftsmanship from her mother who loved gardening and quilting.  After moving with her family from the Catskills to Pella, Iowa in 1976 and marrying a farmer in 1981, she found herself painting her surroundings, farm scenes and Pella's historical Dutch architecture.  

​

Andrea (Busker) Van Wyk was an Art Educator at Pella Community Schools from 1984 after graduating from Central College in Pella, Iowa until May of 2022, where she taught eight different exploratory art classes at the middle school and Art Appreciation at the high school for Des Moines Area Community College.  She continues to teach the art education methods classes at Central College and supervises student teachers. Andrea has also taught visual art classes at Pella Christian and Pella Community High School as well as summer classes at the Pella Community Art Center and for Upward Bound at Central College.  

 

Andrea was a member of the National Art Education Association and the Art Educators of Iowa.  She was involved with New Art Basics, a research project through the Department of Art and Design at Iowa State University where she earned her Masters in Art Education in 1997.  She earned the status of Signature Member of the Iowa Watercolor Society and is currently a member of the Des Moines Paint Pushers group.

 

Andrea and her husband, Mike, live on a farm east of Pella.  Mike continues to farm and coach for Pella High. They have two children, Sarah Flaherty (married to Dan) with four grandchildren, Anneke, Quinn, Graham, and Rowan, and a son Ross (married to Madelyn) Van Wyk with a son, Callum.  Andrea’s future plans are to spend as much time as possible with her family and to continue to paint.