14 SEPTEMBER 2019 | gardenandhome.co.za
CREATIVE SPIRIT
TEXTCANDICE BOTHAPHOTOGRAPHSSALLY CHANCEANDSUPPLIEDSOURCE Megan Bonnetard [email protected]DurbanartistMeganBonnetard’s
still-lifescenesaregentleanddreamlike
CAPTURING
What is your background in art? I have always loved being
an artist – it’s the only thing I’m good at. I studied Fine Art at
Natal Technikon after matriculating, but didn’t appreciate the
opportunity or complete the course. Life took a series of wrong
turns, but in 2001 I enrolled for a Bachelor of Visual Arts at
Unisa and graduated in 2015.
You work mainly in oils. What appeals to you about this
medium? The study of art through Unisa was conceptually
driven, focusing on experimentation with media. I didn’t do
much oil painting (my final work was in textile) and sometimes
longed to paint something just because I found it beautiful,
which is what I do now. I still work in textile, but always
come back to oils. I enjoy the physical experience of oils, how
luxurious they feel on the brush.
How do you select your subject matter? This depends on
what it allows me to do with paint. At the moment, I’m in a
still-life phase. I enjoy the way simple objects catch the light
and transcend the mundane. I used to paint large canvases, but
a recent enthusiasm for doll’s house miniatures has influenced
me to work on a smaller scale. I enjoy the intimacy of small
emotions
surfaces. I sometimes paint
miniature canvases, working
under a magnifying glass,
and find I am far more
detailed and intense in these
than larger works.
What inspires and
influences your work?
Sometimes I feel that my
paintings are emotional
diaries; I look at a work and
remember what I was feeling
or what was happening at the time. A few years ago, my palette
was very dark and monochromatic. I realised afterwards it was
while my mother was in the last stages of terminal cancer.
I wasn’t aware of the connection at the time, but I recognise it
now. Lately my palette has become brighter, which I take as
a good sign.
Your style is quite loose and defocused. What inspired this
approach? I attend weekly classes with Grace Kotze, who has a
strong influence on my work. One of the things she’s made me
aware of is how photographs influence the way we see the world.
In a photo, everything is usually in equally sharp focus. In real
life we only see directly in front of us, while the periphery is
blurred. This has influenced my brush marks. Even though I
work from photographs, I paint loosely – not looking for photo
realism, but for the essence of the subject matter.