Gyotaku Fish Art

From “early on”, art, fishing, and the call of open water have always been an integral part of Bonnie’s life. It’s been a love shared by her whole family. Her husband and sons are all former commercial fishermen in Door County and even today hold licenses as charter captains.

As a local Door County artist, Bonnie became well recognized for her exceptional ability to capture the essence of Wisconsin wildlife in her distinctive chainsaw creations now found through-out the Midwest.

More recently, while “snow birding” in Florida, Bonnie was introduced to the ancient oriental art form known as Gyotaku, meaning “fish rubbing” in Japanese. Having become popular in Japan during the 1800’s, as a way for anglers to record their catches, the technique is so precise that it is still used in Japan to determine the winner of fishing contests. Today, the popularity of the art is growing rapidly on both of the U.S. coasts.

While in Florida, Bonnie was afforded an unusual opportunity to learn different techniques from renowned artists and soon developed her own distinct styles. She says that she finds the new media “challenging and exciting” as she constantly strives to capture new perspectives and innovative techniques.

Bonnie’s background includes a major in fine arts from Mount Mary College in Milwaukee. She is currently an active member of the Nature Printing Society, the Art Center of Manatee in Bradenton, Florida, and the Door County Art League.