Lou Bonamarte
(1933 - 2020)
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When Bonamarte attended a one-man show of watercolors by John Pike thirty-five years ago, he realized that watercolor did not have to be a timid medium. Inspired by this discovery, he pursued watercolor painting with a passion, and has since become a virtuoso of the medium. Through the use of pure vibrant color, his paintings have vitality and sophistication that sets his work apart. A former instructor and a dean at Lyme Academy of Fine Arts, Bonamarte is listed in International Biographies' Men of Achievement, Who's Who in American Art and Who's Who in the East. He was selected to receive the Mystic Seaport Museum Purchase Award at the 1990 Mystic International exhibition.
"Began painting at the age of thirty-five. Studied with John Pike in 1964 and again in 1968. Prior to this I was a graphic designer and also did illustration. During this period I attended many outdoor (sidewalk) shows and, then in 1970, 1 decided to go fulltime as a fine artist. I had little success at first and was doing freelance illustration and advertising design. I receive my first acknowledgment from the American Watercolor Society in 1972, when they awarded me the Herb Olsen Award for my watercolor "Martha's Porch". Three years later, in 1975, 1 became an artist member of Grand Central Art Galleries in New York City. I was one of three people who were responsible for founding the Lyme Art Academy of Fine Arts.
Special Exhibitions
Western White House, San Clemente, CA; American Consulate, Hong King, "10 American Watercolorists", Decordova Museum, Lincoln, MA; Grand Central Art Galleries, New York, NY; Salem Maritime Museum, Salem, MA; Munson Galleries, Santa Fe, NM; Ellsworth Galleries International, Simsbury, CT; Slater Museum, Norwich, CT; Lyman Allyn Museum, New London, CT; Mystic Seaport Marine Museum, Mystic, CT.
Private and Corporate Collections
Mr. George K. Boyer, Boyer Real Estate; General Electric; Xerox Corporation, Aetna Life Insurance, Sears Tower, Chicago; General Dynamics-Electric Boat Division; Goodspeed Opera House, Niantic Rotary Club, Montville Rotary Club, Graphic Center ' South Windsor; Operation Sail Corporate Headquarters, NY, NY; Lyme Academy of Fine Arts, the Slater Memorial Museum, the Lyman Allyn Museum of Fine Arts; Connecticut Bank & Trust Branches: Farmington, West Hartford, Greenwich and Greenwich Corporate Office, Norwich, Willimantic, Westport, Branford, Deep River.