Bonnie Wilkins

Artist Biography

A painter, printmaker and costume designer, Wilkins graduated cum laude from Scripps College, where she majored in Fine Arts with a concentration in painting. She later received an M.A.T. in secondary art education from Reed College and has studied locally with painter, Carol Schwennesen and monotype artist, Joan Stuart Ross.

Wilkens uses monotype and collage as her media. For texture she often uses things other people throw away. She states, "It's fun. An obsession. I am a leaf junkie. People are always giving me interesting leaves.” She goes on to say, "I am fascinated by the marks left on the surfaces of stones and leaves by the process of Nature. Growth, wind, sun, water - even disease and erosion - leave layered stories of richness and beauty upon the objects of Nature. The appeal of making monotypes is, for me, the joy of being surprised and delighted by the intricate complexity and beauty that shows up as a result of layered process. The collage aspect of the work gives me the opportunity to indulge my love for the ‘treasure hunt'; I am always seeking the exquisite fallen leaf, or the beautiful accident of a piece of my disassembled monotypes.”

Bonnie Wilkins Art, Prints and Posters Collection