Bonifacho is a university-educated senior Canadian artist and painter who achieved a Masters in Fine Arts from the University of Belgrade, Serbia, then pursued post-diploma studies in painting in Rome, Italy and old master techniques in printing in Frankfurt, Germany. He worked in France, Germany and Italy before emigrating to North America, where he established his permanent home and studio in Vancouver, Canada.
An internationally recognized artist, Bonifacho has a consistent presence in North American commercial galleries and non-profit galleries and museums. His work is in major corporate collections, museums and private collections internationaly. His work expresses a tremendous vitality and love of intense emotional colour.
Bonifacho’s new series explores these tensions between the logical, linear scripting of virus programs and their capacity for destruction. In the simplest terms, he imitates the effects of computer viruses and worms by scrambling letters and messages in his large-scale oil paintings. His work carries the elegance of programming code. It also indicates the deep layers of chaos and confusion caused by viruses.
Talking about the intentions of his art practice, Bonifacho says:
I communicate and express essentially non-verbal thoughts and emotions abstractly, within the discipline of formalism - through colour and shape, gesture and surface. I work in the standard oil medium, applying it to large squares and rectangles of prepared canvas. Sometimes I use encaustic for its particular luminosity and tactility; occasionally I do shaped canvases, or mixed media constructions. As a relief from the intensity of prismatic colour, I periodically explore the singular qualities of geometry, surface, gesture and sgraffito, in metallic paints. Such decisions occur within the context of extended serial planning.
The source of my art is the comprehension and channelling of strong emotions stemming from observation, current events or epiphanic memory: thoughts of environmental devastation; or blatant injustice; or peak moments of optimism and ecstacy. I see subjective awareness as the fuel of creative fire, and for a sustained body of work the emotive energy must be profound. I ride these obsessive crests like a surfer, until they subside in my consciousness. One cannot artificially rehearse, buy or borrow this energy, which is one reason I cannot subscribe to popular generational or interest group issues of the day.
Aside from the technical facility of my work, an aspect in which I have confidence, the viewing of it by another person can be only formal and subjective - the emotion that drives me may be experienced by another as only a residue, the cooled lava of a molten flow. Dylan Thomas, a writer, referred conceptually to this emotion as "the force that through the green fuse drives the flower."
Because my work is couched in formal terms, it may concomitantly stand or fall under formal critical scrutiny. Its critical mass, however, the flares and phantoms of my internal sensibilities, are unassailable. These emotions are the glue in the interstices that hold together the elements of form.
Education:
1957-59 - Sumatovachka School of Art, Belgrade, Serbia. Drawing and painting
1957-59 - Belgrade University, Belgrade, Bachelor of Architecture
1961-67 - Belgrade University, Belgrade, Serbia. Master of Fine Arts
1966-85 - Atelier Kruger, Frankfurt, Germany. Old Master techniques in printing
Grants:
1996 - British Columbia Arts Council Grant
1998 - British Columbia Arts Council Grant
1999 - Canada Council Travel Grant, exhibition in Havana, Cuba
2000 - British Columbia Arts, Council Grant, retrospective, Galerija Progres, Belgrade
2000 - Canada Council Travel Grant, for retrospective, Belgrade
2001 - Canada Council Travel Grant for exhibition at Savremena Galerija Zrenjanin, Zrenjanin, Serbia
2002 - Canada Council Travel Grant, exhibition, Galerija Matica Srpska, Novi Sad, Serbia
Rooftop Art:
1959-65 Initiated and developed large-scale imagery painted on the roofs and exteriors of buildings in Belgrade, Serbia. Attracted media attention throughout Europe. Made guest appearances on on several European television and radio programmes.
Solo Exhibitions:
1978 - Alberta Landscapes, Gallery Scollard, Toronto, ON
1979 - Alberta Landscapes, Contemporary Art Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1982 - Blackboards, Burnaby Art Gallery, Burnaby, BC
1982 - Blackboards, Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC
1987 - Combustion, Atelier Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1988 - Combustion, Heffel Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1989 - Combustion, Quan-Schieder Gallery, Toronto, ON
1990 - Scotland, Heffel Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1990 - Scotland, Quan-Schieder Gallery, Toronto, ON
1991 - Earth and Fire, Heffel Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1992 - Parallelograms, Doheny Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1993 - Scotland, Fran Willis Gallery, Victoria, BC
1993 - Small Works, Threshold Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1995 - La Habana, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC,
1995 - Earth and Fire, Bau-Xi Gallery, Toronto, ON.
1995 - Blackboards, Fran Willis Gallery, Victoria, BC
1996 - Scotland, Gallery Nova, Vancouver, BC
1996 - Peloponnesus, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1997 - Parallelograms, Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC
1999 - Al Campo Santo, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1999 - Al Campo Santo, Bau-Xi Gallery, Toronto, ON
2000 - Retrospective, 25 Years in Canada, Galerija Progres, Belgrade, Serbia
2000 - Al Campo Santo, Fran Willis Gallery, Victoria, BC
2001 - Peloponnesus, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2001 - Lexicon Cosri, Bau-Xi Gallery, Toronto, ON
2001 - Blackboards, Savremena Galerija Zrenjanin, Zrenjanin, Serbia
2002 - Retrospective, Galerija Matice Srpske, Novi Sad, Serbia
2002 - Habitat Pixel, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2003 - Habitat Pixel, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2003 - Habitat Pixel, Bau-Xi Gallery, Toronto, ON
2004 - Habitat Pixel, Bau-Xi Gallery, Toronto, ON
2004 - Habitat Pixel, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2005 - Habitat Pixel, Foster/White Gallery, Seattle, WA
2005 - IDS-Cologne Fair, Cologne, Germany
2006 - Moderato Cantabile, Foster/ White Gallery, Seattle, WA
2006 - Moderato Cantabile, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2006 - Je t’aime, Bau-Xi Gallery, Toronto, ON
2007 - New Work, Bau-Xi Gallery, Toronto, ON
2008 - Blackboards Retrospective, Foster/White Gallery, Seattle, WA
2009 - New Paintings, Herringer Kiss Gallery, Calgary, AB
Selected Collective Exhibitions:
1979 - BC Artists Show, Vancouver City Savings Credit Union, Vancouver, BC
1983 - Open October Salon, Belgrade, Serbia
1984 - Warehouse Show, Vancouver, BC
1985 - FESF Narodna Biblioteka, Belgrade, Serbia
1986 - BC Artists at the Square, Vancouver, BC
1987 - BC Artists at the Square, Vancouver, BC
1987 - BC Artists at the Square, Vancouver, BC
1987 - 101 Vancouver Artists, Pitt International Galleries, Vancouver, BC
1988 - Three Artists, Wade Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
1990 - North of the Border, Whatcom Museum, Bellingham, WA
1990 - Artropolis 90, Roundhouse, Vancouver, BC
1990 - Contemporary Art Abroad, National Museum, Belgrade, Serbia
1991 - The Stendahl Effect, Emily Carr College of Art & Design, Vancouver, BC
1992 - Combustion Series, Patrick Doheny Fine Art Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1992 - Scotland Series, Fran Willis Gallery, Victoria, BC
1993 - Inaugural Exhibition of new Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC
1993 - Artropolis 1993, Vancouver, BC
1993 - Curator’s Choice, Patrick Doheny Fine Art Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1994 - Group show, Simon Patrich Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1994 - Four Artists, Fran Willis Gallery, Victoria, BC
1994 - Curator’s Choice, Patrick Doheny Fine Art Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1994 - 3 Artists from the Permanent Collection, Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC
1995 - 30th Anniversary Exhibition, (5 artists), Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1995 - West Coast Artists, Fran Willis Gallery, Victoria, BC
1996 - Three Artists, Gallery Nova, Vancouver, BC
1995 - West Coast Artists, Fran Willis Gallery, Victoria, BC
1996 - Two Artists, Gango Gallery, Portland, OR
1996 - Collective Show, Kimsey Miller Gallery, Seattle, WA
1997 The Time Machine, Anchorage Museum of History and Art, Anchorage, AK
1997 - The Canadian Collection at APEC 1997, Vancouver, BC
1998 - Permanent Collection, Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC
1999 - Jack Shadbolt: A Tribute, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2000 - 35-Year Anniversary, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2001 - Toronto International Art Fair, Toronto, ON
2002 - Toronto International Art Fair, Toronto, ON
2003 - Art & Science, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, ON
2004 - Toronto International Art Fair,
2004 - Coloration, Foster/White Gallery, Seattle, WA
2005 - Summer Gallery Show, Bau-Xi Gallery, Toronto, ON
2005 - Summer Show, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2005 - Summer Souvenirs, Foster/White Gallery, Seattle, WA
2005 - 25 Years • 25 Artists, Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC
2005 - Toronto International Art Fair, Toronto, ON
2006 - Bau-Xi at Oni One, Toronto, ON
2007 - Toronto International Art Fair
2008 - Toronto International Art Fair
2008 - Red Dot, New York, NY
Selected Public and Corporate Collections:
The Acom Corporation, Seattle, WA
Agnelli Corporation, Ferrara, Italy
Brazilian Coffee Producers, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Blake, Cassels & Graydon, Vancouver, BC
Canaccord Capital Corporation, Vancouver, BC
Clark, Wilson & Co., Vancouver, BC
Canadian Embassy, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Department of Foreign Affairs, Ottawa
CISS Group, Toronto, ON
DT&Shop, Bad Bocklet, Mangelsfeld, Germany
D.L.Stevenson & Son, Scarborough, ON
Eric Law and Rutberg Ltd., Palm Desert, CA
First Service Corporation, Vancouver, BC
First City Trust, Toronto, ON
Museum of Matica Srpska, Novi Sad, Serbia
Green Circle Management Inc., Vancouver, BC
Helin Marketing Group, Toronto, ON
James Hoggan & Associates, Vancouver, BC
J.P. Morgan Securities Asia, Tokyo,
Kinkoss Gold Corporation, L.O.M.
Western Security, Vancouver, BC
Mr. Jax Fashion, Vancouver, BC
Museum of Modern Art, Belgrade, Serbia
National Museum (Serbs in the Diaspora), Belgrade, Serbia
Olivetti S.A., Milan, Italy
Pacific Language Institute, Vancouver, BC
Paramount Studios, Los Angeles, CA
RK Studios Limited, Toronto, ON
Richmond Art Gallery Permanent Collection, Richmond, BC
Serbian Academy of Art and Science, Belgrade, Serbia
The Strand Corp., Vancouver, BC
Tiffin Capital Corporation, Vancouver, BC
Toronto-Dominion Bank, Toronto, Vancouver Hospital, Vancouver, BC
Serbian embassy, Ottawa, ON
Politika Publishing Group, Belgrade, Serbia
National Museum Kraljevo, Serbia
Polygon Homes Ltd., Vancouver, BC
St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver, BC
Works also held in numerous private collections internationally.
Television Interviews:
1964 - Yugoslavian Television, Belgrade, “Binoculars”, documentary series
1965 - Italian Television, Studio Uno, Rome
1965 - French Television Program 2, Paris
1993 - Arts Program, Roger’s Cable, Victoria, BC
1995 - Arts Program, Roger’s Cable, Victoria, BC
2000 - Television Serbia, Art Press Preview, Belgrade, Serbia
2000 - Third Channel, Belgrade, Serbia, interviewer Vitka Vujovic
2000 - Television Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia, interviewer Nadja Ivanji
2000 - TV Metropolis, Belgrade, Serbia, interviewer Anita Panic
2001 - CBC French TV, Vancouver, BC, interviewer Meriam Anderson
2002 - TV Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
Guest on various radio programs and talk shows in Europe and Canada.
