| SOLITUDE, ETCHED AND PAINTED PLEXIGLAS, 55 x 88. |
By Bonnie Gangelhoff
BORN: Denver, CO.
ART EDUCATION: One year at Rocky Mountain College of Art & Design in Denver.
STYLE: Contemporary American landscape.
MOST INTERESTING THING ABOUT THE WAY YOU WORK: “I paint on Plexiglas so my approach is different. My process requires me to plan out a composition in reverse.”
FIRST ART SALE: “I sold a few sketches to my third-grade art teacher.”
SECOND-CHOICE CAREER: Musician.
OTHER PASSIONS: Playing music, writing, fishing, fashion, and cooking.
MANTRA OR MOTTO: “Make it happen,” from Mike Ditka.
QUIRKIEST TRAIT: “I learned to tie my shoes from a certain large yellow bird on TV. Apparently it’s the wrong way, but I still tie them that way.”
BIGGEST FEAR: “Not accomplishing enough in my lifetime. And taxes.”
FAVORITE STUDIO MUSIC: Mars Volta, Elliot Smith, Ellison Park, The Arcade Fire, Iron and Wine, Tetrahedron, MIA.
BEST ADVICE RECEIVED: “I learned while growing up that there are no handouts. My mother taught me that if I wanted something in life, I had to get it myself, and she encouraged me to work hard.”
PET PEEVE: Littering.
FAVORITE ARTWORK BY ANOTHER ARTIST: THE MUSICIANS by Ethan Garton.
PRICE RANGE: $3,000 to $24,000.
NEXT BIG GOAL: “To create large-scale, conceptual installations.”
CREATIVE SPARK: “Interesting light and shadow. Things that are out of the ordinary, no matter how simple or insignificant.”
GALLERIES: The Gallery at Rich Designs, Colorado Springs, CO; Vail Village Arts, Vail, CO; The Vickers Collection, Beaver Creek, CO; VC Gallery of Fine Art, Sedona, AZ; Horizon Fine Art Gallery, Jackson, WY; www.chrisnelsonfineart.com.
Featured in our annual “21 Under 31” article in September 2008