Oil Painting

Shane Bonsujet

Shane Bonsujet is a visual artist based and working out of his studio in Melbourne.

Artist Profile

Shane Bonsujet is a visual artist based and working out of his studio in Melbourne. Shanes art often draws on lived experiences and memories that explore themes of psychology, growth, empowerment and discovery forming a deep connection with viewers.

Emotive, expressive, intuitive and playful, Shane’s paintings are inspired by many influences such as the natural world, existentialism and philosophy that create a balance and duality between depth in concept and naïve appearance. Bold colours and expressive brushwork create an open dancefloor for curious mark making, patterns, naïve characters, symbols and motifs that balance abstraction and various other styles and references.

Shanes paintings are held in public and private collections all over the country and internationally, and has been a finalist in various notable art prizes such as the Blacktown art prize, Fishers Ghost art prize, Hawkesbury art prize, Lethbridge 10,000 and exhibited in several exhibitions, group shows and art fairs.

Artist Interview

What medium do you work with, and why have you chosen them?

I work with mixed media on all my pieces. I love to get variation and depth and will work a variety of mediums. I use acrylic paint and spray paint for the foundation as I usually paint several pieces at once and prefer the drying times to be shorter. I then incorporate oil paints, oil sticks, pastels, collage, marker, pen and any number of other mediums on top, working several layers before coming to a point of resolve with the work.

How does your artwork get from initial concept to exhibition stage?

My work is intuitive and instinctual and I am initially inspired by a feeling or an idea and that starts the journey. My process is then to move around the paint, free from control and feeling it out. I'm then looking for all the elements and aspects to work in collaboration and technique completely takes over. Once i'm drawn to the work beyond how it looks that's usually the signs I'm looking for.

Can you tell us a little more about your creative working environment/studio?

My family and I live in our 3 storey home and my studio is on the ground level. We live on the upper levels and i usually come downstairs once im finished parenting or tending to our home duties. Im usually in my studio till late at night and working on several paintings on the walls or on the ground.