LORI Bongiovanni

I became fascinated with pastels later in my art life. The freer way of expression that pastels permit opened up a new dimension in being able to paint landscapes and flowers . Frequently on black paper. Now ,back in Texas, I have incorporated both watercolor, pastel, and occasionally oil in my naif , landscape and flower paintings.” 

What others say:

Born in Transylvania, raised in Europe and the United States, it was in Texas that she came into her own in art. In Tyler, Texas, she was one of the charter members of the Gallery One Eleven Artist's Co-op; had several one woman shows, and was featured in the Tyler Currier Times Telegraph for her work. The first issue of the Diocese of Tyler Newspaper, East Texas Catholic carried her painting on the front cover. Her style and subjects have been described as “Charming and Whimsical.”

In 1992, she moved to Medina, Ohio. While maintaining her interest in her naif style of people and places, she began to work with pastels and pastel/watercolor combinations. Included in her work are paintings on black paper reminiscent of an ancestor whose work she discovered while on a trip to Europe. Typically she enjoys painting local events. More recently she started painting with water based oils.

While living in Medina, Ohio, she was a member of the Medina Art League, Signature Member of the Akron Women's Art League and several other organizations. She had entered and shown in several juried shows in Akron and was on the front cover of the May 2004 issue of FOCUS on Boomers and Beyond. Her work was accepted in the Akron Women's Art League 70th Anniversary show in 2003 and favorably reviewed by Dorothy Shinn (Akron Beacon Journal.)

Once again in Texas, Dallas is her home since 2005. She now belongs to the Richardson Art Society, Pastel Society of the South West, Plano Art Association and South West Watercolor Society. While in Dallas she placed first with her pastel THE BEEKERS at the State Fair in Dallas in 2006 . Her watercolor painting of A DAY IN CANTON was accepted in the fall 2007 in the SWS watercolor art exhibit in Dallas at the Eiseman Center.

Selected GROUP EXHIBITIONs and awards:

2010 I was accepted in the PLANO ART ASSOCIATION MEMBER SHOW;

RICHARDSON CIVIC ART ASSOCIATION REGIONAL SHOW, SOUTH WEST WATERCOLOR SHOW; TEXAS VISUAL ARTS

ASSOCIATION SHOW AND FINALLY PASTEL SOCIETY OF THE SOUTH WEST INT

2009 “Plano here, Plano there, Plano every where” City Hall Exhibition at Plano, Texas.

2008 Exhibition at the Dallas Public Library on Frankford in Dallas, Texas.