Bonnie Devine facts for kids

Bonnie Devine was born on April 12, 1952. She is a talented artist from the Serpent River First Nation, who are part of the Ojibwa people. Bonnie creates art in many ways, including installations, performances, and sculptures. She is also a writer and a curator, which means she helps organize art shows. Bonnie lives and works in Toronto, Ontario. She is a professor at OCAD University and helped start their program for Indigenous Visual Culture.

About Bonnie Devine

Bonnie Devine was born in Toronto. She is a recognized member of the Serpent River First Nation. In 1997, Bonnie finished her studies at the Ontario College of Art and Design. She earned degrees in sculpture and installation art. Later, in 1999, she received her Master of Fine Arts degree from York University.

Bonnie has shared her knowledge by teaching art at several universities. These include York University, Queen's University, and the Centre for Indigenous Theatre. In 2008, she became a full-time teacher at OCAD University. She also helped create and lead the university's special program for Indigenous Visual Culture.

Her Amazing Artwork

Bonnie Devine is known as a conceptual artist. This means her art often focuses on ideas and messages. She uses many different materials in her work. Sometimes she combines traditional items with unusual ones.

For example, in her 2007 art show called Medicine River, she made giant knitting needles. These needles were eight feet long! She used them to knit 250 feet of copper cable. This artwork was created to draw attention to water pollution in Kashechewan.

Bonnie also makes full-sized canoes out of paper. She uses natural materials like reeds in her art, too. An example is her 2009 piece, New Earth Braid. She also creates art installations that are placed directly on the land.

A big influence on Bonnie's art comes from the stories, tools, and art of the Ojibwa people. She uses these traditions to inspire her unique creations.

Where Her Art Has Been Shown

Bonnie Devine's artwork has been displayed in many places. She has had both solo shows and group exhibitions. Her art has traveled across Canada, the U.S., South America, Russia, and Europe.

In 2010, her solo exhibition, Writing Home, was featured in an art magazine called Border Crossings. Another solo show, Bonnie Devine: The Tecumseh Papers, was held at the Art Gallery of Windsor. This exhibition ran from September 27, 2013, to January 5, 2014. Her work is also part of a special exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ontario. This show is called Before and after the Horizon: Anishinaabe Artists of the Great Lakes.

Awards and Special Recognition

Bonnie Devine has received many awards for her incredible art. In 2002, she won Best Experimental Video at the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival. She also received the Toronto Arts Awards Visual Arts Protégé Award in 2001.

In 1999, she earned the Curry Award from the Ontario Society of Artists. She has also won many awards, grants, and scholarships from the Ontario College of Art and Design. In 2011, she was chosen for the Eiteljorg Museum fellowship. Most recently, in 2021, Bonnie received a Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts. This is a very high honor in Canada.

Published Works

• Devine, Bonnie, Duke Redbird, and Robert Houle. The Drawings and Paintings of Daphne Odjig: A Retrospective Exhibition. Ottawa: National Gallery of Canada, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-88884-840-6.