Traffic Lights / Traffic Lights

Everyone who knows me knows that I have an obsession with traffic lights, ceiling fans and toilets. Below you will see a pic of my tiny toilet collection…. you gotta love collections and toilets!

“His art contains the essence of his life, feelings, thoughts and dreams, coupled around objects or topics that “get stuck in his head”, including traffic lights, grids, ceiling fans, graffiti and pop culture.” I have a collection of traffic lights in my studio. Every once in a while I get invited to the Connecticut Department of Transportation, the DOT, and they let me check out all the traffic lights that have been taken down, out of commission. They let me pick something out to add to my collection everytime!

“The characters, objects, and ideas that inhabit Vito Bonanno’s work act and interact in striking ways. Caught within the grids and map-like structures he imagines, they are often in a struggle between multiple worlds. He has found a way to tap in the intensity of focus and insight afforded him through autism to unleash a formidable creative power and vision.” -Elizabeth Peterson, Director at Akus Gallery, Eastern Connecticut State University.

The photo above is a home toilet installation from my solo exhibit in 2012 at the Akus Gallery at Eastern Connecticut State University. ‘Unfiltered V: Vito Bonanno Riding with the Train Girls’, at Akus Gallery at Eastern CT State University included works on paper, canvas, video pieces, a student-artist interactive mural project and installations. And here below I added a pic of a ceiling fan I spray painted, I love ceiling fans!

For years I’ve been writing and drawing in journals everyday, often multiple times a day. I have hundreds of full journals! Using a journal was a way of self-managing my stresses and fears. I still write in a journal daily, but my overall day to day life since I moved to the shoreline is more fulfilling, I have busier and more productive days, so my journal entries are more for pleasure then therapy. Much of the words and imagery found in my journals make their way onto my art.

I’ve been working on a lot of new art in my new studio. I like to work on many pieces at one time, adding layers over layers and images over images. Since 2017, I’ve been represented by Artlifting. Besides being a wonderful organization, they also offer prints of original works they represent for their artists. Most exciting, I was recently informed by Artlifting that they have secured the sale of 6 of my original art pieces to a well known international corporate client. This client is renovating their headquarters in Seattle, Washington, and each floor was assigned a “theme”. One of the themes was “Industrial”, and my work was the perfect fit. I’m very excited and will be able to provide more information about this notable moment in my art career to you all soon. Please stay tuned. Until then, “Be Safe and wish for the buildings!”