Grace Gonso

Butedma, Ononchimeg Dorjdagva Gonso, is a Buryat-Mongol artist living in Indiana. She was born in the town of Binder in Khentii province of Mongolia but now resides in rural Owen County. Grace works in multiple mediums and has explored a variety of styles but shows a preference for working in oils and depictions of her cultural heritage and scenes of rural living.

In June of 2019, Grace had her first one-woman exhibit at Juniper Art Gallery. Her “Sweet Owen” exhibit was made possible by the Individual Advancement Program (IAP) from Indiana Arts Commission, a grant opportunity that provides support to Indiana artists for career development. This allowed her to work on large canvases and as she says, “to present Owen county in a positive and beautiful light.” Grace’s entire exhibit of 13 paintings was purchased by the Owen County Bicentennial Committee.

Artist Statement: 
"My name is Butedma Gonso. I also go by "Grace''. I am a Buryat-Mongolian artist living in the US. I grew up along the sacred Onon River in Mongolia, hiking the mountains and stomping in cold creeks.  In Mongolia, I was surrounded by wild nature and pastoral scenes of nomadic culture. Now living in the United States, I am also close to nature living on a diverse homestead in the country surrounded by rural landscapes rich with life.

Nature is my greatest inspiration.  I admire the dramatic and minute seasonal changes: dew drops on a spider web, beetles in a milkweed flower, a turtle trudging along a wooded path, first frosts on the garden bed, foggy mystical mornings with heavy dark clouds above rolling by.  I try to portray moments and movements of nature on my canvas with oil paint. I also enjoy trying to capture the individual character, curiosity and intelligence of native birds and animals as well as farm livestock. For me, oil painting and art is about pushing through a focus on forms to recognize our true nature."