Artist Bio
Artist Bio
Lynda Bunnell is a Southern California mixed-media artist whose work explores memory, impermanence, and the quiet relationship between humanity and the natural world. Through layered surfaces, atmospheric imagery, and symbolic forms, she creates paintings that invite contemplation and offer a visual pause in an increasingly noisy world.
Her artistic journey has been one of continual exploration and evolution. In 2012, Bunnell began creating intricately woven pine needle vessels, harvesting and hand-dyeing natural materials while developing a deep appreciation for texture, color, and the beauty of organic forms. This early work laid the foundation for her current painting practice, where layers are built, obscured, and revealed in a process that mirrors the passage of time.
In 2018 she was inspired to rekindle her passion for painting, which opened the door to a new chapter of creative discovery. Since then, her work has evolved into a distinctive visual language that balances abstraction and representation. Birds, rabbits, vessels, water, horizons, and luminous celestial forms often emerge from weathered surfaces, serving as quiet witnesses within landscapes that feel both timeless and familiar.
Inspired by the patina of ancient architecture, archaeological artifacts, and the Japanese aesthetic of wabi-sabi, Bunnell embraces imperfection, erosion, and the stories held within layered surfaces. Her paintings are less concerned with depicting a specific place than with evoking a sense of presence—creating spaces where mystery is welcomed and what remains partially hidden can be as meaningful as what is revealed.
Bunnell has studied with numerous contemporary artists and participated in programs including the Creative Visionary Program, Art2Life Academy, and the Mark Eanes Academy. She is an active member of the Oceanside Museum of Art Artist Alliance, the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego Artist Guild, Off Track Gallery, the San Dieguito Art Guild, and the North Coastal Art Gallery/Carlsbad Oceanside Art League.
Her work is held in private collections throughout the United States.
Selected Juried Exhibitions:
The San Diego County Fair’s Fine Art Exhibition, 2016.
NICHE Magazine & NICHE Awards, 2016.
Sip Art Space Gallery, Radiant, San Marcos, CA, 2024.
Gallery 21 Solo Show, Nature, Vessels, and Buddha, Balboa Park, San Diego, 2024.
Hummingbird Dragonfly Art gallery, Endless Creativity, 2025.
Art Mozaik Fine Art Gallery, Spring Reflection, Santa Fe, NM, 2025.
North Coastal Art Gallery, Natures Pallet, Carlsbad, CA, 2025.
Off Track Gallery, Various, Encinitas, CA, 2025
Sparks Gallery, Elemental, San Diego, CA, 2025.
Tranquillity - 2025, Juried Annual Exhibition.
Creative Dose at Ashton Gallery, San Diego, CA, 2026
The Crow Show at Studio Door, San Diego, CA, 2026
Gallery Representation:
West Winds Gallery, Grand Junction, Colorado.
North Coastal Art Gallery, Carlsbad, California.
Artist Statement
I don't begin with an image.
I begin by building a surface.
Layer by layer, paint is applied, covered, sanded back, glazed, and altered until the painting begins to carry its own history. Those surfaces often become the true subject of my work. The birds, water, vessels, maps, and botanical forms that eventually appear are not the destination—they are simply evidence of something that has already lived within the painting.
I'm drawn to things that bear the marks of time: weathered walls, archaeological fragments, handwritten documents, and objects whose histories are only partially known. Rather than illustrating a specific place or story, I hope to create paintings that feel remembered rather than explained, leaving space for viewers to bring their own memories and interpretations.
Each painting is a conversation. I rarely know where it will end when I begin, and that uncertainty is one of the things I value most about the process.
Vessels, Nature and Buddha
Gallery 21 Solo Show 2024