Visual Arts Faculty
Patricia Bonwell
I have been teaching since 1986. I was born in Staffordshire, a county in the north of England. I come from generations of coal miners and ceramic workers with an inherent appreciation of design and hard work. I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts honors degree in Fine Art from the University of Lancashire, majoring in sculpture, before attending The University of Manchester for my Art Education Certification. I taught at an inner-city, public Catholic school where I was also the faculty ‘Active Learning Coordinator’ developing strategies for teachers to actively engage students in their own learning. I also served as a Northern Examination Moderator and Secretary of the Art Educators’ Union. During that time I was a Fulbright Exchange Teacher in Connecticut, which led me indirectly to Fort Myers. I have been an Art Educator in Lee County since 1993 teaching Drawing, Painting, Ceramics, Sculpture and Printmaking from beginner to college level. Art is an integral part of my personal and professional life. Like ‘air’ I never take it for granted; It keeps me alive!
Elodie Cotton
I moved here at the age of 14 from the South of France and I am a proud Cypress Lake graduate. My father is a true Parisian and my mother is originally from the French island colony of Martinique. I have traveled through Europe and been highly influenced by these experiences and the rich art and architecture that I was exposed to. This is reflected in my artistic outlook and expressed in the paintings I produce. I believe my students benefit as well from my life experiences and my acquired distinct perspective of language and art. One of my proudest accomplishments was an internship at the Louvre Museum in Paris. Here I experienced unforgettable art and culture, moments that I share with my students today. I earned my Bachelor of Arts degree from Florida Gulf Coast University and I have been a high school art teacher since 2010 in Lee County. I have taught all levels of Drawing, Painting and Ceramics. I am a member of the Lee County Art Education Association and the Florida Art Education Association. Since 2011, I have been a steering member of Pride and Patriotism; a local community group that sponsors a yearly patriotic art contest in Lee County. Art has been such an important part of my upbringing and a passion that I share with my students every day. It is important to me that students benefit from an outstanding art education in and out of the classroom. I am very excited to be home again as a part of the Cypress Lake High Center for the Arts team!
Marguerite Petcher
My desire to pursue a career as an art educator stemmed from the encouragement I received from my teachers at Cypress Lake High School. I graduated from the University of South Florida with a B.S. degree in art education and I have a M.A. degree in painting from Savannah College of Art and Design. During my teaching career, I have taught International Baccalaureate visual arts courses, obtained National Board Certification and served as president of the Lee Art Education Association. I was named Lee County High School Subject Area Teacher of the Year in 2003, 2010 and 2016. I am a member of the Florida Art Education Association and National Art Education Association. I have over 25 years of teaching experience in drawing, painting and ceramics. My interests are in portraiture and landscape painting where, as a teacher, I stress the importance of working from direct observation.
Tim Smith
I am a graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago http://www.saic.edu/index.html with experience as a practicing fine artist, professor at Edison College and founding member of the fine arts staff at Cypress Lake High School Center for the Arts. I am fortunate to have won many awards, including a Robert Rauschenberg Grant and Siggraph Grant for technology. My work has been exhibited in various galleries in Florida, Minnesota, St. Louis and Chicago, including The Morton Wing of the Art Institute of Chicago. I am a member of Lee County Arts Educators Association, served as a board member for the Florida Arts Educators Association, National Arts Educators Association, and the National Council for Education in the Ceramic Arts. I have written articles that have been published in local papers, and I have had the opportunity to be part of a traveling exhibition featuring potters who have worked as apprentices. This exhibit traveled to museums in the Midwest and was put together by the curator of Japanese and Korean art at the Art institute of Minneapolis. I have also served as co-chairman on the Robert Rauschenberg Scholarship Committee on Sanibel Island, Florida. In 2004, I received a grant to attend a workshop at The Archie Bray Foundation http://archiebray.org in Helena Montana for ceramics and in 2006, received a grant to attend a workshop at Anderson Ranch http://andersonranch.org in Snow Mass, Colorado for ceramics. Most recently I have received a Surdna Fellowship http://www.surdna.org/annualreport2010/satf.html to work at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago for Arts and Technology. In 2014 I was honored to receive a grant to spend time as an artist at the Hermitage. http://hermitageartistretreat.org . 2017 Florida Arts Educators member exhibit, First place Clay. https://www.faea.org/programs/member-exhibition/
A recipient of the Fort Myers arts and culture grant 2010,2011,2013, 2015 and 2017. floridacommunity.com/
Visit my website http://manomudd.net