Art Gallery of Newfoundland and
Labrador (AGNL)
Shaped by the Sea
Permanent Collections
A talented printmaker, Sylvia Bendzsa is also an artist not afraid to experiment with a variety of art forms.
Born in London, Ontario, in 1942, Bendzsa became interested in art at the age of five, when she began taking Saturday morning classes offered at a local art gallery. This love of art continued. Over the years, she attended Ontario College of Art (OCA) to study commercial art illustration, Ohio University's School of Fine Art, where she learned printmaking, and Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD), where she obtained her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
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The Storyteller 1984 Pencil Drawing 71 x 52 cm 
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It was shortly after she left Ohio University in 1974 that she moved to Newfoundland and became involved with the province's well-known St. Michael's Printshop. At first she worked as a volunteer, but later served for three years as chairperson of its Board of Directors. Bendzsa's other professional activities have included freelance illustration and design, visual art co-ordinator for Sound Symposium, and art director for a multimedia presentation titled "Marconi...Wizard of Wireless."
Bendzsa has explored a variety of art media and styles. Along with her original prints in drypoint, etching, woodcut and lithography while at St. Michael's Printshop, she has also made paintings and multimedia works involving doors that spectators were encouraged to walk through, as well as sculptures and sound accompaniment. Because of her willingness to experiment, Bendzsa is difficult to categorize. Her artwork can be finely detailed and colourful or starkly abstract and monochromatic.
Bendzsa's work has been featured in group shows and solo exhibitions such as Boundaries and Water and Rock; it is included in public and private collections. She continues to be an active participant in the local arts scene.
