about me
Monte Gerard’s artistic journey is as unconventional as it is inspiring—a testament to the restless creativity that can bloom at any stage of life. Born in Nashville, Tennessee, and raised in the pastoral surroundings of nearby Donelson, Gerard’s early years were shaped by gardens, cattle, and stretches of country landscape that lay just beyond the city’s reach. Childhood was marked by a deep connection to the rhythms of nature and a tradition of resourcefulness, qualities that echo through the multi-layered textures of her work today.
Gerard’s entrance into the art world did not occur until her late sixties, following a wide-ranging career in radio station management and real estate sales in Naples. Add a strong academic foundation that includes a B.S. from the University of Tennessee and an MBA from the University of Notre Dame. Upon retiring from several professions, Gerard sought a creative outlet. What began as a hobby quickly flourished into a vibrant new career—testament to the idea that artistic passion can ignite at any age.
While talent runs in the family—her daughter is both an industrial designer and a skilled watercolorist—Gerard’s own training is a patchwork of rigorous study and organic exploration. She graduated from the Milan Art Institute and completed the Creative Visionary Program with Nicholas Wilton. She has continued to hone her craft through numerous classes, both in-person and online, with renowned artists such as Derek Penix, Elli Milan, Eli Cedrone, Monique Carr, Marina Teding Van Berkhout, and, especially, Erin Hanson.
Gerard’s bold approach is defined by an expressive use of color and a distinctly abstract sensibility. Focusing primarily on people, landscapes, and florals, she seeks out imagery that resonates from a compositional or value perspective, drawing from a personal collection of compelling photographs. In both her figurative and abstract works, color is deployed in unexpected ways—serving not just as ornamentation but as a means of describing form and creating depth. Mixed media, paint, markers, gloss media, and stencils weave together in layered textures, offering viewers subtle narratives and hidden details that only deepen with close inspection.
Each new class or artistic encounter adds another thread to her evolving technique, as Gerard approaches learning with an openness that belies her years. “Even if I don’t like the artist’s work, I’ll pick up something interesting from their technique,” she notes—a mindset that has galvanized her practice with continual innovation.
Gerard’s influences are a curated constellation: the Impressionists, especially Van Gogh and Monet, as well as contemporary voices like Erin Hanson and CW Mundy, all of whom share a preoccupation with light, color, and the expressive potential of paint. Her own signature, however, lies in the way she uses color not just for impact, but as value shifts—crafting stories in hue and saturation as much as shape and line.
Recognition has come steadily. A member of the Art Center of Bonita, Gerard has found a thriving creative community in Southwest Florida. She currently exhibits over 20 works at Coco Art Gallery in Estero, having won First Place for “Hot Mess”—an electrifying acrylic painting—and Third Place for “City Blues” in a Pop Art exhibition.
While she prefers to let her paintings speak for themselves, Gerard views art as integral to society, a medium through which stories may be told and, crucially, through which the viewer is empowered to imagine their own endings. She remains driven by the belief that creativity should never be boxed in by age or expectation. For Monte Gerard, art is not just a late-blooming avocation but a living, evolving practice—as unpredictable, honest, and joyful as life itself.
