Posted: Jul. 15, 2007 ©The Milwaukee Journal/Sentinal, Donna Marie Pocius

For Bonnie Paruch, separating her art from her life is impossible. And that same feeling seems to permeate the interior design of the Sister Bay home she shares with her husband, Vern Paruch.

The home collections, so thoughtfully placed, look like subject matter of still life paintings. And, indeed, Bonnie Paruch has painted many of the accents such as the tea kettles and porcelain figures in the dining area hutch and a bright yellow colander filled with oranges on the trestle-style kitchen table.

"I put things together like paintings. That's not intentional, but it gets me thinking," Paruch says. "I can't separate what I do as an artist from daily life, really."

Paruch paints still life, landscapes and figures. She creates on location and in the studio on the grounds of her home. She teaches at the Peninsula Art School, Fish Creek, The Clearing, Ellison Bay, as well as at places throughout the Midwest. Paruch has been featured on the cover of American Artist and in other publications.

The home has been an inspiration to her as well as a place to show others her paintings. Paruch's paintings hang everywhere: the great room, stairway wall, even in the bathroom and kitchen.

The artist laughs when she says she just tries "to keep the hooks in the same place" after the paintings sell at Edgewood Orchard Galleries, Fish Creek, which represents Paruch, or at her own studio (open on Thursdays during the summer).

"During open studios, we can show people how to place a piece of art in a house. It looks different hanging on a wall in a house than it does hanging in a studio or gallery," Paruch says.

After buying six acres in 2001, the couple and their friends eyed a hilly spot for home construction in 2003; the studio came in 2006. The plan to make the Peninsula home a primary residence is coming to fruition this year as the Paruchs sell a place in West Bend. Vern Paruch is opening Harbor Tea and Spice Co., a new Egg Harbor store offering 130 spices and 60 teas in bulk.

The 1,200-square-foot cottage-style home in Sister Bay has an open floor plan with a great room, galley-style kitchen, two bedrooms and a bathroom. A loft, basement and the separate studio complete the space.

"We didn't want a real big house," she says. "The thought in our minds is that we wanted something we can comfortably manage and have a lifestyle a little more flexible."

Paruch, who is adverse to clutter, anticipates judiciously adding from West Bend a collection of paintings by other artists, antique maps and photos, which will all no doubt harmonize with the warm and elegant decorating style she has established in the cottage.

The décor includes heirlooms and handcrafted pieces. The decoys on the white stone fireplace's mantelshelf were handcarved by Paruch's dad from maple and spaulted willow.

Nearby, stands a coffee table, made from steel by the couple's son, Austin. He also designed bronze sculpture on a side table Paruch had painted.

With a generous amount of windows and minimal window treatments, the home offers up peaceful vistas of Peninsula acres.

"We can see everywhere - 360 degrees. It is a plowed field," Paruch says. "We feel like we are away from the hustle bustle, and I can step out of my door and find things to paint."

Donna Marie Pocius, a freelance writer, met with the artist just prior to the busiest part of the tourist season in Door County.

Q. It sounds as if you are in transition, moving from West Bend to the Door Peninsula.

A. We always planned to live here full-time. Our oldest son is settled in Oklahoma, and our son, Austin (a songwriter and musician), has an apartment in Milwaukee. We almost have an empty nest.

The main furniture is not going to change here. There are a few special small things; they are not here yet.

Q. What attracted you to this property in 2001?

A. This feels like home. We have been coming up here for 20 years with the kids on getaways and in the winter. When we had a chance to buy this property, we jumped at it. It's a wonderful spot, and I love to just look.

We were going to build on another part of the land, and we had some friends who said, "That would be insane. You have to build here (on the hill)."

Q. How did you decide on a home design?

A. We got a lot of ideas for this house from the book, "The Not So Big House" (by Sarah Susanka) - high ceilings, integrating one color throughout. But we were more interested in the light and getting the views from all the windows.

We read that book and started picking up small cottage designs from the library and found one. It was much different than this, but we used it as a base and drew it up. I made a model out of file folders and took that to Portside Properties, and they did the design. We came up with it as a team.

Q. How do you describe your decorating style?

A. We decided we wanted to keep this simple and "cottagey." I like things that are warm and homey and kind of clean. I'm not into lots of stuff sitting around. I just don't like lots of clutter.

Q. The tea kettles in the dining area hutch are beautifully displayed. Tell me about them and other collections.

A. They are not necessarily expensive - just whatever appeals to me and what I can find at flea markets, garage sales and other places where you can pick up a wonderful little piece. I don't want it to be so special, in case I drop it or get paint on it. . . . Most are there for the shape and how they reflect the light.

I have a collection of old jugs. I have my mom's and grandma's collection of old tea cups and saucers - that's in West Bend.

Q. Speaking of the West Bend house, what's it like?

A. We have a 1960s ranch with a den, a living room, a dining room and eat-in kitchen. And we spend all our time in the den, the littlest room in the house. It has the fireplace and the TV.

We use the living room and dining room for a big party. So, here, we made a change and built a house for us and not company.

Q. I know our readers are going to notice the great color on the walls. What is it?

A. This is actually called Bennington Gray by Benjamin Moore, and it's a sagey-green and gray (used in the great room and kitchen). I saw it at a client's house when I delivered a painting, and I thought, "Oh, this is a great color," because we wanted to bring the outdoors in.

It's a chameleon. It gets more green in the sunlight, and in the evening, it gets warmer. We use that one color except in the bedrooms and the bath. It supports the art real well. It doesn't fight it.

In the studio, I use a dark green-gray. It absorbs light, so you don't get bounce back in your painting. That's a common studio color. But in a house it would be oppressive.

Q. What are the benefits to having your separate studio?

A. It's a nice separation. I don't even take a phone out there. When I leave the house, that's work.

Having the painting happening in the house is real difficult. It's hard to keep it clean, and you don't want toxins and solvents in the house. I love having my workspace out there. It makes a huge difference in how you paint.

When my kids were little, if I had a still life set up, they would eat it.

Q. The subject matter of your paintings is vast, with a look that includes brushstrokes.

A. That sort of has been my signature style - to be painterly and have the appearance of looseness.

The affect of light on things interests me - maybe that is the common connection on all the paintings. Everything is about light to me and how it changes the form of things, the colors.

Q. As this becomes a full-time residence, what are your plans?

A. Downstairs, there is a half-basement, and Vern is going to put in a frame shop and photo studio there. The bedrooms are still white, and we'd like to make them a color. I think I will make them more of a straw color.

We would like to put cedar siding on the house. It's on the to-do list, too.

We are starting over in a way. But it doesn't feel so scary, because we have got lots of friends and lots of connections from all these years of coming up here and teaching and showing art. And that's nice.

Donna Marie Pocius, an Egg Harbor-based freelance writer, writes about decorating, travel, the arts and business. Contact her at donnamarie@dcwis.com.