mojive sun

Without getting too deep into semantics, an artist could be classified as a professional or for lack of better words, part time, depending on whether or not their art is considered a main source of income. As we know, the No Fly Zone is home to both types. While life as a professional artist has its own challenges, life as a part time artist presents the challenge of balancing creative passions with the reality and structure of day jobs. Successfully balancing and mind shifting between both may be incredibly difficult for many artists. But exceptions are inevitable in the No Fly Zone. Take for example our person of the neighbourhood. Introducing Federico Bonechi.

Federico was born in Italy , and spent his early childhood in Milan. Opportunities in Canada brought this Italian-born cowboy to Mississauga, which Federico sarcastically remarks as “the centre of the universe.” Federico was quite an eccentric name in the suburbs, and so he was soon known to many as “Fred”. Although his name was westernized and his favourite musician, Ennio Morricone, was well known for his compositions in western movies, this French, Italian and Spanish speaking bohemian musician who has a special admiration for John Travolta, was never the average westerner.

Fred creatively balances the “Good the Bad and the Ugly” of being a part time musician while still being passionate about making his “Fist Full of Dollars” through his day job. In his own words, “I enjoy playing and composing music which is a form of art. Because I don't do it for a living I don't consider myself a professional artist. But I think that works in my favor because it allows me to be completely free and unreserved with my music because I know my well being does not depend on whether it is successful or not.”

For 4 years, Fred has been successfully working in Toronto at the College of Nurses of Ontario . As a Registration Administrator, he is passionate about his work as it has “a direct impact on the quality of healthcare that the public receives in Ontario.” Within the structure of his day job, Fred has the important task of assessing the credentials of nurses from other countries to determine their eligibility to practice nursing in Ontario. What's amazing is Fred's ability to switch from this structured environment at work, to the incredibly unstructured passion for playing and composing music.

“I am also very serious about my music because it is the main platform on which I express my creative abilities, which I think are the most indicative of the kind of person I really am.” Serious indeed.

For eleven years, Fred has been composing music with MoJive Sun whose original music is influenced by the creative cowboys of psychedelic rock bands like the early Pink Floyd, Cream and Santana.

As lead guitarist Fred has played with MoJive Sun at well-known No Fly Zone venues like Clinton's, Healey's, Cameron House, The Reverb, and others. More recently, Fred has been busy working with the band in producing their latest CD and upcoming audio-visual music gig at Clinton 's on March 10th. Of course, everyone in the No Fly Zone is welcome to check it out.

While Fred spends much time balancing the structure of work and unstructured creating of music, he mostly enjoys his spare time in the No Fly Zone reading, hanging out with his partner, taking care of and driving in his classic 1960s bug, and playing Fifa 2006 with his dad. Finally, Fred respects the No Fly Zone as it supports, “so many people pursuing their eccentric side, which I think is pretty cool.”

Eccentrics supporting eccentrics…why Gadzooks!....who would have thought of that?
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- Gadzooks, Toronto (www.gogadzooks.com)

What do Dali, suburban ball hockey, Dr. Seuss, Tim Burton, classic rock, and Star Wars have in common? They all have an important role to play in the life of our multi-talented artist and No Fly Zoner of the week.

It is true when we say that the No Fly Zone is home to some of the most diverse and versatile artists in Toronto, and more broadly Canada. Take Mike Gatti, for example. Now residing in the centre of the No Fly Zone, art is a central part of everything that Mike does. He lives and breathes art. In his own words, “Art has always been my strongest passion . . . Now I get to make a reasonable living doing what I love. I guess it's pretty safe to say that art has absorbed my life…”

Mike is a musician, a sketch artist, and a stop-motion animator. Mike says, “If I'm not trying to create art in some way . . . I'm definitely being inspired by it . . . It's left a mark on me since a very young age.”

Although Mike is originally from Mississauga , we can safely say that as the youngest of 3 brothers, growing up playing ball hockey and driving to corner stores in the suburbs is not where Mike found his artistic inspiration. His art stems from the influence of fantasy movies from the 80s that his older brothers would bring him along to watch. Now he's made a career out of this inspiration.

Fantasy artists and film concept artists like Brian Froud, Rick Heinrichs, Dr. Seuss, Jim Henson and Tim Burton have all influenced Mike's work in Toronto for the past 7 years. As a successful stop-motion animator and designer for TV shows and commercials, Mike's portfolio includes shows like Henry's World, Disney productions like Jojo's Circus, and various spots and commercials for HBO.

In his spare time Mike is working on a short, animated film project, and when he's not stop-animating, he plays music and doodles in his sketch book. But don't let his modesty fool you. Being influenced by Surrealists like Dali, Magritte and Bosch, the Italian Renaissance and Expressionism, shows that his creations are more than just sketches.

As a singer, bassist, and song writer, Mike also gives his music back to the community by sharing it at local venues in the No Fly Zone. Mike is part of Mojive Sun, a band that plays original music influenced by the classic rock of the sixties. They have played at well known venues like Healeys, The Reverb, Holy Joes, Cameron House, and Clintons. In fact, you can see Mike and Mojive Sun again at Clintons on March 10.

Mike recognizes the No Fly Zone as one of the best places to “do” art. Through his work and in playing with other artists and bands at gigs, he believes that “there is a strong presence here. You won't find this sort of thing in the suburbs where I grew up, or at least not in such a concentrated area.”

A good friend that has ventured with Mike to the mysterious peaks of Machu-Pichu describes him as “a mysterious, creative, passionate and benevolent guy who is known for always doing his laundry.” But Gadzooks thinks that he's doing more than that, check out his site. There's more than just laundry on Mike's list. Creating and giving back to the No Fly Zone community through his music is only one thing. As Mike says, “I want to do more . . . much more!” and Gadzooks can't wait to see what else this multifaceted artist has in store, just around the corner.







- Gadzooks, Toronto (www.gogadzooks.com)