By Toni Onley
as told to Gregory Strong

The life and times of one of Canada’s most beloved contemporary artists, and a gripping yarn that is by turns touching and hilarious.

If you’re strolling a beach or ferry deck as sunset casts its glow on British Columbia’s Coast Mountains, there’s a good chance someone within earshot will say, “It looks just like a Toni Onley.” That’s how closely Onley is identified with the landscape of Canada’s West Coast.

Don’t be fooled. The serenity of those watercolours reflects only one facet of Onley’s work—and very little of his tumultuous life. Flying Colours gives you the whole canvas, from a rustic riverbank on the Isle of Man to a plane wreck on a mountain glacier. With sly humour, disarming candour and an artist’s eye for detail, Onley recalls a life of professional triumphs and personal tragedies. For a painter known for landscapes and collages, Onley proves a dab hand at word portraits, from haughty maharajahs and quirky Manxmen to the alcoholic—and even homicidal—habitués of an artists’ colony in Mexico.

None is more colourful than Onley himself. From the cocky schoolboy painting an extra petal on a daffodil to the Rolls-Royce rebel facing down Revenue Canada—and winning—Onley’s passion for art and zest for life leap from every page. Art lovers will cherish his lucid, unaffected insights into the creative process, not to mention the lavish illustrations, representing every stage of Onley’s career.

Available at a most bookstores.

The Isle of Man Post Office has created a series of stamps based on a selection of Toni Onley watercolours exhibited at the Manx Museum.