Christina Flowers

Christina Flowers shares how she incorporates architecture and landscape into painting and how she explores ‘the moments between’ in her work.

Where are you from and where do you reside?

I am from the D.C. area and currently live by the Blue Ridge Mountains in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Whats your favorite part of living in the Blue Ridge Mountains / Charlottesville?

Without a doubt it is being close to the mountains/nature. I love to hike, bike and ski. It is essential to my creative process to get outside and living here makes it easy.

Do you find that your location strongly influences the direction of your work?

I am greatly influenced by the landscape, especially the mountains and the sea. Living in the Blue Ridge Mountains is very important to my process as well as my time in Aspen. This recent collection has been influenced by both. The horizon line over the ocean is so clean and crisp. Finding the perceived horizon among the mountains takes more imagination and abstraction and I really enjoy that.

Are you formally trained?

I have a Bachelor of Architecture from Virginia Tech and a Masters of Science with a focus on Industrial Design from Art Center College of Design.

How do you see your background in architecture and industrial design figure in the paintings you make now?

My background in architecture and industrial design has a huge impact on my painting. The way I see the world – light, shadow, form – are all influenced by my background. I often think of my paintings as structural, and moments captured in time. With well-designed buildings, you find spaces within where everything aligns and you know that the space you are standing was created with purpose. That is the feeling I try to capture with my painting like you are standing in one of those moments.

What tangible objects or intangible moments are you most interested in representing through your works?

I find myself currently drawn to the moments between. Between night and day. Between earth and sky. Between sleep and wakefulness. Between the seasons. These moments have found their way into my work over and over.

The horizon line over the ocean is so clean and crisp. Finding the perceived horizon among the mountains takes more imagination and abstraction and I really enjoy that.

Christina Flowers

Why do you choose to work with paint?

I have always been drawn to multiple mediums and continue to explore them.

Paint has many qualities I’m drawn to. I love the physical nature of applying paint to canvas. It keeps me focused completely on the moment with all other thoughts or ideas pushed to the side. I also enjoy the permanence of paint. Once it dries, it cannot be wiped away and I find huge satisfaction in creating a piece of art that lives in the world. Something of permanence that I created with my hands and mind that was not there before.

When did you begin your current practice?

I have always been exploring creativity in different forms and have been screen printing and painting since Architecture school. I feel like my current work is an evolution of that early exploration. After school, I worked as a graphic designer and creative director in Aspen, Colorado. When I moved to Charlottesville, I started my own design business and began painting full time in 2018.

How has your work developed in the past few years, and how do you see it developing in the future?

My work started out as small concepts and has evolved to larger collections. I always incorporate story into my process and have recently started painting larger works and really enjoy the scale. I hope to continue to paint at a grander scale and create pieces that engage with the architectural space in which they live.

What necessities do you require when making your art?

Music, a clean studio, pencil, sketch paper, natural light, water, brushes, canvas, and paint.

Describe a typical day in the studio for you.

A fresh cup of coffee and music set the mood. I love a sunny day for painting. I usually start with sketching and mixing paint and testing colors. Then I focus on painting and put everything else out of my mind. I enjoy working on more than one painting at a time. It keeps me moving and fresh. It also allows paint to dry between layers without me getting out of the flow.

How important is spontaneity in your art?

Very. I know that when I feel a creative rush, I have to drop what I’m doing and embrace it.

With well-designed buildings, you find spaces within where everything aligns and you know that the space you are standing was created with purpose. That is the feeling I try to capture with my painting: like you are standing in one of those moments.

Christina Flowers

Are there any aspects of your process that are left to chance?

As I sketch and crop the concepts for my paintings, chance plays a big role. The light, the weather, and the mood all play a part in the initial sketches. Once I start painting the final pieces, the story is set and the paintings flow.

Do you see your works as unique or as part of a series?

I always paint my pieces as part of a collection or series. They are each individual paintings that live on their own, but they converse with the other pieces in the collection. There is something magical about seeing all the pieces from a collection together. It is like a journey. Each painting is a story or moment and the collection is the journey from start to finish.

What is the most difficult part of the artistic process for you?

Choosing and sticking to specific color palettes. I love color and different days, different light, or different moods call me to different colors. This is why I enjoy working on more than one collection at a time.

What themes or motifs are you consistently drawn to?

Color relationships, the illusion of transparency, the translation of landscape and story to abstract form

Do you admire or draw inspiration from any of your peers who are also working now?

Yes! A few artists I admire at Uprise Art are Karina Bania and Britt Bass Turner.

Are you influenced by any artist that does something completely different than you?

I am drawn to art that engages with Architecture and landscape. I am influenced by the life and work of Charles and Ray Eames and the mobiles and sculptures by Alexander Calder. Some current artists whose work I enjoy following are Rachel Mica Weiss and Nike Shroeder.

Are you influenced by any author or non-visual artist?

Music has an influential role in all my work. My thesis at Art Center was about creating music through movement. I feel like that is what painting essentially is for me now.

Post updated April 8, 2024.