From the Artist:
As a painter I investigate the in-between, depicting cityscapes that hover between familiarity and imagination. In observing these urban spaces devoid of people, I play with themes of belonging versus aloneness; memory versus daydream; and narrative versus abstraction. The “story” continues off the canvas, letting the viewer’s imagination step in.
These themes interest me as a global nomad who has often found myself hovering between multiple cultures, time zones, languages and identities. Close observation of my surroundings in every city I encounter reveals recurring materials, shadows or shapes that I paint as symbols of our shared humanity across perceived differences. Through capturing these commonalities – the wondrous details of urban environments – in my paintings, I explore the many complexities and multiple identities of our rich inner lives.
My paintings capture spaces that most people pass daily but don’t notice. In documenting them – and often beautifying the banal through my bold color choices, dramatic skies, or shadow play – these everyday spaces become worthy of contemplation. For example, a corrugated metal fence is a barrier, a boundary, a dividing space signifying the aloneness and disconnection common in today’s societies. But the fence is also a common building material used all over the world, often as shelter, and serves as a point of familiarity even in a foreign place, evoking a sense of connection.
Working from my own reference photos, I distort space, light and distance to create dreamlike environments and specific moods. The viewer fills in the rest with their own experiences or imaginings.
Christine Rasmussen - Los Angeles, California 2021
