My Journey.
"I have always been interested in art, even before I began school as a child. I was able to view many art works in different countries growing up, therefore the History of Art has always fascinated me. My family traveled almost every year of my childhood, even spending five years in Central and South America.
I began my formal instruction in art at the University of South Carolina in 1985, concentrating in graphic design and painting.
I wanted a more intense program in art so I moved to Atlanta and attended the Atlanta College of Art starting in the summer of 1986. I majored in painting and minored in printmaking. I had my own art studio and worked 7 to 12 hours a day on painting and drawing. In 1987, I was nominated by the Faculty at ACA to attend the Yale School of Arts summer program in 1988.
I graduated the Atlanta College of Art in May of 1989 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
I had a successful, solo show in the spring of 1989. It mainly consisted of landscapes, etchings, Lithographs and a couple of sculptural pieces. That Spring I placed a 4’x 6’ landscape painting in the Atlanta College of Art Senior Show. The scene was that of an abstraction of a Mississippi cotton field and it sold to a large corporation in Atlanta.
My Influences.
Vincent Van Gogh has always been a strong influence on me with his love of painting and obvious concern for the life of the subject he was working from. His brush strokes are simple, yet strong in execution, “carving” an image and bringing life. Others that have had a major influence on my work are George Inness and J.M.W. Turner from the early half of the 19th Century with their use of color to give atmosphere. I have also been influenced by the lush brush strokes of John Singer Sergeant, Claude Monet and Paul Gauguin. I identify most with the emotional lines of Van Gogh, the painterly work of Sergeant and the elusively atmospheric work of Edward Hopper and Wolf Kahn.
I had the honor of viewing the Van Gogh Retrospective in September of 1990, at the Kroller Muller Museum in Otterlo, Holland. I also saw Rembrandt’s Night Watch and several of Johannes Vermeer’s paintings at the Rijksmuseum, in Amsterdam. All these paintings, even more beautiful in person, made an impact on my life as an artist.
My Desire.
My desire is to create original artworks for families with impressionable young children. Reproductions don’t come close to having an original piece of art hanging in one’s home. My own children benefit greatly by growing up amongst paint tubes, brushes and large portals of drawing paper. All five of my children spend time each day drawing. They are able to recognize many famous artists and their works.
Right now, my studio has taken over our dining room and my children work at my elbows on their own pieces of art.
My Work.
I work with landscapes and also enjoy portraits, especially of children photographed in brilliant sunlight. I paint with great contrast between the light and shadow. I work with traditional oils, I also use inks, pencil, conte, charcoal, acrylics, oil pastels, gouache and watercolor, combining them if I feel the piece would be so enhanced. I’m interested in the vibrant expression of the South Carolina landscape."
Christy Aitken
