Lee Andres Christiansen, Paint & Write the Town Judge (Visual Art)
About the Artist
Being raised in Oregon, my works reflect both the verdant colors of Western and Central-Eastern sides of the state. I love the dramatic changes of the skies over both these landscapes. I think my paintings function on an abstract level, also offering an emotional expression of time and place. An artist friend once described my approach to painting as “a modern extension of impressionism in the American tradition.”
While in college, I became interested in some of the Abstract Expressionists, whose paintings had strong movements and powerful although troubling images. I always loved the works of many of the impressionists for their great color. Also works by Chagall, Emile Nolde and Franz Marc were significant for their color use.
While able to use my imagination to help produce images years ago, I find myself relying on a camera as a reference tool. First a heavy SLR, then a series of digital cameras, and now I only use my phone. But still, I love to work outside (plein aire) whenever conditions allow, both in oil and watercolor. Recent travels have resulted in a few paintings and studies from further afield, but I still like to express my visual interpretations of my surroundings; of things as I see them.
Art by Lee Christiansen
