Art has always been my passion. Even as a chld, I doodled on every homework assignment, colorized my driveway with chalk and later moved to the garage door. Needless to say, I always knew that art would somehow be an important part of my life. As I got older, I became more interested in developing my talent and started to focus on rendering forms with precision. Most of my drawings were academic in natrue and not overly original. It wasn't until I discovered computer graphics that the world of abstraction opened up for me and enabled me to find my own path.

The watercolors on view in this show are a direct result of that experience. Initially, I took my own photographs - mostly of skies - reconfigured them with the use of the computer and responded to the resulting digital "idea sketches" with watercolor paints. Altering color, composition and form allowed me to escape some of the restrictions of realism and project an array of inner emotions. Some works are simply structured and of a harmonious color range, while others are more energetically composed with a more dramatic use of hue. The late works of Monet, in their calligraphic configurations of color, are, in part, a source of inspiration for these pieces. My paintings are about the expanded possibilities that abstraction affords the artist in her search for something fresh and unique.

The bold black-and-white drawings in this show are also about possibilities in their abstracted portrayal of figures in space. The quick, spontaneous application of India ink to paper enables me to create the images in a loose style. In some cases, the figure is concelaed in a tonal arrangement of lines, shapes and marks.

This show, which Mr. Cardell and I have put together with the help and support of Parklane, represents my best wr from my art studies at Oak Knoll.

The artist, a senior at Oak Knoll School in Summit, plans to attend Lafayette College next fall and pursue a career combining art and business.

Several pieces of Christina's artwork are shown below. Click on the image to enlarge.

Please call PARKLANE if you are interested in contacting Christina concerning her work.