Biography from Atkinson Fine Art:
| Eric Christensen began painting professionally in 1992. Since
that time he has established himself as a Wine Country Artist.
Self-taught, he invented a watercolor technique that allows him to
create images of vibrant color that go beyond the look and depth of a
high quality photograph.
Some persons assert that Christensen is the only known artist capable
of hyperrealism through the use of standard watercolor.
Christensen began to develop his interest in painting, as well as
botany, classical music, and gourmet cooking as a child in Salt Lake
City, Utah. In addition to his interests, Christensen also
derives inspiration from the wine country surrounding his home, which
is invariably portrayed in his paintings. As Christensen asserts,
“it’s about the lifestyle”.
Once he realized that he could concentrate his passion for painting
into a career, Christensen has received publicity including a national
television spot on “WINE COUNTRY LIVING”.
Christensen loves to capture the romance of the wine country, which he
points out, , “is so much more than just the wine”. Among work he
portrays are lifelike landscapes and intimate still life paintings that
incorporate a variety of elements including food, flowers or fruit with
appropriate background settings.
By “pushing” watercolor paint to its absolute limits, Christensen
has experimented with a new way to paint with this traditional
medium. Using non-standard watercolor paper and employing a
dry-brush technique, Eric starts out with thin washes then builds
meticulously to over 30 subsequent layers of paint. This
technique allows him to achieve much stronger colors and shadows than
can be found with traditional watercolor art. For some viewers,
his paintings actually appear more like an oil painting on canvas.
To achieve lifelike hyper-realistic images, Christensen tries to
capture an image as it truly exists. He loves natural materials,
particularly flowers, fruits and vegetables and works to paint the
subtleties of light traveling through a flower petal or its reflection
off a wine glass. For him, each painting is a study in the
balance between texture, height and shape. The placement of
objects in his paintings must all make sense and represent a scene
found in real life; in a kitchen, a wine cellar, or in the vineyard. |
Biography from Nova Gallery of Fine Art:
| Eric Christensen began painting professionally in 1992. Since that time he has devoted himself to creating hyperrealistic watercolors reflective of the inspiration he derives from the wine country surrounding his home in California. Christensen intends his “wine art” to begin where most contemporary wine artists
leave off by capturing the romance of the wine county, which he points
out, “is so much more than just the wine”. Subjects include landscapes and intimate still life paintings with
a variety of elements including food, flowers or fruit with appropriate
background settings.
Self-taught, he paints with an invented watercolor technique that allows him to create hyper-real images of vibrant color intended to go beyond the look and depth of a high quality photograph. By “pushing” watercolor paint to its
absolute limits, Christensen has invented a new way to paint with this
traditional medium. Using non-standard watercolor paper and employing a
dry-brush technique, Eric starts out with thin washes then builds
meticulously to over 30 subsequent layers of paint. You can actually
see the build-up of the paint layers when you look closely at his
originals. Eric’s technique allows him to achieve much stronger colors
and shadows than can be found with traditional watercolor art; his
paintings actually appear more like an oil painting on canvas.
Christensen began to develop his interest in painting, as well as botany, classical music, and gourmet cooking as a child in Salt Lake City, Utah. Over time he has striven to acquire a commanding knowledge in each of these fields.
Once he realized that he could concentrate his passion for painting into a career, Christensen opened his own gallery in Yountville, California, a small picturesque town in the heart of the Napa Valley. This venture has brought him exposure including a national television spot on “Wine Country Living”. Christensen however, decided to close his gallery in 2003, allowing him to devote his full attention to painting,
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| ** If you discover credit omissions or have additional information to add, please let us know at registrar@AskART.com. |
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