News and Events
Coming soon!! "In the Moment" solo show at Studio Gallery 2109 R St, NW DC 20008. The show will run October 29-November 22, Opening reception November 1.
In this selection of recent paintings I explore different media—oil paint mixed with cold wax as well as acrylics and collage. My approach involves a highly charged internal process—being “in the moment.” Led more by intuition than rational intention, I build up layers, adding and subtracting, finding rhythms and creating depth. I hope viewers will enjoy engaging with these pieces and can sense the spirit of adventure behind them.
Shown left: "Sky Breath" Oil and Wax on Canvas, 30" x 30"
Please note: I don't update this website very often but I do occasionally post news about various events my on Instagram at @cristyweststudio
Photos of past exhibits can be seen in the "Shows and Events" section of this website in the "Artwork" sction
Review in the Washington Post by Mark Jenkins for "Arts and Entertainment Section" December 20, 2020
The pictures in Cristy West’s Foundry Gallery show are on canvas or paper, but the mottled off-white surfaces suggest stone and concrete. The vernacular West calls “The Language of Marks” draws from cave paintings as well as hieroglyphics and Asian calligraphy, employed for gesture rather than meaning. Often, the D.C. artist achieves the mineral-like effect with paint mixed with wax to add bulk and texture. But the hushed “Canyon Spirits” incorporates actual sand from an area where, for added resonance, Georgia O’Keeffe used to set up her easel.
The show includes a set of small collages and another series, executed with oil stick, that layer brighter colors on slate-toned fields. There are also two striking paintings in which fluid swirls are set off by black backgrounds that shine like burnished onyx. These are closer in spirit and power to the largest paintings, which the artist’s statements likens to runes and petroglyphs. While “mark-making” is a buzz phrase in contemporary art, West pursues her scratches and scribbles into a mythic past.