Artist Interview: Christina MacKinnon
We are so excited to share Christina’s journey and thoughts with you! Christina discusses art as a form of liberation, using IG for creative and social support, staying consistent but allowing yourself the freedom to explore, using art practice as a tool for self-healing, and the empowerment that comes from sharing our failures.
Speaking with every artist is like reading a new amazing book every time. We are thankful for them to share their time with our readers! Dive into the conversation Christina had with our founder, Svitlana.
S: When we received your submission, in the artist statement you talked about a connection to your younger self in your return to art, can you elaborate on the importance that connection plays in your art practice?
C: As cliche as it sounds, I was that little girl that loved making art ALL the time. It not only fed my soul, it liberated me. Boxes of crayons, markers, paper, glue, and my imagination formulated a recipe for escaping the grip, pressure and expectations that burdened me to excel academically. It was my safe place--free from anxiety, from the fear of failing or being compared to others. Art was the only thing I was certain I was good at and making it brought me pure joy. Connecting to my younger self has quite organically become an essential part of my art as a form of restoration and growth. It’s giving a voice to that little girl who didn’t believe, at the time, that she was worthy of one.
S: When I remember first being interested in art as a kid, I remember being captivated by abstract art, and what went on artists' heads when they created their pieces. Can you tell us more about the encounter you had with Mellisa Meyer's work at a gallery in Chelsea district?
C: The trip to Chelsea was an end-of-the-semester art excursion with my Color Theory class. Prior to the trip, I began learning more about abstract art but my ambivalence about it still inhibited me from exploring it myself. Examples of abstract artists such as Hoffman, Rothko, Mitchell and Frakenthaler elevated my curiosity of abstract art and I slowly began to expand my mind beyond the representational. Upon entering the gallery, the scale and color of Meyer’s work took my breath away. I was struck with a surge of magnificent energy and excitement. Gestural swashes of thin, translucent layers of oil paint, ostensibly cellular, flowed throughout the colossal-sized canvas in what appeared to be a grid formation. It completely unhinged me. Call it an epiphany, a spell, but the experience was beckoning me to open myself up to it, to not hold back, to take risks, to question who I was and what I wanted to be. This inexplicable connectedness to her work can only be described as an “awakening.” It made me want to leap into new waters. So I did. Assigned to create a self-portrait using only color for the class final exam, I stretched and painted a 7’x8’ abstract painting completely inspired by my unforgettable experience with Melissa Meyer’s work. The incredibly encouraging and impactful feedback that I received from my professors was remarkably validating. My confidence soared and that juncture marked the onset of my pilgrimage into abstract painting.
S: How did you arrive at developing your style and voice as an artist? Is it something that came naturally, or did you explore to hone down the central thematics around your paintings?
C: Without a doubt, it is a combination of the two. Though social platforms can distract us from being present in our lives, I’m uncertain in what direction my work would have progressed had it not been for Instagram. Working in a studio out in the woods in a rural county in New Jersey with a limited number of galleries makes it necessary to seek other sources of art exposure and inspiration. For this reason, IG has been the modality that brings people, artists, and art from around the world to me. Aside from in person connections, (something this busy mama doesn’t get to do that often), it was the next best thing. It’s been the ultimate game changer. Numerous encounters with art/artists on IG have, whether consciously or subconsciously, influenced my work. This development is a culmination of engaging, learning, exploring and honing in on elements that I uncover within me that I deem relevant in producing an authentic work, and combining them with all that I absorb around me. Working as fluidly and organically as the process allows, I begin to make decisions based on how the dialogue moves me while always discerning what stays and what goes. As I create, different series begin to emerge and take on thematic elements, but the journey getting there is usually uncontrived. These themes appear as repetitive mark-making, tighter more intentional use of space and shape, under-saturated hues versus more saturated hues. My voice is in a constant state of evolution that coincides with my mission of personal growth. I feel as though I’m a participant in a lifetime dual between unlearning cyclical habits of negative behaviors from my past and replacing them with self-healing, vulnerability and the courage to show up for myself. Transformative work is a daily assignment for me. And though I must confess that there are days that I don’t show up at all, I’ve come to a point in my life where I’m determined to create a path formidable enough to withstand the powerful, erroneous stories of my mind from taking control again. My work is a product of this mission and working in “series” permits me to dive into a variety of new territories that I feel a compulsion to explore. There are far too many facets of oneself to put a parameter in place. With my art, I seek to expose these stories as visual experiences that can’t fully be put into words.
S: We, as artists, often deal with the riddle of painting in different styles, while fighting the stereotypes on what it is to present oneself as a professional artist. Do you have the urge to paint something completely different, representational art for example, and how do you deal with that?
C: I’m going to piggyback a sentence in my previous answer where I indicate my compulsion to explore without parameters. I often hear that galleries prefer “a cohesive body of work.” This statement doesn’t drive my practice. When I use the word “explore” it doesn’t suggest that I’m haphazardly diving into new areas of making art without having first cultivated a serious art practice. Practice is key in deriving one’s voice. I believe as we develop our practice and process, our work begins to take form and transition into distinct, individualistic qualities, that make it our own. Establishing a consistent work ethic and discipline is pertinent to my personal growth as an artist. Authenticating my voice in whatever endeavor I take on has everything to do with always leaving space for the intrinsic truth. In a nutshell, my method consists of absorbing everything around me, filtering what doesn’t work, always connecting to the divine within and the work becomes relatable. But I don’t feel we need to ever adhere to one particular “style.” I say tap into any area of making art that is relentlessly nudging you. That nudge is not something to ignore. Keep it real, and anything is permissible in my book. To paraphrase Elizabeth Gilbert, if you dismiss the calling, that inexplicable magical moment, it may be gone forever. I do love the figure, and one day when the urge is upon me, I will honor it and dive right in.
S: We are strong believers that the more people discuss failure, the less significant the possibility of it becomes. In our society, we are so terrified of possibility of something not working out, that it halts our efforts to begin with. Can you share a time where something did not work out and how you moved forward?
C: Man, I can write a book about this one! Pragmatically speaking, I’ve learned to allow the less significant things to roll off my shoulders when they don’t work out, but it’s those first experiences that I think we define as monumental fails, especially the ones that occurred during our formative years, that have the potential to shape the propensity of our coping abilities indefinitely. This was the case for me. My way of coping with failure was not a healthy approach. Instead of, “I screwed up, try again” the voice in my head repeated “you’re a screw up, don’t bother.” I was always striving for perfectionism, endlessly trying to appease others and conform to the person everyone wanted me to be. The end of my first marriage was one of the most difficult failures I’ve had to overcome. Crushing failure has a way of thrusting us into our own muck and the only way out is getting in there and doing the work. It was a long and strenuous journey. Empowering myself with a self-prescribed immersion of transformational books such as The Artist’s Way, The Art of Possibility, Going to Pieces Without Falling Apart, The Seat of the Soul, A New Earth, launched a journey of self-discovery that propelled me to finally ask myself for the first time, what I wanted for my own life. Today, curated facebook and IG feeds formulate misconceptions that personify a false sense of success and perfection, which tends to emphasize and initiate reliving our failures. Keeping it real by sharing our flaws and failures with one another not only connects us on a human level, but empowers and enables us to rise.
Find Christina on her IG: https://www.instagram.com/christinaraemac/
Website: https://www.christinamackinnon.com/
