Christina Massey

Nature acts as a hidden agenda and representative aspect in my otherwise abstract work. The preservation of our environment and appreciation for nature reveals itself through my choice of materials and form. Be that from recycled found or collected objects to organic forms that resemble a surreal almost alien plant-like form. Each work asks the viewer to stretch their imagination and invites their curiosity in a struggle to identify their marks, engaging in the creative process through the act of exploration of the Art.

I use repurposed craft beer cans as a primary element in my work. The cans are cut open and either hand stitched or woven into the surface with wire and monofilament, then painted in acrylic and enamel paints. The text and bar codes sneak out from beneath the surface of the paint, as it is important that these are not recognizable brands, but recognizable as labels. The play on words of the “craft beer” to their artistic inclusion of the artwork is meant to help initiate the conversation of craft vs fine art, “highbrow” vs “lowbrow,” consumer choice and traditional gender identifying hobbies or activities.

The glass is hand blown using a copper caging technique where a form is created to blow the glass through to create a unique asymmetrical form. These forms and their inclusion into the work were inspired by spending time in a region where fracking is done and the water was undrinkable, smelling of gas. The crystal ball nature of the glass is meant to mimic the predictive elements of Climate Change and environmental pollution, where the effects and repercussions are still unknown. The titles refer to phrases and sayings that tell only partial truths, where we must attempt to discover the rest of the story.

In a world that wants quick sound bites, my work is complicated. They have multiple layers not only in their process, but in their topics of conversation and conceptual ideas. They are somewhere in the middle of craft and fine art, masculine and feminine, even abstract and representational.

-- Christina Massey

Christina Massey’s work has exhibited extensively in over a dozen solo exhibitions including such locations as the Blackbird Gallery in NYC, Dacia Gallery in NYC, Noyes Art Museum in Atlantic City, Rush Arts Galleries in NYC and Brown University in Providence, RI. She has won multiple awards for her work including most recently an FST StudioProject Fund Grant, Brooklyn Arts Fund Grant, SIP Fellowship at the EFA Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop, Puffin Foundation Grant and Mayer Foundation Grant. Massey’s work has been featured in such publications as Hyperallergic, Art Spiel and Art Fuse and is in the collections of the Janent Turner Museum, Art Bank Collection in DC, and multiple private collections. She currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.