Award winning artist, Jennifer McChristian, was born and raised in Montreal, Canada. From an early age, she knew she wanted to be an artist. Upon completing high school, McChristian began her art education at Dawson’s College in Montreal, Canada. In 1986, she and her family took permanent residency in California, where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Art Degree with Honors from Otis Art Institute in 1990.

McChristian was employed as a full-time animation artist and worked on projects for various animation studios including Disney and Nickelodeon. She has continued her studies under the tutelage of renowned artists Robert Blue, Karl Dempwolf, Scott Burdick and Steve Huston. Her inspirations consist of notable artists such as John Singer Sargent, Anders Zorn, Nicolai Fechin and Cecilia Beaux. McChristian primarily paints in oils and occasionally watercolors. She has an affinity for painting ‘en plein air’ and also enjoys creating studio works using her outdoor sketches as inspiration. “Plein-air painting is somewhat of a spiritual experience for me. Although challenging at times, the end result evokes within me a sense of elation, nostalgia and harmony”.

Since 2000, McChristian has devoted herself to painting full-time and actively participates in art events and community building programs. She conducts an ongoing, uninstructed figure drawing workshop twice a week out of her spacious 1200 square foot studio (that she refers to as her ‘sanctuary’) located in the heart of Los Feliz Village, CA. In addition, McChristian teaches private painting lessons once a week. She also finds the time to pursue other artistic interests such as classical ballet. McChristian believes learning is a never-ending process and continues to develop and refine her artistic talent through workshops, research, travel and frequent excursions to museums and galleries.

McChristian was recently invited to participate at the 2009 11th Laguna Plein Air Painting Invitational. She was also featured in Southwest Art magazine for the 2009 October publication. She is a an Associate Member of Oil Painters of America (OPA), a founding member of the Plein Air Painters of the West and a Signature Member of the Laguna Plein Air Painters Association (LPAPA).

Ms. McChristian is currently represented by Segil Fine Art Source in Monrovia, CA, Aarnun Gallery in Pasadena, CA, Abend Gallery in Denver, CO, Evergreen Fine Art in CO and Silvana Gallery in Glendale, CA. She currently resides in Los Angeles, CA with her significant other, Ben Fried, and a magically inclined calico cat named Bamboo.

www.jennifermcchristian.com
Jennifer McChristian in Southwest Art
www.jmcchristian.blogspot.com