by Christine Rasmussen

Oil on canvas
2018
20 x 24 inches
Artist Statement
As a painter I investigate the in-between, depicting urban landscapes that hover between familiar and imagined. In observing these cityscapes devoid of people, I play with themes of belonging versus aloneness, memory versus daydream, and narrative versus abstraction.
These themes interest me as a global nomad who has often found myself hovering between multiple cultures, time zones, languages and identities. Close observation of my surroundings in every city I encounter reveals recurring materials, shadows or shapes that I paint as symbols of our shared humanity across perceived differences. Through capturing these commonalities – the wondrous details of urban environments – in my paintings, I explore the many complexities and multiple identities of our rich inner lives.
My paintings capture spaces that most people pass daily but don’t notice. In documenting them – and often beautifying the banal through my bold color choices, dramatic skies, or shadow play – these everyday spaces become worthy of contemplation. For example, a corrugated metal fence is a barrier, a boundary, a dividing space signifying the aloneness and disconnection common in today’s societies. But the fence is also a common building material used all over the world, often as shelter, and serves as a point of familiarity even in a foreign place, evoking a sense of connection.
Working from my own reference photos, I use light, shadow and perspective to create geometric abstractions of ubiquitous urban settings. The “story” continues off the canvas, letting the viewer’s imagination step in.

Oil on canvas
2018
20 x 24 inches

Oil on canvas
2020
20 x 24 inches
I play with themes of belonging versus aloneness, memory versus daydream, and narrative versus abstraction.
TCK Artist Christine Rasmussen

Oil on canvas
2019
36 x 48 inches

Oil on canvas
2020
20 x 24 inches
Christine Rasmussen (b. 1987) is an American artist raised in Pakistan, Vietnam, and the United States. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Berkeley, in Art Practice and Peace & Conflict Studies. Rasmussen is currently based in Los Angeles where she paints full time. Featured image by Christine Rasmussen: Beyond, oil on canvas, 2017, 24 x 30 inches. Used with permission.
www.christinerasmussenart.com
Instagram: @christinerasmussenart