Christopher Shaner

Christopher Shaner
Rocky Hill Ct

The face and figure have always been the main inspirations for my work through the years. Originally a painter, I developed a passion for drawing while in art school, and have devoted much of my work since then to this medium. My lifelong Muse is the delicate beauty Lillian Gish, whose features figure prominently in most of my compositions of women. The wonderful atmosphere of the silent film has had an enormous influence on my style, and it is this monochromatic and other-land world I seek to replicate in each of my finished pieces. There is always music on when I am working, and contemporary artists like Judy Collins and Laura Nyro, among others, have provided me with the imagery that brings life and meaning to my art.

After some years of being diverted by life's pressing issues, I am gradually returning to the creation of new pieces, thanks mainly to the encouragement and support of beloved colleagues like Cathleen McLain, who has invited me to share studio space with her for this event. The images on the handmade note cards I will be offering at Open Studio are selected from some of my favorite drawings, and serve as a link from art past to art present and future. My style has not changed much through the years; only my desire to put on paper what is in my heart is what gets stronger.