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“There is nothing more exciting in my life than ‘seeing’ something to paint” - stopping dead in my tracks and saying “I’ve got to paint that! City life, boats in a harbor or my son in my arms my heart pounds with inspiration and excitement from the onset of the idea until the final stroke on canvas. I paint what I know, what I love and new people and places that strike my heart... “
Christina has been making art since childhood. Strongly influenced by her Great Uncle and First Uncle she became familiar and comfortable with many forms of art. Charcoal and Sumi ink drawings, watercolor, acrylic and oil painting, woodcarving and sculpture. She experienced first hand the passion to make art and the excitement in experimenting in multi-medias. It was the beginning of how she would forever see the world.
Christina’s formal training began with an art scholarship under the mentorship of professor emeritus Robert Paulson at Southern Illinois University. It was in Carbondale, IL that she had her first plein air (outdoor) painting classes. It was Robert Paulson that taught his students how to capture fleeting light, compare values and temperature, and see the big shapes. And uniquely he also inspired his students to not always paint exactly what you see but to paint how you feel about your subject and environment.
After receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in painting and minors in Photography and Theatre from SIU she continued her studies at the American Academy of Art and the acclaimed Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts in Chicago and under the tutelage of renowned artists David Leffell, Ken Auster and Henry Yan. Inspiration also came from her extended stays plein air painting in Key West, Jamaica and travels abroad. Christina’s inspirations consist of notable artists Winslow Homer, John Singer Sargent, Joaquin Sorolla, Nikolai Fechin, the early twentieth century artists of the Ashcan School. She paints in oils both ‘en plein air’ and in her studio from models, sketches, oil studies and photographs.
“My passion to make paintings has only grown stronger after having my children. The love I feel mothering my children and making a painting are parallel; I can’t see myself any other way. I feel an urgency to paint and a directness that I didn’t feel before I had my kids. My time is precious as well as my aspirations. When I paint I wear my ‘mental suit’ armed with confidence, clarity, excitement and spirituality. When I connect with my subject everything else around me becomes a blur. Raising and caring for my children has enlightened me and the way I see and opens up new doors everyday. Children and painting together is a stream of rewarding moments. I am truly grateful.”
Christina’s award winning paintings have earned her participation in juried shows and national plein air painting competitions and invitational’s, including ‘2008 Plein Air Festival, Door County, WI and ‘2007 Plein Air Easton’, in Easton, Maryland. Most recent awards include “Best of Show” at the 65th Annual Salon Show, at Bachman Gallery, in Munster, IN and two “Honorable Mentions” at the Cedarburg Plein Air Painting Festival, in Cedarburg WI. In May 2008 Body’s solo exhibition “Chicago in a Blink” at The Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts was reviewed by Chicago Art Critic Alan Artner in the Chicago Tribune - a first for The Palette and Chisel Academy in 100 years. Her work has been published in American Art magazine and is included in Northwestern Memorial Hospital’s corporate art collection in Chicago.
Christina is a founding member of the Plein Air Painters of Chicago, a member of Oil Painters of America, International Plein Air Painters and an Artist Member of The Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts, in Chicago. She exhibits her work in galleries and juried exhibitions nationally and her paintings hang in corporate, public and private collections worldwide. Christina resides in Chicago with her husband Jake and sons Emil and Walter.
Personal Achievements:
Art Scholarship SIU 1989 and 1992
Athletic Scholarship SIU 1990-1993
Triathlete 2 x medal winner
Heli-Snowboarding Chugach Mts, Alaska
Chicago - Mackinac Island Yacht Race 1996-1999
Hiking the Appalachian Trail
Special Interests:
Motorcycling, water sports, mountain sports, photography, nature
EDUCATION
1993 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL
Specialization: oil painting
Minors: theatre/scene design and photography
CONTINUING STUDIES
2009 Henry Yan, Workshop
2007 David Leffell, Workshop
2004 Ken Auster, Workshop
1998-2010 The Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Art, Chicago, IL
1997 12-week landscape study, Key West, Florida
1997 American Academy of Art - selected courses, Chicago, IL
1995 12 week landscape study, Jamaica, West Indies
ASSOCIATIONS
Oil Painters of America
International Plein Air Painters
Plein Air Painters of Chicago
Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts
Chicago Artist’s Coalition
PRESS & PUBLICATIONS
2009 Crown Point Star "'Body' of work from artist and athlete"
art review by gallery owner Sam Dalkilic-Miestowski of St. John, IN (see 'News & Events' page for review)
2008 Chicago Tribune review by art critic Alan Artner
solo exhibition 'Chicago in a Blink' (see 'News & Events' page for review)
2008 American Artist Magazine "Plein Air Painting in an urban environment" Feb. 2008
2007 'I See Chicago' children's guide book to Chicago. Paintings and words by Christina Body
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS & AWARDS
2010 The Cedarburg Annual Plein Air Painting Competition & Exhibition, Cedarburg, WI
Award / Honorable Mention
2009 The Cedarburg Annual Plein Air Painting Competition & Exhibition, Cedarburg, WI
- Award / Honorable Mention
- Award / Honorable Mention Quick Paint Competition
2008 32nd Annual Plaza Art Show, Juried Exhibition, Beverly Arts Center, Chicago, IL
2008 65th Annual Salon Show, Juried exhibition, South Shore Arts Cultural Center, Munster, IN
2008 Door County Plein Air Festival, National Painting Competition and Exhibition, Door County, WI
2008 The Cedarburg Annual Plein Air Painting Competition & Exhibition, Cedarburg, WI
- Award / Honorable Mention
2008 'Chicago in a Blink' Solo Exhibition, The Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts, Chicago, IL
2008 The Gold Medal Show, The Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts, Chicago, IL
- Award / Honorable Mention
2007 'Plein Air Easton' National Plein Air Painting Competition and Exhibition, The Academy Art Museum, Easton, Maryland
2007 Andersonville Plein Air Painting Art Exhibit, The Andersonville Historical Society Museum, Chicago, IL
2007 The Chicago Plein Air Painters Fine Art Exhibit, The Palette and Chisel, Chicago, IL
2007 The Gold Medal Show, The Palette and Chisel Academy, Chicago, IL
2006 Cedarburg Annual Plein Air Painting Competition & Exhibition, Cedarburg, WI
2006 Orleans Street Gallery, Pheasant Run Inn, St. Charles, IL
2006 The Chicago Plein Air Painters Fine Art Exhibit, The Palette and Chisel, Chicago, IL
2005 Scholarship Recipient, The Palette and Chisel, Chicago, IL
2005 The Cedarburg Annual Plein Air Painting Competition & Exhibition, Cedarburg, WI
- Award / Honorable Mention
2005 Dimensions in Art 2005 Fine Art Exhibit, Lake Forest, IL
2005 The Chicago Plein Air Painters Fine Art Exhibit, The Palette and Chisel, Chicago, IL
2005 The Hubbard Street Muralists Art Show, Chicago Artists Month Exhibit, Chicago, IL
2005 Festival Italiano on Daley Plaza, Chicago, IL
2004 The Cedarburg Annual Plein Air Painting Competition & Exhibition, Cedarburg, WI
2004 ‘1926 Roger Brown Exhibition Studies Space’, The School of the Art
Institute of Chicago “Crosswalk” exhibit Chicago, IL
2004 Woman Made Gallery “9th Annual Members Show” Chicago, IL
2004 Stone Soup Gallery, “Plein Air Landscapes” Key West, FL
2004 Cumamoto Studio, ‘Chicago’ plein air landscapes, Chicago, IL
2003 The Cedarburg Annual Plein Air Painting Competition & Exhibition, Cedarburg, WI
2003 Manhattan Arts International “Healing Power of Art” Competition, New York, NY
- Award / Honorable Mention
2002 The Art Institute Gallery, “The Chicago Open” Chicago, IL
2002 Cumamoto Studio, ‘Snake Dance’, Chicago, IL
2002 Woman Made Gallery “8th Annual Members Show” Chicago, IL
2002 - 1996 Eclectic Junction Gallery, Chicago, IL
2001 Cumamoto Studio,’ Wild Life’, Chicago, IL
2002 - 1995 Around the Coyote Art Festival, Chicago, IL
2000 Blue Dolphin Gallery, Key West, FL
1998 “Art on the Walk”, Italian Art Festival, Chicago, IL
1998 David Leonardis Gallery, Chicago, IL
1997 Chicago Yacht Club, Monroe Harbor, Chicago, IL
- Award / Cover Award and Exhibit Chicago to Mackinac Island Yacht Race
1995 Harold Washington Library, Chicago, IL
1995 Tryall Resort Gallery, Montego Bay, Jamaica, W.I.
1995 Ambiente Gallery, Montego Bay, Jamaica, W.I.
CORPORATE COLLECTIONS
Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Prentice Women's Hospital, Chicago, IL
Rachlis, Durham, Duff & Adler, LLC, Chicago, IL
Roscich and Roscich, Naperville, IL
International Paper Co., Lemont, IL
Rosebud Restaurants, Naperville, IL
Boehringer Ingleheim Pharmaceuticals, Warrenville, IL
SELECTED MURALS
2004 Century 21 Team Real Estate Agency, Naperville, IL
2004 Hubbard Street Mural Project “Polar Bears” Chicago, IL
2003 Hubbard Street Mural Project “Black Rhino” Chicago, IL
2002 Hubbard Street Mural Project “Three Horses” Chicago, IL
2002 Adobo Grill, Wells St. Chicago, IL
2001 Aliveone Bar, Cincinnati, OH
2001 Toscana Pizzeria and Gelatoria, Elmwood Park, IL
2001 Body Image Training Gym, Hinsdale, IL
1999 Midwest Center for Advanced Imaging, Naperville, IL
1999 Violet Café and Wine Bar, Chicago, IL
1999 PePe’s Restaurant, Oswego, IL
1998 Aliveone Bar, Chicago, IL
1996 Saint Matthew Evangelical Church, Lemont, IL
1995 Potters Place restaurant, Naperville, IL
1994 Santa Fe Building, Chicago, IL
1993 Minerva’s Café, Carbondale, IL
TEACHING & COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
2008 Juror for The Cedarburg Annual Plein Air Painting Competition, Cedarburg, WI
2006- 2007 Concordia Avondale Day School, Art Instructor, Chicago, IL
2003-2004 Chicago Department of Aviation, ‘Arts in Action’ performance painting and concert
2002-2004 Mentor and Instructor for kindergarten-high school students in designing and painting murals for ‘The Hubbard Street Mural Project’
2001-2003 Naperville United Way community art displays; ‘Giraffe’, ‘Carousel Horse’ and ‘Great Bear’ painted fiberglass animals
GALLERY REPRESENTATION
Sacred Art Gallery, Chicago, IL
Stone Soup Gallery, Key West, FL
The Steeple Gallery, St. John, IN
Gallery 30, Gettysburg, PA
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