Artist Statement

In my work, I eliminate specific details to express a dream-like snapshot from my subconscious, a kind of cinematographic film still that arrests the instance between presence and absence. This paradox drives me. I seek to reconcile both ends of the spectrum, juxtaposing bands of color with plays of light and shadow, precise hard edges, geometric forms, and improvisational and fresh brushwork that is both turbulent and free, controlled and sustained. Essentially, the paintings are reflections of my current experience as I seek to understand where I am, where I am going, and how I relate to this place where I find myself in these strange times.


I maintain a regular studio practice of drawing from direct observation aspects from my daily life, fugitive glimpses of the day that are soon to pass. This practice brings me into the present moment and informs my work through the carefully observed line and spatial relationships, as I intend to have an anchor in reality while working from my imagination. This allows me to express a more free and gestural brushwork while simultaneously working within a structure informed by the carefully observed outside world. As I develop my paintings, I begin building the surface with thin layers, handling the paint with fluidity like water, and exploring the depth and richness of oil paint through chromatic sensitivity and tonal values. In this way, I hope to bring to the viewer a sense of joy and sensual pleasure in the color itself.

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Biography

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Fotini Christophillis is a painter and native of Greenville, SC. She has lived in Charleston, SC, Boston, MA, and New York City and is now residing in Cortona, Italy, where she teaches painting with the University of Georgia’s study abroad program. She has an MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts/Tufts University (2016) and a BA in Studio Art and Arts Management from the College of Charleston (2008).
 
She has exhibited her work internationally and nationally in cities in galleries such as NYC, San Diego, and St. Louis, as well as the Redux Contemporary Art Center and the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art in Charleston, SC, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Her work has been published in numerous magazines and art and literary journals, such as Studio Visit Magazine and Elle Decor. Fotini’s works are in public and private collections throughout the US, Canada and Europe. She was recently an Artist-in-Residence at the Chapman Cultural Center in Spartanburg, SC and is represented by The Grand Bohemian Gallery in Mountain Brook, Alabama, and Artios Gallery in New York, NY.