Christa Forrest | 10 QUESTIONS
Christa Forrest is a figurative artist residing in Southern California. A self taught artist, Christa left her 20 year career in finance to pursue her true passion. She continues to evolve and grow throughout her creative journey and has recently focused on developing her figurative portrait skills and techniques. Christa has participated in numerous exhibitions throughout New York and Connecticut, her hometown and has been commissioned for work in public and private collections.
1- What is different from your art work than other artists working in contemporary realism?
It has always been a struggle to find my own uniqueness - what makes me different. Throughout my creative journey I have compared myself to others and seen frustration along the way. I finally decided to focus on myself. Working through my uniqueness and creative process by focusing on my own self portrait. So my work is a true connection of me. Getting to understand and accept me as well as sharing my creative journey with my viewer through the feelings and experiences I have felt throughout the process.
2- How important is process versus the end result?
I truly enjoy the process and sometimes never get to the end result. I love activating my canvas with an underpainting and experimenting with different ways to allow it to come alive. My process is my growth, each time learning and understanding how to get to that end result. I do enjoy finishing but the process is where I love to live.
3- What is your ultimate goal when creating contemporary realism?
Where my creative journey is right now, my goal is to see myself, my uniqueness and story through my self portraiture series. Each new painting becomes growth. I love the challenge of making it look “real” but also experimenting with texture and color to play with those themes.
4 -What do you like best about your work?
I love the learning process. I truly enjoy working through my creative problems and finding solutions. I love challenging myself to think and see differently and play with those challenges on my canvas. What I love is looking back as I experience where I started and where I am now as an artist. Creating a growing, breathing body of work that evolves as I evolve in my creative journey.
5- What do you do you like least about your work?
I think what I least like about my work is that it takes me so long to get to that end result. My “inner critic” loves to voice their opinion when I don’t need it.
6 -Why contemporary realism?
I love the challenge of realism. I love experimenting with color and texture to create a living, breathing body of work. I love diving into a subject and see the uniqueness of it. I love challenging my work to develop story and feeling rather than just making it look like a photograph.
7- Which are your greatest influences?
My greatest influences are all of the amazing female portrait artists out there. I love watching and supporting their growth. It has been my motivation to grow through their successes.
8- What is your background?
This is somewhat of my second career. I spent 20 years in the finance industry and quit to pursue my true passion as an artist. I am primarily self-taught but I definitely take advantage of learning from many of the artists that motivate and influence me. My work focuses primarily on portraits in oil but I love to work in mixed media and do love to paint a good landscape every once in awhile.
9- Name three artists you'd like to be compared to in history books.
That’s tough to choose just three. But I love Georgia O’Keefe, Frita and I am currently obsessing over Bisa Butler’s amazing work.
10- Which is your favorite contemporary realism artwork today?
I can’t stop obsessing over Amanda Greive’s work. If I could spend an hour watching her process….