Christopher DeGasperi Bio

Although my paintings are of imaginary places, it is the immense skies of Northern New Mexico where I grew up that have been my primary source of interest and inspiration.

I am fascinated and captivated by late 19th century illuminist paintings and how light can be used to accentuate certain emotions. It is the constantly changing shapes, brilliance of color and sheer atmospheric expanse I feel compelled to create. To conjure a sense of sheer vastness combined with an ethereal light to convey various moods. With these elements, I am passionate in creating depth, distance and light as the basis for which the subject ultimately is a part of.

I discovered that painting in multiple thin layers of both opaque and transparent color allows me to achieve an inner glow and translucent, dreamlike artificiality. With the use of simple trompe l’oeil effects and subtle adjustments in perspective, I feel I am able to enhance the subject further and engage the viewer on a deeper level of contemplation.