Check out Christopher Scardino’s Artwork

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christopher Scardino.

Christopher, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
I found art making much later in life. My father was on the verge of passing after a long battle with cancer, and I found myself drawing him. This was significant because I had never drawn anything from life ever. After losing him way too soon, I hurriedly got a portfolio together and submitted it to the Laguna College of Art and Design down in Laguna Beach. As raw and unfiltered as I was at the time and having no formal training, I got IN! From then on, I have put all of myself, the emotions, the fire, the resilience and the intelligence in whatever I was doing at the time. After my training as a representational artist, I decided to explore all the other art forms and have rested firmly in the Mixed Media/Abstract/Assemblage world, which is where I will stay….for now.

We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do, why, and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
My art is a collection of different materials and shapes and colors that, when arranged correctly, elicit of conversation with others and themselves. I enjoy the challenge of starting with a clean wood panel, usually pine, and gradually adding and subtracting different elements and areas of texture to create a balanced whole. For the last two years, I have also been utilizing a propane torch that has enabled me to see even more possibilities for the work. The heat, coupled with Oil Based Paint, gives it a different sheen, texture, and color as I move through the piece. Adding, subtracting, burning and cutting are all big components of how I see the work developing and also how I come to understand how I would like for it to be.

My hope is that every single person that views the work feels something different. Whether it be experiential or visual, emotional or superficial, I hope that people feel something different based on what I have provided. I am hoping to feel that every time I step into the studio (the garage) as I only gain more of an understanding if I go down that lonesome road with little light and find that it goes somewhere special and filled with wonder.

Artists face many challenges, but what do you feel is the most pressing among them?
I find that trying to balance everything in my life AND be an artist is the most challenging. We need to be organized, which is not in our nature, work on our interpersonal relationships, pay the bills, the mortgage, keep track of our taxes, which all sounds pretty normal for every single human, but to balance that with making time to create and making that quality time is daunting and, sometimes, not possible. We need to be smart, make a list, prioritize and have a good idea of what we want from the work. If we do that, studio time is not wasted time, and we can feel good about the effort.

Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
Currently, I am showing at Art A Fair in Laguna Beach as well as the Festival of Arts in Laguna Beach for the summer of 2019, and the rest of my schedule is open for the time being.

One can support my work by visiting my website, www.scardinofineart.com, finding me on social media, coming to a show and just saying hello would be nice as well. The biggest support system I have are filled with people that genuinely love the work and are sure to pass that information along to friends and colleagues that may very well be intrigued. I realize that buying art is a luxury and not for the many, but when I find those that really connect with my work, it gives me great energy and drive to create more.

Contact Info:

• Address: Aliso Viejo CA
• Website: www.scardinofineart.com
• Phone: 7146584282
• Email: cpscardino@yahoo.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/scardinoart
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/scardinofineart

Image Credit:
Christopher Scardino

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