Christopher Green’s mesmerising oil paintings explore the effects of light on surfaces, from chrome tea pots to the vital spark in the eye of a big cat.
His hyper-realistic still lives and intricately detailed wildlife portraits seem to inhabit a heightened version of reality, the impact of which is compounded by their large scale.
He chooses subjects which have some element - reflective surface, diminutive size, playfulness, an interesting texture such as fur - that can become its focus, in order to reveal an unexpected or previously unseen beauty or presence.
He is fascinated by the idea of balance and much of his subject matter is very nearly symmetrical or centrally balanced to heighten the sensation of focusing in. He takes numerous photographs from slightly different angles and in slightly varied lighting, which allows him to ‘see round corners’ and achieve a more convincing, apparently 3d image. Rather than going on to create a faithful reproduction of the photographs themselves, he uses them as reference points for the creation of his alternative idealised reality.
Christopher has had a hugely successful career as an illustrator with clients including Penguin books, Saatchi and Saatchi and Sainsbury’s and has created everything from TV credits of the covers of the internationally best-selling Rumpole series by John Mortimer.
As an artist he has worked for Harrods, Fortnum and Mason, the Walt Disney Corporation and has a sell-out show at the New York affordable Art Fair.
He has been commissioned to produce textile designs for Paul Smith and Barbour, and Rowan Atkinson owns a portrait Christopher painted of him for a West End theatre poster.
