Few artists can boast a career that’s been blossoming since childhood. Carol Christie, a contemporary abstract expressionist, has been staging exhibitions, interweaving nature’s richest bounties, for what seems like a lifetime.

The 65-year old Christie grew up in a beautiful house in Royal Oak, Michigan - with a garden that out staged the house, at least in Christie’s eyes. Christie’s parents, devoted gardeners, grew the breathtaking blossoms that took seed in Christie’s fertile memory-bank, only to sprout again and again in innumerable artistic works. The ephemeral beauty of fields, forests, and flowers were captured in earlier watercolor and acrylic works ─ visually transporting viewers to the gardens of Christie’s childhood, and to those she’s passed along life’s highway.

After studying Art Education at Central Michigan University, Christie relocated to
Atlanta, Georgia in 1969. She continued to develop her craft over the years, taking
numerous academic courses and workshops, but believes her real education has been
in her own backyard. “Breathing the air, feeling the soil, savoring the four seasons,
inspires fresh ideas,” says Christie.

Like an explorer, Christie is always searching for the edge of the universe. Each
painting brings her closer. As an artist, she finds within each space an endless frontier
of possibilities. Her paintbrush interprets characteristic idiosyncrasies in each
miraculous earth form: the jazzy red heads of poppies in a field; the flamboyant aura
of sunflowers; the calming lull of the ocean. Though Christie is best known for her
exuberantly-hued florals, she always remains true to her inner voice. That inner voice
oftentimes directs her to create expressionist figurative work, and most recently, large
scale abstracts.

While her subject matter is depicted simply, her high-energy paintstrokes, luminous
depth of color and lyrical color patterning, are profoundly soul-stirring. The process is
one of gut-level spontaneity. Quick sketches evolve gradually into tapestries of bold
color and shape, incorporating generous brushstrokes and Christie's signature
calligraphic marks. Her work is best described as playful yet primitive renderings of
harnessed energy ─ set free on canvas. That mood-sparking energy conversion only
underlines the complex contrast of emotion, mirrored in her works.

Christie began exhibiting her contemporary acrylic works on canvas in 1990.
C.A. Christie (how she signs her work) is now being represented by fine art galleries
across the Southern and Northeastern United States.