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Award winning artist, Jennifer McChristian, was born and raised in Montreal, Canada. From an early age, she knew she wanted to be an artist. Upon completing high school, McChristian began her art education at Dawson's College in Montreal, Canada. In 1986, she and her family took permanent residency in California, where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Art Degree with Honors from Otis Art Institute in 1990.
Jennifer proudly served in the Canadian and United States army reserves from 1985 through 1994.
McChristian was employed as a full-time animation artist and worked on projects for various animation studios including Disney and Nickelodeon. She has continued her studies under the tutelage of renowned artists Robert Blue, Karl Dempwolf, and Steve Huston. Her inspirations consist of notable artists such as John Singer Sargent, Anders Zorn, Nicolai Fechin and Cecilia Beaux. McChristian primarily paints in oils and occasionally watercolors and gouache. She has an affinity for painting 'en plein air' and also enjoys creating studio works using her outdoor sketches as inspiration.
"Painting is somewhat of a spiritual experience for me. Although challenging at times, the end result evokes within me a sense of elation, nostalgia and harmony."
Since 2000, McChristian has devoted herself to painting full-time and actively participates in art events and community building programs. She conducts an ongoing, uninstructed figure drawing workshop three times a week out of her spacious studio (that she refers to as her 'sanctuary') located in the heart of Los Feliz Village, CA. In addition, McChristian teaches plein air painting workshops in various locations throughout the United States and abroad. McChristian also finds the time to pursue other artistic interests such as classical ballet. She believes learning is a never-ending process and continues to develop and refine her artistic talent through workshops, research, travel and frequent excursions to museums and galleries.
McChristian recently received 'Best Signature Award of Excellence' from the Oil Painters of America 29th National Juried Exhibition and 3rd Place Award in the 9th Annual PleinAir Salon. She is also featured in the December 2020 Southwest Art magazine and American Art Collector's September 2020 issue. She is a Signature Member of Oil Painters of America (OPA) and an Associate Member of the American Impressionist Society (AIS).
McChristian currently resides in Glendale, CA with her husband Ben Fried and a magically inclined Calico cat named Sesame.
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