Christopher Pendergast’s interest in art was formed at an early age. Though born to a Midwestern family, Pendergast had the good fortune to spend significant portions of his childhood living in England and Belgium and has also traveled extensively around Italy. 

 

Pendergast attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he was invited to join the Advanced Figure Department. He graduated with a BFA in 2000, afterwards focusing on web design and video production for several years before returning to painting full-time.

 

Since moving to New England from the Midwest in 2009, his work has centered on his new environment but as his travels continue the nature of his work continues to reflect all he sees. The act of resolving tension between the literal and abstract is a symbolic exploration of the relationship between subjective and objective. Pendergast’s paintings are the visual record of the complex internal dialogue that exists throughout this process. The subject matter, his knowledge of art history, materials, technique, methodology, and his own narrative are all equivalent counterparts in this discourse.

 

The nature of perception is further reflected throughout his creative process. Exhaustive photography of the subject allows for the creation of a collective perspective. While his internal dialogue develops the highly flexible nature of oil paint which allows his to keep the work vital. And while at times he still seeks the give of canvas or the precision of a uniform surface like archival panel. He finds that linen most often provides a consistency as well as liveliness upon which to watch the finished work unfold.