Straddie Scenes Come to School

Linda Muller - Bayside Bulletin - 10 January, 2011

SHELDON College Principal Lyn Bishop looks at the work of Redland Bay artist Scott Christensen at home and at work.

Four seascapes have been commissioned by the college, which adorn the walls of the school's new administration building, including one in Lyn's office.

"I think his work is outstanding. My house is filled with it. He captures the beauty of nature magnificently. His colours and hues are so lifelike," Lyn said.

Designer Trina Christie said the work reflected the school's "modern fresh environment", ideal for children and parents to "interact in".

Scott said he was extremely happy to be given the opportunity to do the work.

"The fact that Dr Bishop chose to support a local artist for the finishing touches of the new building speaks volumes and gives you an insight into the core values of the college," he said.

Scott said he sourced the work from scenes at North Stradbroke Island.

"I have an emotional connection to the ocean. The beach changes every hour. There is always something new," he said.

A keen surfer, Scott said he specialised in painting the sea and beach scenes.

Scott uses oil paints on primed canvas and works from photographs and sketches to produce the art work in his Cleveland studio. This commission took about six months. Scott was a student at Camp Hill State High School when Lyn worked there as deputy principal. "It's nice to see a previous student succeed," she said.

Colouring His World

Patrick Watson - The Courier Mail - 8 November, 2005

Scott Christensen remembers the dust, grime and sweat he felt for years while working as a road driller for Telstra. It was hard, backbreaking work and he didn't want to be there. He wanted to be at the beach.

Fast-forward a few years and Christensen, 34, has a fonder memory. It's of him handing in his resignation papers.

He'd told his colleagues for months that he was going to leave, but they didn't believe he was serious. After all, he had a wife and baby twins at home and was cashing it all in to be a landscape artist. More particularly, he was off to paint the sea.

"When I drilled, before I went to work, I would paint in my shed at four in the morning," he says. "All I would think about was going to the beach on the weekend. It was a kind of escapism, a way to escape day-to-day dramas. When I quit, I just felt relief."

A working-class man with working-class drive, Christensen says he attacked the art world. He painted ferociously, exhibiting and selling his work while studying visual arts at TAFE.

At his latest exhibition, his pieces are priced anywhere from $1400 to $5000. Several have already sold.

Like the various seascapes he paints, he says his art journey has been both serene and chaotic. "I've been professional for two years and I'm self-represented," he says with the air of a man who has escaped nine-to-five drudgery.

"In some way the sea cleanses you. It's like having a drink on a Friday night. That's where we used to escape to," he says.

"I think it was a shock to everyone when I quit, but once everything was explained to them I had a lot of support from my family."

An artist-in-residence at Redland's Old School House Gallery, Christensen regularly travels up and down the coast from Byron Bay to Fraser Island with his wife and kids in tow. Once there, he'll take hundreds of photos of the sea.

Back in the studio he lines them up and creates layers of sketches before painting the scenes he sees in his head.

He jokes that he has created an unlimited number of blues and greens in his life. "When I was a kid at school I remember art classes and I remember kids gathering around and seeing what I was doing," he says. "I've always been doodling. I knew I could be an artist. There was a need of going down to the shed and paint. You only have one life and I'm so happy I did it.

Christensen describes his approach "styled realism". His work is highly suited to reproduction, and he also uses high resolution scans to reproduce limited-edition prints to canvas. "I probably make about 25 a year. I work on them three at a time because I work in layers," he says. "Artists get lost. There are thousands and they get lost. I want to create a name and I want to create a name Australia wide. Then I'll try in the States."

It can be a tough life, but Christensen confesses he can spend all day staring at the beach; its tides, the shifting clouds and blowing sands an endlessly changing canvas. It's a scene, he explains, that is constantly evolving. And no matter how hard he tries, he says he'll never be able to capture it, not fully anyway. "I could never get bored on the beach," he says. "I will never capture the sea, but I've got to pay close attention to detail. I think that's what separates me from other artists."

Gaze over his 20-something massive canvases in his exhibition, Undertow and you'll find towering waves, setting suns, turbulent tides and placid beaches. He works large, he says because it's the only way he can capture the impact of oceanscapes. While he knows everybody can't escape to the beach, he thinks a picture of it on their wall will help explain his passion. Still, the large sizes have their drawbacks. "It becomes a problem because some clients can't fit it on their wall. I try to strip away everything that's not necessary and focus on the beautiful part," he says.

"I'll be doing this for the rest of my life."

Undertow is on at the Redland Art Gallery, Cleveland, Cnr Middle and Bloomfield Streets until November 23.

Free Info: 3829 8899 www.redland.qld.gov.au

Fine Ocean Art - Scott Christensen's Reputation for Exceptional Realistic Artwork is Growing in Waves.

Melissa Lee - Life Weekly - July, 2006

SOUTH East Queensland's rapidly rising population, along with renovation mania and the desire for many of us to be by the sea, has put Scott's seascapes in high demand.

It seems that Scott is set to forge his name firmly into the Australian art market, and at 34 years of age he has plenty of time to develop. "I have sold paintings to clients from New York to the United Kingdom and art investors are starting to have a bit of a punt. The locations and scenes I paint are the places I prefer to be. It flows to the canvas fairly easily now. I think that an intimate knowledge of the subject I paint helps a great deal' and we are realistic with our pricing."

Scott has been represented by some exclusive galleries, including Art Gallery Collections in Surfers Paradise. Just one of Scott's splendid paintings can take up to 3 weeks to complete. "I just can't keep up with supply for the art gallery systems. Word of mouth is working for us, and direct sales through my website. I now have a list of clients waiting to see each new work."

Sounds like the perfect career, doesn't it? Scott regularly goes on business trips to the coast, has an office with an ocean view and never complains about early starts. Yet this is quite a sea change when you consider six years ago, Scott was a telecommunications worker who drilled under highways and installed conduits for Telstra. Thank goodness he traded in the gloves for the paintbrush in 2002,after graduating from full time study with visual arts qualifications. He is allowing his talents to shine. He was recently selected as one of 20 artists represented by Fine Art publishing company, Origin Publishing International. For more information on Scott's work, telephone 0422 402 327 or visit www.scottchristensen.com.au . Scott will also have a large selection of his work on display at the Gold Coast Home Show, August 4 to6, at Parklands, Southport.

Washed Ashore With Scott Christensen

The Club Magazine - November, 2005

Scott has quite a reputation for his photo-realistic images of the sand and surf. His artworks are in demand for their amazing detail and astounding light which captures the ocean's spirit.

"I have always loved the ocean and enjoy travelling and surfing along the coasts from Byron Bay to Fraser Island, to find new inspirations for my work. Then I try and capture that idea on canvas in my studio at the Old Schoolhouse Gallery, Cleveland," says Scott.

Sounds like the perfect career, doesn't it? Scott regularly goes on business trips to the coast, has an office with an ocean view and never complains about early starts.

Yet this is quite a sea change when you consider four years ago, Scott was a telecommunications worker who drilled under high-ways and installed conduits for Telstra. Thank goodness he traded in the gloves for the paintbrush in 2002, after graduating from Moreton Institute of TAFE with visual arts qualifications, and is allowing his talent to shine.

His reputation has grown in waves. His work has been lauded as "Exceptional" by leading arts reviewers and is currently held in private collections around the world. He was recently selected as one of only 20 artists represented by Fine Art publishing company, Origin Publishing International. Now his increasingly valuable limited editions are available in all leading picture framers across Australia.

Lately Scott has been working hard on his new exhibition "Undertow" which starts on October 9th at the Redland Art Gallery in Cleveland. "I've focused on the movement of the ocean from a range of different angles, enjoying the infinite colour variations of the ocean and portraying the constantly changing features of the Australian coastline," says Scott.

The Redland Art Gallery is located at the corner of Bloomfield and Middle Street, Cleveland. The exhibition is free and most works are for sale. The exhibition is in gallery one from Sunday 9th October to Sunday 20th November 2005. Gallery opening hours are Monday to Friday 9.00 – 4.00 pm and Sunday 9.00 - 2.00 pm. To get an invite to the opening, call 07 3829 0673.

The Life Aquatic

Queensland Homes - June, 2006

In an inspiring tale of following one's heart and talent, Brisbane artist Scott Christensen explains why he'll never get his artwork right, but why he'll keep on trying.

Let's start with the ocean. There are few who would deny its fluid, evolving character, compelling nature, and seemingly endless capacity to engage one's imagination. Especially not Scott Christensen, who has dedicated his artistic career to capturing South-east Queensland's luminous coastal areas.

It's the movement of the water that intrigues him most; the way rays of light are refracted within a body of water. "What I'm trying to achieve," says the artist, "is something like what you see when you look at a body of still water, that is moving and rippling. It's so hard to get down on canvas. That sort of challenge really gets me."

The artist is relaxed in his light-filled Cleveland studio. A few of his latest works-in progress are propped up against the walls and a particularly large canvas fills a wide easel. This is the challenge he refers to – translating the depth and movement of a quietly rippling section of the ocean via his paintbrush, onto the canvas. "Part of my nature is if I have trouble with painting something , I try to nail it, I push myself to keep doing it."

Depicting the eastern coastline of Australia in all its guises certainly presents its fair share of challenges. " I don't think I'll ever get to that point where I think I've reached my professional as an artist" says Scott, who likes looking back at his previous artworks to "when actors watch their own movies and cringe at themselves. It must be an artist thing," he says with a chuckle.

Scott has always been entranced by the coastline, and particularly, the ocean. "I love exploring different coastlines with my wife and children; the kids love it, and it's good for them he says. His work reflects this ongoing fascination;different elements of Moreton Island, Stradbroke Island, Gold Coast beaches and areas of the Sunshine Coast have been pieced together through his work. "I'll sketch the aspects of each beach scene that I like and use photos for colour reference. From this he produces artwork that is crisp and smooth; infused with dappled light and creeping shadows. Often, people believe that texture is the only way to create depthwithin paintings, but Scott's flat, accurate paint strokes belie this misconception, and almost trick you into taking one bare-foot step forward, towards the water. "My work has no hidden meanings" says Scott. "I just try to capture the essence of a place."

This work as a professional artist is a far cry from Scott's previous incarnation working for Telstra. When he first took the plunge to become a full-time artist he "was nervous; very nervous." And understandably so. With a young family to support, Scott forged full steam ahead by working "incredibly hard…I painted five days a week. Then on the weekends, I drove a truck to make sure I had money coming in all the time." So is this his secret for success? "I had no choice but to succeed," he explains.

"My wife and I saw that we had a window of opportunity for me to realistically pursue art, before our kids reached school age. So I put myself in a corner, and if things weren't working out I'd just have to persist."

Upon reflection on those early, trying times, Scott insists he wouldn't have it any other way. "If I had come straight from school – straight from university or art college – I think it would have been harder. Being out in the workforce and getting life skills has helped….because the art world is just like any business. It's a bit strange, and it's a bit peculiar, but at the end of the day there are still people out there who want to take your money and rip you off."

It's this honesty and life experience that Scott applies, not only to his approach to his business, but to the artwork itself.

Life's a Beach

Charles Sonnex - Bayside Bulletin - August, 2006

PHOTO-realistic oil paintings of seascapes and innovative sculptures provide a mixed-bag of treats at a new Cleveland exhibition. Scott Christensen, who is resident artist at Old Schoolhouse Gallery, has a passion for painting Queensland's coastline.

A full-time artist, he has sold more than 150 original oil paintings and over 1000 limited edition canvases Australia-wide and will be featured in an upcoming edition of International Artist Magazine.

The Old Schoolhouse Gallery is at 124 Shore Street North and is open Fri, Sat and Sun 9.30am-4.30pm. Visit www.theoldschoolhousegallery.org.au or call 3821 2419 for information.