Local Artist: Kristy Kristinek

Written By McKenna Dowdle

January 14, 2021

We sat down with a local favorite, Kristy Kristinek, to discuss all things Lubbock art! Take a look below for insight on what it means to be an artist in the “Hub City”!

Where do you draw your inspiration?
I draw my inspiration from not only my history as a ballet dancer but from contemporary movements of the body through dance. I want to give my viewer a unique experience of the ‘performance’ forever preserved through abstraction on a canvas. The gestural changes of the body in a performance space inspires the color choice and layering of material.

Tell us about your craft
My work happens entirely on the floor of my studio. I treat my canvas or my surface much like a ‘stage’ in a sense where I become the roles of painter and dancer all at the same time. I often use my hands and my feet to accomplish some of the mark-making that a brush causes to be more limited. I use a multitude of materials such as acrylic, house paint, chalk pastel and powdered charcoal to achieve layers of space and form through abstracting of movement.

What is something unknown about your work?  
What a great question! Most of the time my viewers are unaware of the dance background that I have. Once we engage in a conversation they often times tell me that they can see my paintings ‘moving’ while I discuss where my inspiration comes from. Even if it is someone who is really invested in art or the average person wanting to know more about what I do. The use of working on the floor is always fun to tell people because there is always this preconceived notion that a painting should be done on an easel! 

Describe Lubbock’s art scene vibe compared to other places you’ve been. 
Lubbock’s art scene has this great sense of community. Through the incorporation of local artists, visiting artists, music, food and even the element of the art student is strongly supported on so many levels. The freedom for our visitors and locals to see something totally out of their comfort zone and to be moved or inspired by what West Texas has to offer is so great. I’ve visited other areas where it feels very controlled and forced as opposed to the welcoming atmosphere we have to offer in Lubbock.

Art should be for everyone, not for a select few! The Lubbock art scene offers everyone all-inclusive access to work studios, where you are invited to see the artist’s process, gallery spaces with group/solo exhibitions that are national and locally diverse, theatre & dance performances, live music, local food, poetry readings and performance art which provides such a wonderful atmosphere that embodies the multi-layered art culture in Lubbock. There are so many talented people that make up the Lubbock art scene and it is constantly changing. A visitor could come in the spring and be totally wowed, and most likely return in the fall just to see what we have to offer.

How can visitors see your work?
Viewers can see my work in person at the Charles Adams Studio Project, Work Studio A. 408 Ave J in downtown Lubbock, deep in the heart of the arts district. They can also view my works online at www.kristykristinek.com

MORE STORIES

View the blog

follow us
on Social!

#LIVELOVELUBBOCK

en_US