Bio

Christopher Engel’s art education began at the Art Center College of Design now located in Pasadena, CA. He later moved to New York and studied at the Art Students League. While at the League Mr. Engel studied with renowned abstract expressionist painter Richard Pousette Dart.

During this time, he began creating works depicting the depressing and suffocating elements of the New York subway system, which became The Turnstyle Series. As a result of working with Richard Pousette Dart the boundaries between objective and non-objective or realistic and abstract work became blurred.

.

This, Mr. Engel says, allowed him to travel down the sometimes semi-abstract, semi realistic, and symbolic path of the Turnstyle Series, which preoccupied him from 1980 until 1992.

The series was intended as a social commentary on the subways and, by extension, the conditions in society in general. As the work progressed over the years it became more abstracted, symbolic, and personal.

In 1980 Christopher was invited by Roger Denis, curator at the Hallways Gallery in Buffalo, NY to have a solo show of personal somewhat autobiographic works called "Rites of Passage" series which consisted of 37 pastels on garnet paper executed in 1979-1980 somewhat based on emotionally charged moments from his childhood. They were executed in a primitive style with titles structured in a narrative sequence.

In the early 80’s Mr. Engel showed work at the Debra Sharpe gallery in the East Village during the dawning of the art scene there. During this time, he maintained studios in Manhattan and Hoboken, NJ. In Hoboken he participated in the one-night shows and discussions at the alternative space, Fourwalls.

In 1984 while working as a cab driver Engel was held up at gunpoint by three armed gunmen. After suffering from PTSD, he visited an old friend Seattle, WA after this visit he ended up moving the following year and commenced traveling between Seattle and New York for the next two years.

While in Seattle he had a one person show of work from the Turnstyle Series at the Hundred Waters gallery and participated in several group shows. During this period he was represented at the New York Print Fair by Eldindean Press with his etching suite based on the Turnstyle Series of paintings. In 1987 he also created a series of bronzes at the New York Sculpture Center based on the paintings and etchings. The following July 1988 he exhibited this suite of etchings in a second show at the Hundred Waters Gallery in Seattle.

In 1988 he moved back to New York and established a studio in upstate New York as well as maintaining is studio in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen.

In 1994 in response to a proposal for a show of work based on economic statistics Mr. Engel was invited for a second time to show at Hallwalls in Buffalo. This ultimately became a group show based on his. The show was called “Men in Suits” and featured works by artists who work with similar economic, political, and social agendas. Christopher went on to develop a website focusing on the same material which, today, is even more relevant than ever. The website address for this graphic and informative work in progress is: https://www.gettoknowyourceo.com.

After 1996 Christopher devoted himself to his abstract work in his studio in upstate New York where he had his studio from 1989 until 1019 when he moved to Staunton, VA. Due to financial considerations he sold the house and studio in Virginia and moved back to New York where he is currently living in the small village of Newark, NY.

Along with his other projects in 1995 Christopher began a monumental tribute to Vincent van Gogh. He created (and later distributed) a CDrom entitled “Vincent van Gogh: Straight from the Heart.” The CDrom contains more than 4 hours of spoken excerpts from Vincent’s letters to Theo and correlates his actual works with his words. The audio excerpts illustrate van Gogh’s deepest feelings about art and the world around him. Through interactive devices the CDrom reveals Vincent’s theory on color, his palette, perspective, and his working methods with the click of the mouse.

The text of the spoken letters as edited by Christopher particularly reveals Vincent’s development as an artist and the bumps and revelations he experienced along that road from the point of view which Engel felt is universal among young artists.

The CDrom’s audio is taken from over 300 letters which cover the 10 years of his life as an artist. It contains over 900 paintings and drawings and over 100 photographs. Since 2003 “Vincent van Gogh: Straight from the Heart” was sold at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam for about 5 years until it no longer kept up with current computer operating systems. A complete description of the CDrom can be found at: https://www.vangoghinteractive.com. A 4-disk audio book on CD is still available.

By the early 2000’s Mr. Engel was able to return to painting full time. This new period culminated in the Fan Project. Since then, Mr. Engel has focused on his abstract work.

The artist has work in the collections in the US and abroad. His paintings, etchings and bronzes are represented in various public and private collections in the US and abroad. Copyright @ Christopher Engel 2025