Straight Lines are Overrated

Original, one-of-a-kind abstract painting by Cristine Balarine, 2024
Size: 104x78cm
Medium: Acrylics, collage, oil sticks, pastels, pencil and inks on raw canvas
Ready to hang: no, image is illustrative. Ships rolled and needs to be restretched by your local framer - please allow for a slight reduction in size once stretched. Recommended framing method is mounting on a board, with floating black frame as per mock-ups.*
Signature: verso, also signed Certificate
Finish: silky varnish with UV protection
Shipping: rolled in tube
Delivery time: min 10 working days (depending on size, customs formalities etc.)
* Shipping large formats rolled is safer and more environmentally friendly than shipping ready-to-hang works. The canvas can be easily re-stretched by a framer at your location, which in most cases is even much cheaper than the increased transport costs for a ready-to-hang painting. If you'd like a comparison quote for shipping ready-to-hang please contact me.

About this painting:
My paintings manifest my intrigue for the rawness and authenticity of primitive, anthropological visual art, music and language. Oppositely, they also relate to street art: As an artist and architect, I am attracted by streetscapes for their scale and very universal, accessible, common place status quo. I see the street as our common living rooms in the cities, and reference to the organically formed, even dirty public realm complement my visual language, framing references to architecture.

In today's society, there's an overemphasis on rationality, efficiency, and predictability, favoring a "straight line" approach to success and happiness that often neglects our emotional and instinctive sides. Education systems prioritize logical reasoning and measurable outcomes, sidelining the arts and emotional intelligence, leading to a workforce that is technically skilled but emotionally disconnected. In the workplace, productivity and efficiency are valued above emotional expression and intuitive decision-making, creating environments that stifle creativity and well-being. Socially, we are pressured to conform to societal expectations, often presenting curated versions of our lives off and online. Life's unpredictability however, is represented in this painting, as during its process it went from organic to straight to imperfect again in its textures and shapes, reminding us that straight lines are, indeed, overrated.