To me, the magnolia, which has a beautiful scent and dominance in my home area of Louisiana, has a large, somewhat lazy form and that is how I depict it in terms of soft colors and shapes. When they begin to bloom, they seem to seep into my skin and I begin to paint them again. That is what I see and feel.

I love the outdoors and that is where I start much of my sketching and painting. I can't help myself, it is not necessarily planned, but if I see a beautiful flower, a form, a rhythm, or a certain harmony that catches my attention, I am distracted and I will stop and sketch it, and often that becomes a source for a painting or I will paint from it directly.

A series of birds on a line as I drive the streets become music and notes in my paintings, sunflowers in my neighborhood as I walk to work are wild and expressive with a rhythm and dance of their own, and my paintings of women, I hope have stories and histories reflected in their bodies, eyes and expressions that say, "this is who I am", yet having mystery as well, leaving the viewer wondering.

Lately, that mighty Mississippi River, home, and those swamps have been calling.

Christina Juran, New Orleans, June 2005

BACKGROUND

Christina Juran was born in 1968 and grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana as one of many artistically inclined family members. From the moment she was little, she took great interest in her surroundings and was inspired greatly by both her mother's beautifully hand drawn cards and the paintings she often gazed upon that adorned the home walls, many of which were painted by her maternal grandfather, a Swedish artist.

Christina studied art at Kibbutz Kfar Hanassi Art Institute in Israel and at Carleton College in Minnesota under landscape painter Joseph Byrne.

After completing her undergraduate degree with honors in studio art in 1991, Christina headed to New Mexico, where the land is known for the amazing color and light. She began formally exhibiting work there in 1993.

In 1998 Christina returned home to New Orleans and settled in the heart of the French Quarter, working and painting. Represented by the former Galerie Lafitte for five years under owners Herman Kron, metal furniture artist, and Alexandra Monett, a curator and director for many years both in the States and in Belgium, a strong foundation was built and Tina's painting career took off and began to blossom in response to the great reception her work received.