I’ve rewritten this section many times but always felt it was pretentious and fake. So, I’d like to share who I really am, and maybe you will gain insight into my world.

As a child, I coloured to escape anxiety. Then as a teenager, I drew to escape the pain of being bullied. At 16, my big brother came across my artwork and bought me my first canvas and paint set. Then, at 17, I lost my grandmother and painted to escape the heartache. Finally, at 18, I landed a job at Walt Disney World, an experience that untimely changed the course of my life. Seeing and living in a world driven by creativity lit a fire in my soul. From that moment, art was no longer an escape but a passion.

At 20, I studied graphic arts and design. At 22, I studied theatre arts, including set design, then attended Cordon Bleu to learn ‘sugar’ arts.

At 30, I landed a job as an art director and, from then on, carved a creative career in many leadership positions with the Government of Canada.

At 42, I became a single mom of two with a challenging job leading a digital media team for a large organization. While grateful for the opportunity, I started feeling like I had lost my creative passion. I craved to have my kids see my creativity used to create positive, inspirational art pieces from my heart that also serve a purpose to drive change.

At 43, I decided to shake things up a little, and that’s when Shaping the Crazy was born.

I developed a unique approach to my mixed media art using the digital skills acquired throughout my career. First, I use digital platform to design the overall piece while using some of my favourite colours to set the tone and style. I play with the viewers’ gaze by layering textures and mixed media to reflect sunlight, causing a new unique viewer experience.

I welcome you to follow my journey as I continue to shape my crazy creative world, and give back at the same time.

Christine Armstrong