James C. Christensen
Encyclopedia
James C. Christensen is an American
artist
. His main body of work, mostly painting
s, is heavily influenced by fantasy
themes. Even his small body of religious
work shows heavy fantasy influence. Christensen says his inspirations are myth
s, fable
s, fantasies
, and tales of imagination.
Christensen was raised in Culver City, California
and attended UCLA. He then moved to Utah
to finish his higher education at Brigham Young University
(Christensen is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, BYU's sponsor). He then went on to teach art for over 20 years where he finished his teaching career at Brigham Young University in the late 1990s. Christensen now resides in Orem, Utah
.
Since his graduation he has had numerous showings of his work throughout the US and has been commissioned by numerous media companies to create artwork for their publications, such as Time-Life Books and Omni.
His artwork has been featured on the cover of Leading Edge
issue #41, winning him the Chesley Award for cover artwork in 2002. That issue also features an interview with him.
Most of Christensen's paintings have a philosophical
message. He is loath to describe them, however, preferring to allow the viewer to discern their own message.
Christensen's work has appeared in the American Illustration Annual and Japan
's Outstanding American Illustrators. He also won all the professional art honors the World Science Fiction Convention offers, and multiple Chesley Awards from the Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists
.
Christensen appeared in an episode of ABC's show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
in 2005. He created a picture featuring a member of the family as a fairy. The design team filmed a segment at his studio. The Greenwich Workshop donated a framed Court of the Faeries that Christensen presented to the family for the room as well.
Christensen has published more than three books, with many of his works appearing in many more. His first book, A Journey of the Imagination: The Art of James Christensen, was printed in 1994 to great acclaim. His second, Voyage of the Basset
(October 1, 1996), contains a frame story for a great deal of original work. His third book, Rhymes & Reasons, was published in May 1997. Christensen also illustrated A Shakespeare Sketchbook (May 2001) with text by Renwick St. James.
Christensen lives in a house he designed filled with secret passage
s and sculptures inspired by his paintings.
Not employed in all his paintings, his trademark
is a flying or floating fish
, often on a leash.
Christensen co-chairs the Mormon Arts Foundation with his wife Carole.
Christensen has produced some pieces that can be placed in historical periods such as "Harvey Cluff".
was the source of controversy in 2006 when a resident of Bountiful, Utah
demanded that the book be removed from circulation from the young adult
section at the Davis County
Library
in nearby Farmington, Utah
. The book features fantasy artwork such as depictions of troll
s, dragon
s and ogre
s. Two images of mermaid
s and one of a sphinx-like creature feature partially or fully exposed breasts.
Though the images are not sexual in nature, and as drawn, the breasts feature no nipples, Rod Jeppsen of the Citizens for Decency group said:
The Davis County Library Board voted to keep the book in circulation in the young adult section on August 22, 2006.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
. His main body of work, mostly painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
s, is heavily influenced by fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
themes. Even his small body of religious
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
work shows heavy fantasy influence. Christensen says his inspirations are myth
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
s, fable
Fable
A fable is a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, mythical creatures, plants, inanimate objects or forces of nature which are anthropomorphized , and that illustrates a moral lesson , which may at the end be expressed explicitly in a pithy maxim.A fable differs from...
s, fantasies
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
, and tales of imagination.
Christensen was raised in Culver City, California
Culver City, California
Culver City is a city in western Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 38,883, up from 38,816 at the 2000 census. It is mostly surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, but also shares a border with unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. Culver...
and attended UCLA. He then moved to Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
to finish his higher education at Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
(Christensen is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, BYU's sponsor). He then went on to teach art for over 20 years where he finished his teaching career at Brigham Young University in the late 1990s. Christensen now resides in Orem, Utah
Orem, Utah
Orem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the north-central part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Lindon, and Vineyard and is about south of Salt Lake City. Orem is one of the principal cities of the Provo-Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Utah and...
.
Since his graduation he has had numerous showings of his work throughout the US and has been commissioned by numerous media companies to create artwork for their publications, such as Time-Life Books and Omni.
His artwork has been featured on the cover of Leading Edge
Leading Edge
Leading Edge, formerly The Leading Edge Magazine of Science Fiction and Fantasy, is a semi-professional speculative fiction magazine founded in 1981 and published at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. The magazine is known for its high quality fiction and has published stories by authors such...
issue #41, winning him the Chesley Award for cover artwork in 2002. That issue also features an interview with him.
Most of Christensen's paintings have a philosophical
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
message. He is loath to describe them, however, preferring to allow the viewer to discern their own message.
Christensen's work has appeared in the American Illustration Annual and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
's Outstanding American Illustrators. He also won all the professional art honors the World Science Fiction Convention offers, and multiple Chesley Awards from the Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists
Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists
The Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists, ASFA, is a non-profit, educational association, whose membership is made up of amateur and professional artists, art directors, art show managers, publishers and collectors involved in the visual arts of Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mythology and...
.
Christensen appeared in an episode of ABC's show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition is a reality television series providing home renovations for less fortunate families and community schools etc...
in 2005. He created a picture featuring a member of the family as a fairy. The design team filmed a segment at his studio. The Greenwich Workshop donated a framed Court of the Faeries that Christensen presented to the family for the room as well.
Christensen has published more than three books, with many of his works appearing in many more. His first book, A Journey of the Imagination: The Art of James Christensen, was printed in 1994 to great acclaim. His second, Voyage of the Basset
Voyage of the Basset
Voyage of the Basset is a fantasy novel published in 1996. It was written and illustrated by James C. Christensen in collaboration with Renwick St. James and Alan Dean Foster...
(October 1, 1996), contains a frame story for a great deal of original work. His third book, Rhymes & Reasons, was published in May 1997. Christensen also illustrated A Shakespeare Sketchbook (May 2001) with text by Renwick St. James.
Christensen lives in a house he designed filled with secret passage
Secret passage
Secret passages, also commonly referred to as hidden passages or secret tunnels, are hidden routes used for stealthy travel. Such passageways are sometimes inside buildings leading to secret rooms. Others allow occupants to enter or exit buildings without being seen...
s and sculptures inspired by his paintings.
Not employed in all his paintings, his trademark
Trademark
A trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
is a flying or floating fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
, often on a leash.
Christensen co-chairs the Mormon Arts Foundation with his wife Carole.
Christensen has produced some pieces that can be placed in historical periods such as "Harvey Cluff".
Controversy
Christensen's book Voyage of the BassetVoyage of the Basset
Voyage of the Basset is a fantasy novel published in 1996. It was written and illustrated by James C. Christensen in collaboration with Renwick St. James and Alan Dean Foster...
was the source of controversy in 2006 when a resident of Bountiful, Utah
Bountiful, Utah
Bountiful is a city in Davis County, Utah, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 42,552, a three percent increase over the 2000 figure of 41,301...
demanded that the book be removed from circulation from the young adult
Young adult literature
Young-adult fiction or young adult literature , also juvenile fiction, is fiction written for, published for, or marketed to adolescents and young adults, roughly ages 14 to 21. The Young Adult Library Services of the American Library Association defines a young adult as "someone between the...
section at the Davis County
Davis County, Utah
Davis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of 2010 the population was 306,479, a 28.2% increase over the 2000 figure of 238,994. It was named for Daniel C. Davis, captain in the Mormon Battalion. The county is part of the Ogden–Clearfield Metropolitan Statistical Area as...
Library
Public library
A public library is a library that is accessible by the public and is generally funded from public sources and operated by civil servants. There are five fundamental characteristics shared by public libraries...
in nearby Farmington, Utah
Farmington, Utah
Farmington is a city in Davis County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Ogden–Clearfield, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 18,255 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Davis County...
. The book features fantasy artwork such as depictions of troll
Troll
A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, the term troll was a generally negative synonym for a jötunn , a being in Norse mythology...
s, dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
s and ogre
Ogre
An ogre is a large, cruel, monstrous, and hideous humanoid monster, featured in mythology, folklore, and fiction. Ogres are often depicted in fairy tales and folklore as feeding on human beings, and have appeared in many classic works of literature...
s. Two images of mermaid
Mermaid
A mermaid is a mythological aquatic creature with a female human head, arms, and torso and the tail of a fish. A male version of a mermaid is known as a "merman" and in general both males and females are known as "merfolk"...
s and one of a sphinx-like creature feature partially or fully exposed breasts.
Though the images are not sexual in nature, and as drawn, the breasts feature no nipples, Rod Jeppsen of the Citizens for Decency group said:
The Davis County Library Board voted to keep the book in circulation in the young adult section on August 22, 2006.
External links
- Biography of Christensen at publisher's site
- "Mermaids afloat in Davis libraries despite protests" at the Salt Lake Tribune