Today we’d like to introduce you to Christopher Mooney..
Hi Christopher, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Born and raised in New York State, I was surrounded by an artistic family and a richly influential environment. Despite being born without hearing due to my mother’s measles during pregnancy, I wear corrective devices, my sight became my dominant sense, guiding me through the world and informing my work. From a young age, I was inspired by the works of Edward Hopper, Charles Sheeler, Charles Demuth, John Sloan, and Richard Diebenkorn, as well as our neighbor, the American artist Joseph Golinkin.
Pursuing my deep appreciation for art, I earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Parsons School of Design in New York in 1983. In 1987, I moved to Portland, Oregon, which proved to be a turning point in my career. The exposure to the city’s landmarks and bridges became a central focus of my art, and I am now renowned for my depictions of urban landmarks, primarily bridges, industrial sites, and the working heroes who build and maintain these structures.
The rivers and bridges of Portland are a great source of inspiration for me. I am fascinated by the complex steel girders and geometric shapes that underpin the majesty of bridges, compelling us to stop and breathe in the ingenuity of these grand structures. Through my work, I aim to document buildings and structures that might otherwise go unnoticed or forgotten.
As a painter of contemporary realism, my technique mimics the old masters but embraces a contemporary sensibility and ambience through careful and expressive brushstrokes. I strive to deliver unusual points of view that render exciting realistic and abstract portrayals, particularly in my paintings of bridges and cityscapes. I am also well-regarded for my portraiture, images of working heroes, and figurative work stylistically depicted in modern realism.
I enjoy hiking and walking around cities, carrying my camera to capture photo references. By stepping off the sidewalks, I seek to discover new dimensions in my work, creating paintings that are both abstract and realistic, illustrating the strength and beauty of the world around us. My mission is to share this unique perspective with others, inviting them to see the extraordinary in the everyday and to appreciate the ingenuity and artistry that surrounds us.
My paintings have been exhibited regionally and nationally, and have received recognition from Oregon Society of Artists, Society of Washington Artists, National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society, Oil Painters of America, International Guild of Realism, and the American Artist Professional League.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There have been many struggles, primarily financial. Submitting work to major art organizations such as the Oil Painters of America, the National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society, and the International Guild of Realism can be challenging. These are membership-based societies that curate prestigious juried group exhibitions open to the public but highly competitive.
With membership dues and submission fees, along with the uncertainty of acceptance or rejection, the process becomes costly. When a painting is accepted into a major national show, the expense and time involved in shipping can be overwhelming purchasing specially designed art boxes such as Airfloat or Uline and paying high UPS shipping costs. Recently, I’ve chosen not to continue pursuing national recognition because of these mounting costs. With thousands of artists all competing for similar opportunities, I’ve realized it’s no longer necessary for me. Instead, I prefer to focus on my local art community. Here in the Pacific Northwest, I’ve enjoyed a long, successful relationship over 35 years with the Rental and Sales Gallery in Portland, Oregon, which represents my work, especially my urban landmark series featuring city bridges. There are also wonderful regional opportunities through groups such as the Society of Washington Artists, the Oregon Society of Artists, or through annual events like Clark County Open Studios (Vancouver, WA), the Vancouver Art and Music Festival also in Vancouver WA, and Portland Open Studios, in which I participated for many years. My advice: live within your means and invest your energy where it truly matters close to home and the community.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a Pacific Northwest professional artist known for my realist paintings of urban infrastructure, currently represented at the Rental Sales Gallery, Portland Art Museum, Portland, OR. My influences have been Edward Hopper’s urban landscapes, Charles Sheeler’s precisionist industrial landscapes, and Antonio Masi’s depictions of New York City bridges. My technique draws on the Old Masters but shifts to a more contemporary style through expressive brushwork, innovative composition, and an effective use of light and shadow. More recently I have begun to incorporate human figures into my paintings: Studying the human form, my inspiration comes from artists such as Daniel Greene’s lonely women in subway stations, Nelson Shanks’ Salome, Steve Hanks’ emotional and thoughtful figurative works, and John C. Kacere, an American painter. Originally an abstract expressionist, Kacere adopted a photorealist style in 1963. Nearly all of his photorealist paintings depict the midsection of the female body. He is considered one of the original photorealists.
I was born and raised in Long Island, New York State, surrounded by an artistic family and a richly influential environment. I received a BFA in illustration from Parson’s School of Design, New York, New York. Currently living in the Pacific Northwest, I have been a member of Portland Open Studios, 2007-2019; Clark County Open Studios, Vancouver, Washington, 2022- 2025; participated in numerous group and solo exhibitions; and have won several awards for my paintings. For 35 years, I currently am represented at the Rental and Sales Gallery, Portland, Oregon. I have established a niche in the art community as a painter of contemporary and representational realism. A significant body of my work showcases Oregon’s diverse architectural styles, especially her bridges. My technique mimics the old masters but embraces a contemporary sensibility and ambience through careful and expressive brushstrokes.
A few years ago, I had participated in the Realism on the Hudson, an art show in Beacon NY. Organized by American Artists Professional League, New York, NY. My painting, Grip, a medium size, oil on canvas, of workers maintaining the hinges of the Willamette Falls Locks. I enjoyed meeting other members of the American Arist Professional League who’s work with diverse subject matter excellent representational and contemporary realism. The event was well organized in a beautiful space, the Howland Cultural Center, an old library currently a Community and Cultural center in Beacon, NY.
I currently create large works of oils on canvas from references; I would occasionally create smaller pieces as a sketch or study for a larger finished piece. It is a challenge to have a better sense of composition, design, and perspective sometimes can be a finish work of art.
In 2014 I received a grant from the Regional Arts and Culture Council to create a visual artistic record of construction workers building the new Tilikum Crossing and the Milwaukie Light Rail Bridge. I have continued this theme with new works depicting Vancouver, WA barge maintenance workers. With these more recent works, I feel as if I am following in a tradition that has sought to highlight the skill and resilience of manual workers and their contributions to society.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Two things might surprise people who know me or my work.
First, I’m active in the ballroom and swing dance communities, it’s my sport and the way I balance the intensity of painting with motion and rhythm.
Second, my newest body of work turns toward contemporary American life. I’ve started creating paintings that capture the soul of modern blue‑collar America, portraying ordinary people in everyday settings in a way that channels Norman Rockwell and Edward Hopper for the twenty‑first century. One recent piece shows patrons in hoodies and work jeans leaning over a neighborhood bar, their postures telling stories of physical labor and quiet endurance. A muted palette of blues and grays, punctuated by the amber glow of bottles and a red ketchup dispenser, gives the scene a familiar, poignant tone.
Unlike Rockwell’s idealism or Hopper’s detachment, my aim is to represent an unvarnished yet deeply respectful vision of today’s working class finding beauty and dignity in simple gathering places without glossing over the realities they face.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.chrismooneyart.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christopherbmoone/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christopher.b.mooney
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-b-mooney-72a51834/
- Twitter: https://x.com/Walk2bridge
- Other: https://christopherbmooney.com/
