(From left) Brazen; Perplexed. Christy Vonderlack, artist
By Gina Malone
When Christy Vonderlack was diagnosed with a rare genetic disease called Stargardt that affects the eyes and leads to progressive vision loss, she was working as a senior art director for a large marketing agency in Colorado. Three months later, considered legally blind, she had to stop driving and a year later she had to leave her position. “It was an incredibly dark and difficult time for me,” she says. She left her professional career quietly, but had as a means of healing, something she had excelled at since her childhood west of Chicago and had been inspired to rediscover on visits to her mother’s home in Santa Fe, NM: art.
Down Under. Christy Vonderlack, artist
leaving her job, Vonderlack says, “I was homebound in the country, but at least I could paint. I painted every day like it was a job and it made me feel like I was still contributing. I started doing outdoor art festivals and found that it was also a great way to connect to people again and be part of the community.” Her husband Craig Dickson, supportive of her work, drives her to art events, builds frames and offers critiques.
The couple moved to a small farm outside Asheville in 2017. “We loved the similarities between Boulder and Asheville such as active outdoor lifestyle, food, music and, of course, art,” Vonderlack says.
She describes her creative process as intuitive. “I have no plan or drawing when I start,” she says. “I go at the canvas with mark making, layering of paint and scraping through. Color palettes sometimes drastically change through the course of a painting. I create, destroy, erase and paint over. With each step, there remain scars of the past. A reality of chaos eventually transforms into a point of balance and a powerful and mysterious story emerges.”
Emerging 2. Christy Vonderlack, artist
Her mediums include acrylics, India ink, cattle markers, paint sticks, graphite and spray paint. “I’m known to fabricate paintbrushes from twigs and leaves or take a metal grinder to my canvas,” she says. “I use play and experimentation, which reveal a point of balance and mystery. I strive to create work with great stopping power that speaks to me in the end.”
For Vonderlack, the practice of creativity is therapeutic as well. “I find my daily painting very healing and it brings me great joy,” she says. “My work is my daily therapy of expressing myself, in saying that I do still exist. It brings a sense of accomplishment to my life. It’s what I will leave on this earth.” Her paintings have sold nationwide and around the globe. “This work will continue to let me be heard, and hopefully continue to inspire even people I’ve never met,” she says.
Jo-Ellen Ames and her husband David discovered Vonderlack’s work at an art fair on Pack Square. “There were many artists and lovely pieces, but Christy’s piece spoke to us,” Ames says. The couple had just moved to a new place and needed time to find a place for the painting at home. “I was finally able to move things to allow us to purchase it, and it’s front and center in our dining/living room where all can enjoy it.” They now hope to purchase a second piece by Vonderlack. “Her use of space and design always speaks to me,” Ames says, “and what might be considered challenging for many artists just makes us love her work even more.”
Exuberance. Christy Vonderlack, artist
Vonderlack had signed a lease on studio space in the Phil Mechanic Building a week before Hurricane Helene and was able to move in a week after the storm. She did lose 23 paintings that were at Marquee, but she considers herself more fortunate than many fellow artists who lost everything. Two of her lost paintings were found. “One was returned to me after it had floated down the river and got stuck in a fence in Woodfin,” she says. “I’ve since sold the bent, mud-covered painting to a couple from DC and I gave the money to the person who found it since he had become homeless because of the flood.”
Since she began creating in her River Arts District studio, Vonderlack has felt a sense of connection to the community. “I love talking to people who come through the gallery and being around other artists,” she says. “I’ve produced more work and better work since moving there.”
As a child, Vonderlack was surrounded by creative family, received encouragement and won many art contests, including one called “Dream for Tomorrow.” For her entry, “I drew myself as an abstract artist,” she says. “This piece hangs in my home studio today.”
Christy Vonderlack Fine Art Studio is located at 109 Roberts Street, Asheville. Hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Learn more at ChristyVonderlack.com and follow on Instagram @christy_vonderlack_fineart. She will participate in the Weaverville Spring Art Safari on April 25-26.
