Christina Grace Mastrangelo, Tree of Life (Under Which Sits the Mother of All Buddhas)

In the lineage of Classical Realism, Christina Grace Mastrangelo (b.1983) has dedicated herself to studying and painting figurative work for almost twenty years. She grew up in Western Massachusetts, and her passion for figurative painting was first ignited during a visit to the Norman Rockwell Museum. Her mother was always making time for art, and her father, an airline pilot, placed a great deal of importance on travel to see other cultures. Because of this, she experienced the museums of Rome, Paris, and London as an adolescent, and with that family support was able to continue to travel and seek out the best figurative art teachers, a privilege that ultimately helped her realize her dream of being a professional artist.
Her first serious classes with realism were with Frank Covino. His accurate color mixing, master copies, and portraits inspired her to pursue realism even in a university setting. While she earned her bachelor’s degree at James Madison University in Virginia, Christina further developed her interests abroad, studying Humanism, Italian, and Art History at the British Institute in Florence, Italy. There she painted and absorbed the abundance of art across Europe before finishing her Studio Art degree from the university’s Honors College in 2006. Then, having discovered a three-year atelier that used maestro-to-pupil from-life methods of teaching realistic painting and drawing, she moved to Florence in her twenties. It was at the Angel Academy of Art, under Michael John Angel, Jered Woznicki, Jay Blums, and Martinho Correia, that she learned to use the traditional techniques and materials passed down the centuries from the Ecole des Beaux Arts, the Academy of Fine Arts Florence, and Pietro Annigoni. She lived and breathed art during this time, surrounded by international students and the best of Renaissance art. After graduation, she earned a student scholarship from the Art Renewal Center and used it to attend workshops at The Grand Central Academy in NYC. In 2010 and 2011 she studied with Camie Davis (portrait), Michael Klein (floral), Jon DeMartin (figure), and Thomas Kegler (landscape), all of whom have strong roots in the American lineage of classical realist painting that branch from Europe.
This submersion in European culture and art still reverberates through Christina’s work today-she paints her subjects realistically with attention to harmony, balance, beauty, and idealism, upholding the pillars of the classical realist style with every piece she creates. Her still-lifes present the strong light effects known of Academic artists, and there is a 19 th century naturalist feel to her multiple-figure work and florals. While she maintains an old-master mindset about traditional working methods, it can be seen that, after fifteen years living back in the United States, marrying an illustrator, and starting a family, there is a slight shift in her work- her florals use an increasingly vibrant palette, her figure work has stronger narrative elements, and there is subtle nature-based decoration in her work. There is even an element of playfulness, attributed to the liveliness and curiosity of her young son. One can say that she has struck a unique balance-heavier on the traditional end, and yet obviously influenced by her contemporary environment-
that sets her work apart from her peers.
Christina has exhibited extensively since 2009, winning instant recognition for her paintings. By her mid-twenties she was a junior member of the Salmagundi Club, a Hudson River Fellow, a scholarship winner from the International Salon of the Art Renewal Center, and had been asked to show at themed exhibits at The European Museum of Modern Art in Barcelona, Spain, the Michele and Donald D’Amour Mueum of Fine Art in Springfield, Massachusetts, and the Villa Bardini in Florence, Italy. She had two solo shows in Florence before moving back to the states, where she then had two more solo shows, including one at the Michele and Donald D'Amour Museum of Fine Arts at the age of twenty-seven. She’s been honored and awarded from the Oil Painters of America, The Portrait Society of America, the National Oil & Acrylic Painters’ Society, and many east coast venues, and after winning an award in their 2015 non-members exhibit Christina was elected as a member of the prestigious Guild of Boston Artists in Boston, Massachusetts. In 2022 she had a solo show at the St. Botolph Club in Boston, and she is currently showing forty-four pieces at her solo exhibition at the Guild of Boston Artists.
Christina’s work is located in private collections in Spain, Iceland, Italy, England, Canada, and Australia, as well as across the continental United States. She currently lives between Jacksonville, Florida, and Wilbraham, Massachusetts, with her family.While pursuing her degree in Studio Art through the Honors College at James Madison University, Christina further developed her interests abroad, studying Humanism, Italian, and Art History at the British Institute in Florence, Italy. She painted and absorbed the abundance of art across Europe before graduating from JMU's Honors College in 2006.
Immediately following graduation she returned to Florence to attend the rigorous drawing and painting program at the Angel Academy of Art. In 2009, after three years of training and living in Florence, she graduated and returned to the U.S. where she has been pursing her painting career ever since.
An internationally recognized artist, Christina has shown at The European Museum of Modern Art in Barcelona, Spain, the Villa Bardini in Florence, Italy, and has had solo shows at the Michele and Donald D'Amour Museum of Fine Arts in Springfield, Massachusetts and the St. Botolph Club in Boston, MA. Her most recent awards were from the International Art Renewal Center, Portrait Society of America, Oil Painters of America, and the Salmagundi Club. She is currently represented by the Guild of Boston Artists in Boston and Williams Fine Art Dealers in Wenham, Massachusetts.
Throughout the year, Christina spends her time between Massachusetts and Florida. She teaches workshops at the Academy of Realist Art in Boston, Massachusetts, the Mill Studio of Fine Arts in Manchester, Connecticut, and the First Coast Cultural Center in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, amongst other venues. A teacher for over 15 years, Christina has also compiled her lessons and techniques in a Patreon library for online learning. She is married to Nicholas McNally, artist and Associate Professor of Illustration at Jacksonville University, and together they have a young son.