Chris Riggs(I)
Chris Riggs is contemporary New York City artist, whose art works are based on a unique combination of cubism, abstract, surrealism, minimalism, pop and street art which has made him a leading artist of his generation. His murals, commissions, paintings and sculptures are in museums, galleries, and private collections in over 50 countries including the USA, UK, Greece, South Korea, Thailand, Russia and China.
Celebrated for his chromatic graffiti and mural-sized paintings exploring themes such as positivity, unity, and politics, artist Chris Riggs for Mayor draws on the aesthetics of New York City street art. By appropriating symbols, slogans, and affirmations popularized by the "flower power" movement of the 1960s, Riggs creates artworks that promote love, peace, and co-existence. Riggs's work also references various art movements including Minimalism and Pop art. His paintings often feature the word "love" layered numerous times in repetitive yet legible patterns and incorporate symbols like peace signs and flowers, further highlighting his concern with promoting a more utopian society.
Chris Riggs was born in Manhattan, New York in 1973, and studied painting and political science at New York's City College and Columbia University, New York. He lives and works in Miami and New York.
Chris began his career painting when he was three years old with his grandfather who was from Italy. At age 11, Chris' medium was aerosol, painting murals in the abandoned buildings and train tunnels in New York City. At age 17, Chris traded in his spray cans for a paint brush. Since the mid-1990s, Chris Riggs has been making complex abstract paintings and sculptures.
In 2004, Riggs decided to run for Mayor of New York City because he saw an injustice: Bloomberg cut the school lunch program. This angered him, and he decided run for Mayor of NYC and change the city through his artwork. In 2005, Riggs played himself as a mayoral candidate for New-York City in documentary movie "The Promise of New York". He started to create art under the name Chris Riggs for Mayor.
He executes his political city-based paintings and sculptures in acrylic and spray paint. Chris associates the vivid colors and geometric shapes he uses with the City's unique vocabulary and palette, and, most importantly, it's politically active, changing the world dynamic.
Celebrated for his chromatic graffiti and mural-sized paintings exploring themes such as positivity, unity, and politics, artist Chris Riggs for Mayor draws on the aesthetics of New York City street art. By appropriating symbols, slogans, and affirmations popularized by the "flower power" movement of the 1960s, Riggs creates artworks that promote love, peace, and co-existence. Riggs's work also references various art movements including Minimalism and Pop art. His paintings often feature the word "love" layered numerous times in repetitive yet legible patterns and incorporate symbols like peace signs and flowers, further highlighting his concern with promoting a more utopian society.
Chris Riggs was born in Manhattan, New York in 1973, and studied painting and political science at New York's City College and Columbia University, New York. He lives and works in Miami and New York.
Chris began his career painting when he was three years old with his grandfather who was from Italy. At age 11, Chris' medium was aerosol, painting murals in the abandoned buildings and train tunnels in New York City. At age 17, Chris traded in his spray cans for a paint brush. Since the mid-1990s, Chris Riggs has been making complex abstract paintings and sculptures.
In 2004, Riggs decided to run for Mayor of New York City because he saw an injustice: Bloomberg cut the school lunch program. This angered him, and he decided run for Mayor of NYC and change the city through his artwork. In 2005, Riggs played himself as a mayoral candidate for New-York City in documentary movie "The Promise of New York". He started to create art under the name Chris Riggs for Mayor.
He executes his political city-based paintings and sculptures in acrylic and spray paint. Chris associates the vivid colors and geometric shapes he uses with the City's unique vocabulary and palette, and, most importantly, it's politically active, changing the world dynamic.
