Brief History:
Hi, my name is Chris Di Vincente.
I was born and raised in New York City 1965. I came from a lower middle class broken home. There were some good times and some bad times. Which was expected living in such a diverse mixed up metropolis. My play-ground was abandoned buildings and the subway trains. That experience shaped my life going forward with reluctant splendor.
My early experience of art was coming across some drawings of fashionably dressed women in ink by my mother. Inspired, I started to draw from cartoons, comic books and sci-fi scenes from T.V.. And as a street urchin, I was fascinated by the graffiti on the NYC subways and started to paint on them too. I didn’t follow up or do art much in my late teens. I was to busy working odd jobs, hanging out and going to parties. After a while, I felt like I needed a change.
I left NYC in the late 1980’s and moved to California where I had some family. I decided to enroll in a community college and won a scholarship to the San Francisco Art Institute. That was during the dot com era. The rent was to high. So I slept in my car and showered at a gym for two years. It was an existential experience. I kept myself busy and stayed focused. Because I did not want to forfeit this opportunity. After SFAI, I got accepted to pursue an MFA at the New Bauhaus University in Weimar, Germany. I dropped out after two weeks because of the language barrier. So I stayed in Germany for roughly two months. When I got back to the states, I moved to Los Angeles where I currently live and work and am happily married with two dogs.
A teacher at SFAI once posed the question to the class “ask yourself, why do you do art and who is it for?” A question that I’ve pondered over. I’ve been a creative person since I was a kid. Art has been a form of freedom and therapy, and a guiding force throughout my life. I will always do art, whether I sell a painting or not. It’s not always about the money. Though that might be a bonus. But, sometimes the real reward is the challenge and process to just create or manifest something. I do art because I have to, like breathing and eating. It nourishes my mind and soul. When I look out into the world, I see form, color and space or the lack thereof as the continuum of life and art.
Education:
01-99 San Francisco Art Institute Bachelor of Fine Arts
98-95 Sacramento City College
Commissions:
2023 – Paul Michealson Design
2022 – John Drinker Los Angeles California
2021 – Art Gallery Closet Japan
2020 – Yumi Senzaki Japan
2020 – Art Gallery Closet Japan
2019 – Leslie Barrett Design Luxe Hotel Beverly Hills
2017 – Renny Maslow Los Angeles California
2017 – JDP Interiors Los Angeles California
2016 – Tom Konopiots Vincere Ltd Chicago Illinois
2016 – Hollywood Proper Residences Kelly Wearstler Inc. Los Angeles California
2015 – Peter Mason San Francisco California
2014 – Mark Meyer Los Angeles California
2014 – Gary Marshall New Orleans Louisiana
2012 – Martin Penthouses Las Vegas Nevada
2012 – Tom Konopiots Chicago Illinois
2012 – Leslie Barrett Designs Los Angeles California
2012-11 – Kelly Wearstler Inc. Los Angeles California
2011 – Avalon Hotel Los Angeles California
Honors:
15 – painting as seen in the April 2015 Los Angeles Times article
11 – two paintings on the sit-com Modern Family
11 – painting featured in June 2011 issue of Elle Decor magazine pg 182
09 – one painting in the film I Love You Man
99 – San Francisco Art Institute Scholarship
98 – Susurrus literary journal- image of one painting on the cover
98 – Gregory Kondos Gallery Purchase Award- one painting in the permanent collection
Shows:
2024 – Palm Springs Modernism Show
2023 – Pop Up Art Exhibition The Mart Collective Los Angeles
2023 – Palm Springs Modernism Show
2022 – Palm Springs Modernism Show
2012 – Museum of Contemporary Art MOCA Fresh Auction Los Angeles
2010 – Terrell Moore Gallery Los Angeles California
2009-08 – Gallery Sommerlath Los Angeles
2002 – Ebert Gallery San Francisco
2001 – San Francisco Arts Commissions Gallery
2001 – Mission Cultural Center Gallery San Francisco
2000 – Balazo Gallery San Francisco
1999 – Diego Rivera Gallery San Francisco
1998-96 – Blooming Arts Gallery Sacramento
1997 – Uptown Arts Phantom Galleries Sacramento
1997-95 – Gregory Kondos Art Gallery Sacramento
Chris Di Vincente
6624 Springpark Ave #6
LA, CA 90056
323.251.5654
info@chrisdivincente.com A
