Disconnected: Works by Christine Bush Roman

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs presents Disconnected: Works by Christine Bush Roman at City Gallery, June 30 through August 5, 2018. Combining transfer techniques with painting, drawing, and collage to give glimpses into the intricate and contradictory nature of modern life, these works explore postpartum depression, mental illness, and a life out of balance, while examining the web of issues that lead to detachments from one another and the natural world. City Gallery will host an opening reception for the exhibition on June 29 from 5-7 p.m. An artist’s talk will be held on July 15, 2018 at 2pm. Both events are free and open to the public.

Disconnected brings together more than four dozen multi-media abstract works by artist Christine Bush Roman, and installs them to accommodate interactive engagement with the artist at City Gallery.  A full schedule of the artist’s visits to City Gallery, all free and open to the public, will be available after the start of the exhibition, on City Gallery’s website at www.charleston-sc.gov/citygallery.

Managing mental illness and autism in her family led Roman to question what leads to a life out of balance. The artist’s work suggests that the American modern lifestyle fosters isolation instead of community, thereby exacerbating feelings of dissociation. Roman depicts the isolation and detachment that mental illness or brain differences can create from each other and the natural world.  The works in Disconnected suggest a longing to reconnect and refocus while remaining stuck in the trappings of the American Dream.

Christine Bush Roman says “My paintings are filled with symbols that serve to create a narrative about emotion, behavior, and our wavering relationships with reality. I try to depict the sensations of mental illness and I try to depict the chaotic mind of someone with autism or a sensory disorder. There is an immense amount of pressure for everyone to fit into modern society in a very specific way, especially for children who are autistic or experience issues like anxiety or depression. Our world, which feels ever more unstable, heightens the insecurity and urgency to find our place on this planet. Specific experiences are explored in each piece.”

About the Artist

Christine Bush Roman was born in Georgia and is now lives and works in Johns Island, South Carolina. Roman received her MFA from the University of Georgia in 2013. She is most passionate about mixed media drawing and painting, but also works in sculpture and installation. Her large and small-scale works draw connections between modern life and her experiences with mental illness, autism, and the growing disconnect between one another and the environment.