Chris Turri     Corrales, NM

In 2006 Chris went into his studio full time to redirect his artist focus, fabricating sculpture from new and reclaimed metals and developing his “special sauces” to create unique patinas on copper and steel. Transforming the “skins” of old vehicles — 40s, 50s and 60s — Chris uncovers the elements in the metal that tell stories from another time and brings a richness and deeper character to the work.

Native cultures hold a special place deep inside him, so he gratefully borrows some of the iconic imagery of indigenous peoples and blends them with universal symbols and materials of a more recent time.  Chris’ abstractly figurative sculptures are a contemporary expression of the harmony in diversity. 

Through the process of exploring textures and the alchemy of his patinas, Chris recently developed a line of mixed media art — patina on cloth. The new work was born from the shadows of his metal sculptures and the stories they tell.