How PCOS Influenced My Life and My Passion: Artist Christine Cassano

Phoenix-based artist will be sharing her story about how her health and her passion for art have intertwined. Since July of 2009 Christine has been a full-time artist working primarily in cast concrete. In the art-making process, using all environmentally...-safe and responsible materials is something that she has become passionate about in recent years. During her career while working for an environmental-building firm, she reviewed information and research data on environmental chemicals [toxins] used in our everyday products. As she learned more of the staggering statistics about the health effects these chemicals and waste have on our planet and on our bodies, she was convinced that change started with her [and you]. She did the homework and found alternative solutions for both materials and studio practices. Many mediums she had used for years were given up: all resins, oil paints, solvents, lacquers and petroleum-based materials. As a result – many new mediums were found such as, soy-based sealers, concrete casting, natural earth pigments, clay-based paints and a whole host of recycled materials. This new exploration of medium has changed the direction of her work significantly and brought a new layer of underlying content into the works as she continues to create an ongoing dialogue of visual elements that explore ideas related to human behavior and environmental adaptation.