Christer Karlstad

Christer Karlstad’s large-scale paintings narrate stories that often highlight how people relate to nature. The artist steers this narrative with his brush and his paint so that he can shape the story the way he wants it. Karlstad paints figuratively and represents things the way we experience them in our reality. There is nonetheless something odd about it all, as the situations and staging make the paintings mysterious and a tad frightening. A plainly attired woman drapes a blanket over a large moose. They are out in the mountains, but the woman is ill-dressed for such conditions. Moreover, she seems to be caring for the moose, as though putting it to bed – or has she rather shot it and is now covering its cadaver? Karlstad’s other paintings feature comparable scenarios. He is interested in creating a place where modern-day city dwellers are no longer in their natural habitat but out in nature, relating to animals, plants, and nature in a different way. GH