Untitled: 60 x 48, mixed media on canvas. Large-scale abstract painting by Christopher Durst featuring layered symbols, textured surfaces, and expressive forms exploring memory, movement, and atmosphere.
Untitled: 60 x 48, mixed media on canvas. Large-scale abstract painting by Christopher Durst featuring layered symbols, textured surfaces, and expressive forms exploring memory, movement, and atmosphere.

Abstraction With Volume.
by Christopher Durst

Large-scale abstract paintings shaped by experience, atmosphere, and process.

Most of my paintings begin without a fixed outcome. I work through instinct, layering, and response, allowing each piece to develop naturally rather than following a predetermined plan.

I am less interested in depicting a specific subject than creating a sense of presence. The paintings evolve through texture, experimentation, and discovery, revealing themselves over time.

Featured Work

Residual Memory by Christopher Durst, a large-scale abstract painting exploring memory, movement, and atmosphere through layered symbolism and texture. 60 x 48 in, Mixed media on canvas.
Residual Memory by Christopher Durst, a large-scale abstract painting exploring memory, movement, and atmosphere through layered symbolism and texture. 60 x 48 in, Mixed media on canvas.

RESIDUAL MEMORY
60 × 48 in
Mixed media on canvas


View All Works

Transmission by Christopher Durst, a large-scale abstract painting exploring communication, connection, and perception through symbolic forms and layered mark-making. 60 x 48 in, Mixed media on canvas.
Transmission by Christopher Durst, a large-scale abstract painting exploring communication, connection, and perception through symbolic forms and layered mark-making. 60 x 48 in, Mixed media on canvas.

The Work

I am interested in the space where order begins to break down and something more instinctive takes over. I am drawn to the traces people leave behind, the emotions attached to places, and the experiences that stay with us long after they have ended. A conversation, a crowded venue, a city at night, or a fleeting moment can leave an impression that lingers for years.

Rather than describing those experiences directly, I use them as a starting point. Paintings develop through layering, revision, and discovery, with each decision influencing what comes next. Some areas are built up while others are removed, allowing the work to find its own direction over time. What remains is less about a specific memory or place and more about the atmosphere and feeling that continues to stay with us.

Before The Canvas

Before painting, I spent years documenting music culture, paying as much attention to the atmosphere surrounding the moment as the moment itself. What began as observation through a camera eventually evolved into creating atmosphere through paint.

Mike Ness of Social Distortion performing live with his iconic Lucky 13 Gibson Les Paul guitar. Black-and-white concert photography capturing a close-up view of the legendary instrument on stage.
Mike Ness of Social Distortion performing live with his iconic Lucky 13 Gibson Les Paul guitar. Black-and-white concert photography capturing a close-up view of the legendary instrument on stage.
BP Fallon & The Bandits during an album cover photoshoot featuring BP Fallon, Nigel Harrison and Clem Burke of Blondie, and guitarist Aaron Lee Tasjan. Black-and-white music photography documenting a collaborative rock and roll project.
BP Fallon & The Bandits during an album cover photoshoot featuring BP Fallon, Nigel Harrison and Clem Burke of Blondie, and guitarist Aaron Lee Tasjan. Black-and-white music photography documenting a collaborative rock and roll project.
A large outdoor music festival stage with a crowd in front. The stage features banners reading 'Austin City Limits Music Festival' and has instruments and musicians performing. The crowd is dense with some holding signs and flags, and the background shows historic buildings.
A large outdoor music festival stage with a crowd in front. The stage features banners reading 'Austin City Limits Music Festival' and has instruments and musicians performing. The crowd is dense with some holding signs and flags, and the background shows historic buildings.
Willie Nelson recording music in a professional studio. Black-and-white documentary photograph capturing the legendary songwriter during the creative process.
Willie Nelson recording music in a professional studio. Black-and-white documentary photograph capturing the legendary songwriter during the creative process.

The Same Instinct

The photographs above reflect years spent exploring music, culture, and the people who shape them. While the subjects may have changed over time, the underlying interest remains the same: paying attention to atmosphere, experience, and the ways we connect to the world around us.

Different mediums. The same pursuit.

Select works are available for acquisition.

Debutante Graffiti II & III by Christopher Durst, large-scale abstract diptych featuring layered symbols, texture, and contemporary visual language. Each 60 x 48 in, mixed media on canvas.
Debutante Graffiti II & III by Christopher Durst, large-scale abstract diptych featuring layered symbols, texture, and contemporary visual language. Each 60 x 48 in, mixed media on canvas.

Let’s start a conversation.

Whether you’re interested in a commissioned work, exhibition opportunity, creative collaboration, or cultural project, use the form below to share your vision, ideas, and direction. Every project begins through dialog, atmosphere, and shared intention.