Christen Austin

I am a 27 year old African American woman, born and raised in California. I have always had a passion for the visual arts ever since I was very young and throughout my childhood, I was determined to master the technique of drawing portraits and figures. I took a hiatus from art during college to focus on completing school and getting a degree in biology. I graduated from Pasadena City College with an Associates in Natural Science and then from Cal Poly Pomona with a Bachelors in Biology. However, during my last year at Pasadena City College, I rediscovered my passion for art and completed my first mural for the school’s Ujima program. Since then, I have continued to create works of art as a side business while working at a veterinary clinic. My current focus is to build a body of work that communicates the importance of representation in art, especially when it comes to art in the black community, and illustrates that black people can occupy any and every space, real and imaginary.