We all know the phrase, “a picture is worth a thousand words.” But in the digital world we live in these days, I sometimes feel we take less time to appreciate a picture and its meaning, thus making the picture worth a few alternative HTML text words. That was until recently, when I came across the artwork of Yinzer (and fellow east suburbanite) Christopher Nix and had to share a piece of his story.
You see Christopher Nix's artwork isn't exactly a single piece of artwork, but rather a storyboard on display in one picture. These collages, if you will, are made up hundreds of smaller pictures that depict something that ties the greater picture together. For example Christopher Nix's depiction of Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward has drawings that include two Super Bowl trophies, Ward's high school and college, his mothers name in their native language, a picture of the Art Rooney, Dancing with the Stars, the Terrible Towel, and the list goes on! In Christopher Nix's Roberto Clemente picture he includes things like the Clemente Bridge, his stats, his 1966 NL MVP, even the fact he was a Marine.
When you see Christopher Nix's drawings from afar you will see the iconic image of The Chief, or the flowing locks of Troy Polamalu, or the sternness of Mike Tomlin's game face. But, as you get closer what you see is a bit extraordinary, and might cause a few heads to double take a several times, urging the brain to look closer, and examine the stories behind each piece of art.
If Christopher Nix's artwork doesn't sell you right away (and I personally think that it should), maybe the charm of a lifelong Yinzer will? I contacted Mr. Nix and asked him to give me a little history about himself and his artwork. A civil engineer by trade, during the recent recession his "9 to 5" decreased his hours so he decided to focus a little more time on his artwork to supplement his income. In short time, the response has been amazing, even having his work displayed at the Pittsburgh Public Market and at an Art Rooney Award Dinner this year. Due to the success of his artwork and following the Pittsburgh community has given his craft, Mr. Nix plans on working only part-time as a civil engineer in 2012 with the hope of someday soon being a full-time artist. The average piece of work takes 3-4 months to complete and 60-80 hours of “hands on” drawing-time.
If you are interested in learning more about Christopher Nix's artwork please visit his website: www.christopherscollages.com. Most of his work revolves around Pittsburgh sports icons, but he also has touched other avenues as well. Did I mention they are affordable too? Try around $30 on for size. So which Christopher Nix piece is my favorite, that I proudly own? I would say it's a tie between the Hines Ward "86" collage and the "Coach Tomlin" collage. Which piece/story is your favorite?
