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Chrystal Chan’s Paintings Inspired by the Supernatural

Chrystal Chan's heroines are of two worlds. You could say they exist in alternate dimensions, as they are inspired by Chan's belief in the supernatural. She can be a bibilical figure, as in her "Protector" carrying a swan, a shepard of a wolf pack, or a little girl back at home in her bedroom. They are often accompanied by the animals she saw growing up in San Francisco. While these images can be calming, there is also an unsettling darkness that surrounds her work.

Chrystal Chan‘s heroines are of two worlds. You could say they exist in alternate dimensions, as they are inspired by Chan’s belief in the supernatural. She can be a bibilical figure, as in her “Protector” carrying a swan, a shepard of a wolf pack, or a little girl back at home in her bedroom.  They are often accompanied by the animals she saw growing up in San Francisco. While these images can be calming, there is also an unsettling darkness that surrounds her work. Chan attributes this to her own personal spirituality, which she explores through themes like sanctification and the moral struggle between right and wrong. Spirituality can be what we have always been told it is, or there can be another aspect hidden from our ordinary view of the world. Chan’s works below give us both.

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