Meet Chrissy Espinoza | Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chrissy Espinoza and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chrissy, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
Since a young age, I have felt like the creative path chose me. I have always been interested in making art, especially drawing and painting in high school. Eventually my medium changed in college where I studied 2D Animation. Although I create art, I never actively pursued an art career because I didn’t want to turn my passion into a job and compromise my artistic vision for a corporation or person. I never wanted to feel forced to be creative.

When I was younger, I worked at several record stores in Colorado and the Bay Area. Later, as an adult, I transitioned to the tech industry. I have enjoyed both jobs, but I have found that separating my art from my paycheck allows me to be genuine and truer to myself in my work. Because at the end of the day I am creating, entertaining and making art for myself.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I work primarily with photography, video, and animation. I create surreal subjects and environments for my photoshoots. Usually, there is only one person or deity in my photos, and most of my concept’s stem from my imagination and me wanting to evoke an intense emotion in the viewer. Most of my photos are taken on my road trip travels, where I research a town, a place, a motel in an unusual setting. I think what sets me apart is that I’ve managed to keep my childlike imagination alive throughout my adult life. Unfortunately, many people seem to lose their imagination as they grow older.

I am proud of not giving up on creating and making art. It’s not always been an easy road and sadly the art world can be challenging to navigate with many restrictions and stipulations on what “they” consider to be a successful artist. I am where I am today because I never gave up and kept creating. I continued to submit my work to open calls and surrounded myself with art, films, books, and other artists. One of the most important lessons I learned is to stop comparing myself to other artists and society’s idea of a successful artist. When you start making art solely for recognition, it can change your art practice. While recognition is nice, it should not be the sole purpose of why you create art. Some of my favorite artists and musicians didn’t even consider themselves artists and created for themselves.

Although there were months when I didn’t feel inspired enough to create, I found my motivation somehow when I gave myself the grace to be ok to take a creative break. At times, I felt like giving up, but some kind of force inside me always pushed me to keep creating.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
My apologies in advance for the long response. I am a Sagittarius and adventure seeker.

I always search for unusual, unique places that have history or a story to tell. Surprisedly there are still a few things in Colorado I haven’t visited yet that are on my travel list. One of those places to visit is The Tank outside of Rangely, CO which is an audio laboratory for musicians, sound artists, educators and town residents. I almost always plan a photo shoot around my travels so I would love to take photos and video inside The Tank. Next stop would be Glenwood Springs to soak in the geothermal Hot Springs and venture into the Fairy Caves. While in Glenwood Springs we would stop and have Indian food at Masala & Curry and have a drink down the street at Doc Holidays Saloon. Next day it would be a nice scenic drive through Colorado’s mountain ski towns to Victor, CO where we would stay at an old, haunted brothel hotel named the Black Monarch. The Black Monarch is a cool hotel that has my kind of themed rooms, H.H Holmes room, Elizabeth Bathory room, Bela Lugosi room, Tesla room to name a few. My husband has one of his large paintings in the hallway, so it is always nice to stop by and say hi to his painting. Before we left town, we would stop by the Victor Trading CO & Manufacturing Works where they make handmade brooms. I love folklore and I am intrigued with the process of making these brooms which seems like a diminishing art form. One broom lore is “If a wife sweeps a circle around her husband, it will keep him eternally true to her.”

We would then head north to make our way back to Denver. Once in Denver, we would stay the night at the haunted Patterson Inn in Capitol Hill, built in 1891, which is a Colorado Historical building. The Lumber Baron Inn is another place that supposedly haunted and has paranormal activity. There are so many cool and historical hotels in Colorado that I seek out for travel and photoshoots.

I enjoy experiencing different types of bars. Sometimes I like to go to a themed or unique bar, while other times I prefer to visit a local dive bar and observe the people around me. For instance, one of my favorite bars in Denver is Nob Hill on Colfax. It’s a classic spot with an awesome clown painting on the wall. Another great option is My Brother’s Bar, which is known as the oldest bar in Denver and has a rich history and a lovely patio area. As far as a good theme bar I enjoy Adrift and Electric Cure which are Tiki themed bars in Denver.

For entertainment in Denver, we would watch a movie or two at the Mayan Theater on Broadway and afterwards head down the street to Boyztown for live male dancers and a drink. I have found creating your own entertainment is sometimes free and almost always enjoyable. I like consistence so I always enjoy eating at the Mercury Cafe, Watercourse and a breakfast burrito from El Taco De Mexico.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I always appreciate and respect groups and people in the art world that think outside the box. Some of those groups or individuals include NO PLACE TO GO an artist-made haunted house, a collaborative project directed by Serena Chopra, Kate Speer and Frankie Toan in 2020. TAD Projects formed in 2022, curated by Tobias Fike and Donald Fodness which has a DIY spirit and desire to experiment curatorially. Terry Campbell is an artist that creates interactive gold hunts, art pranks and curates his own ghost tours. Union Hall has always been very supportive of me, and I appreciate the ladies that run the place who are Emma Perez Steur, Esther Hernandez and Jess Diaz. Union Hall is the first non-commercial, non-profit arts space inside of a residential building in Denver.

Website: https://www.chrissyespinoza.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chrissymode/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@chrissymode?app=desktop

Image Credits
All photo credits are me, Chrissy Espinoza 🙂