About Kristine Di Grigoli

Kristine Di Grigoli is a Philadelphia-based contemporary artist working in painting, sculpture, and mixed media. She began painting at the age of eleven, studying with Dorothy Young in Highland Park, NJ. Throughout her life—from teenage bedrooms to her current studio—she’s explored the possibilities of abstraction, storytelling, and material experimentation in every space available. A graduate of Rutgers University, Kristine’s work has appeared in solo and group shows across the US and internationally, and resides in private and public collections.

Artist Statement

My creative process is rooted in intuition and experimentation. I’ve always found myself most alive when I surrender to the unexpected—when I let color, line, and texture build upon each other without a strictly defined plan. Working with acrylics brings me a particular satisfaction: their fast drying time lets me move quickly, layering and reshaping ideas before hesitation—or doubt—slows me down. I often reach for a palette knife, FrogTape, or even my hands to shape the paint, appreciating the directness and physicality of these tools. For sculpture, I’m drawn to self-drying clay because it’s affordable, doesn’t demand special ventilation or a kiln, and matches the pace of my process.

Much of my art begins with play and with trust in the subconscious. I let “weird little characters” and strange forms appear, then work with and around them, welcoming surprise and serendipity. At other times, like with New Year’s Eve 2007, the painting leads to narrative—first envisioned as set design for a film script called Autumn, and now inspiring a new direction: making a series of paintings that ‘walk’ a viewer through a story, with each panel its own cinematic scene.

I’m interested in how art can act as both map and mirror. My hope is that each piece offers viewers a new way to wander, imagine, and find meaning in abstraction—whether it’s a splash of color, a strange figure, or a visceral texture that lingers in the mind.

Right now, I create wherever I can—at home, at my photography studio, or anywhere space allows. With room to grow, I’m eager to develop larger-scale projects, installations, and continue exploring the intersection of visual art and narrative. My work—no matter the medium or audience—remains an open invitation: play, imagine, and see what surfaces.