Christine Porter Lofaro is an award-winning artist from the Mediterranean island of Malta. She has been involved in the artistic scene for over 20 years. Her interest and dedication to art are noticeable in her years of practice, teaching, and academic research in art and creativity. Porter Lofaro pursued a B.A. (Hons.) in Art and a Master’s in Creativity and Innovation from the University of Malta. Later, she obtained her PhD from the University of Sheffield, UK, where she conducted research on studio spaces, practice and creativity. Throughout this time, Christine has also continued to develop her artistic approach, primarily in hyperrealism, and this has also been recognized internationally. Apart from awards, the artist was also a finalist in a number of international competitions, such as the British Art Prize. Most recently, Christine became a Lunar Codex artist, and her work is now represented on the South Pole of the Moon in perpetuity. She was invited to be a Lunar Codex artist as an award winner in the prestigious Art Renewal Center (ARC) 16th Salon competition.

Christine’s classical technical skills are combined with strong concepts to create unique contemporary work that is all about the human experience. Her work instantly draws the viewer in and encourages reflection on different aspects of living and being human. Also evident is that her work is continuously evolving, and this illustrates the natural curiosity of the artist to develop ideas, experiment with different possibilities, and push the boundaries of art materials. Recently, Christine’s work has been seen to follow a new direction, where detailed realism is combined with pop art elements, marrying two worlds together into one unique and imaginary space. Realistically painted objects or figures occupy fictional spaces, existing only in imagination, giving her work a unique, fresh, and contemporary aesthetic whilst still echoing a strong element of classical technique and realism.

The artist works in both oil and acrylic and appreciates each medium for its unique qualities. She believes technical skill is extremely important because it is key to making her ideas and artistic visions come to life. This feels particularly inescapable when it comes to hyperrealist painting. Throughout the years, although Christine has also delved into other styles, she has always been drawn back to realism. As she remarks, “It felt like the right language to adopt in order to communicate and document my own ideas and life experiences”. In her artistic process, she finds inspiration in many things around her, sometimes even in mundane everyday moments – sparking ideas that would develop into meaningful art pieces.

Porter Lofaro has exhibited her work, solo and collectively, in Malta, the UK, and the US. Her work is also found in private collections around the world. Furthermore, Christine has organized and curated exhibitions with other artists to explore and celebrate Maltese culture and its rich history. In addition to this, the artist was also appointed as a judge representing the Sovereign Art Foundation in Malta. This international foundation celebrates the importance of art in the education system.