Christopher Galley

I am a visual artist based out of Buffalo, New York. The working class, blue-collar attitude of Buffalo has had a heavy influence on my work. It is an attitude that drives me to follow my artistic goals and dreams. It is an attitude that that motivates me to find my own niche in a rich and vibrant artistic community. Buffalo has also provided me with an “underdog” will and sense of perseverance. Although my work pulls from a number of sub-cultures in terms of imagery and technique, I strive to get my message out to a broader audience. The majority of my work deals with the influences that surrounded me growing up. I am a product of the 1970’s and 80’s. Growing up I ingested a steady diet of visual imagery gleaned from Saturday television. The likes Evel Knievel and Steve McQueen awed me with their perceived lack of concern regarding their personal safety and their silver screen idol cool. Saturday afternoons lead me to develop a fascination with the world of horror movies. When I was growing up my family moved to a small town outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We had an old cemetery on a hill behind our house. That cemetery always felt rather familiar, like I had seen it before. It turned out it was where they filmed the 1968 classic “Night of the Living Dead”. Even though that film had been made before I was born, I must have seen it ten times by the time my family moved to Evans City. The idea of something old and forgotten coming back to change the world definitely had an effect on me. The idea that the familiar could turn terrifying or that the known could become unrecognizable made me change the way I looked at the world. I’ve always had this connection to the macabre and the horrifying. I think that’s why I became a public school teacher… As my work has evolved I’ve also incorporated my interest in divergent media. My attention to detail is overwhelmed by the dizzying array of possibilities available to artists today. I am fascinated by the limitless editing possibilities available in my computer, but I can’t bring myself to eliminate the hand made component to my art. I have to hand render an image, otherwise I feel like I have cheated myself. I’ve reconciled these feelings by combining both the traditional and the modern approaches. Presently this combination involves digital design, hand rendering, painting and a variety street art techniques. It is an ever-evolving process. I always try to find something new to challenge myself with, something that can capture my interest and imagination while maintaining a balance with my processes. In addition to my painting, I also work on a limited commercial basis as a freelance designer creating logos, web sites and any other business oriented need. I like the challenge of translating someone else’s concept into a realized vision and concrete image. You can find a portfolio of images of my work at www.devilchickendesign.com. I can be reached through email at cgalley@devilchickendesign.com.