A Q&A with Artist Christina Baltais

As I explore the intersection of art and disability for my project "Visual / Virtual / Viral: Communicating Disease and Disability Experience Through Art in the Digital Age, I've found myself continually returning to the work of artist/advocate Christina Baltais. I was originally drawn to a mask she created, titled Gilded Pieces, that was inspired by the Japanese art of Kintsugi. Christina uses her work - ranging from sculpture to collage, photography, body art and more - to share her personal story of living with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS) and to raise awareness about chronic illness. 

I recently had the chance to ask Christina a few questions about her work and her experience as an artist/advocate. Here's what she shared with me:

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A post shared by Christina Baltais (@wordsasmedicine)

Q: How did you begin your journey as an artist?

A: My curiosity with art began in my early childhood. I was constantly creating - painting, drawing, and crafting for hours in my bedroom. When I reached high school, I was accepted into Etobicoke School of the Arts. It was there I received my formal training in the arts, and I'd say my journey really began there.

Q: How has your art evolved? Has your science background had an impact on your art?

A: My art was originally centered around creating colourful pieces with the intention of adding beauty to a space. I worked mainly in acrylics (sometimes oil) that focused on nature and nude figure studies. Over the years my chronic illness unfortunately progressed (I live with a disease known as myalgic encephalomyelitis, ME/CFS for short). In response, I had to adapt to different mediums because of my physical limitations. Collage, photography, makeup art, and sculpture are less labour intensive, and therefore more accessible. What evolved most in my art is the intention behind my work. I still want to create art that is beautiful, but most importantly, I want to use it as a tool for storytelling and raising awareness (for ME/CFS).

I think in not so direct but very profound ways, my science background has impacted my art. The experiences I draw from when creating, are about navigating life in a chronically ill body. For over a decade I was very sick but managed to obtain a BSc in Nutrition and Nutraceutical Sciences and nearly finish an ND degree (naturopathic medical degree). When my illness progressed, there was an overwhelming grief I had to confront when I had to leave the ND program.

My pursuits in nutrition and medicine revealed an undeniable gap. The knowledge and understanding of human physiology and biochemistry in relation to ME/CFS were nowhere to be found. Those answers are not even known by world renowned scientists studying ME/CFS, and somehow I naively believed I could heal myself if I just ate the right foods, took the right supplements, did the right yoga poses, cited the right mantras, etc. It was a painful realization, to know that I had bankrupted my health further in the desperate pursuit of answers to heal/manage my ME/CFS. In this way, my science background indirectly influences my art because my work often touches on a deep grief, heart crushing disappointment, anger, and desperation.

Q: Has the pandemic had an impact on your work, and if so, how?

A: I think the pandemic has definitely impacted my work. It amplifies experiences that were already there to begin with, as someone living with a very marginalized chronic illness. Feelings like grief, isolation, uncertainty of the future, yearning for the way things once were, fear of others (their judgements and ableist comments pre-pandemic; now it's them giving me COVID plus their judgements and ableist comments). These themes have been really central to my work over the past year, and the pandemic has undoubtedly influenced that.

Q: You've worked with a wide variety of media - collage, sculpture, painting, makeup, etc. - what's your favorite medium?

"Shelter in Place" by Christina Baltais

A: My favourite medium right now is collaging. I love the whole process from start to finish. It's fun seeking out old vintage magazines and books in different charity shops, because you never know what treasures you'll find. I love opening their pages for ideas and inspiration, and finding a creative way to bring pieces together to tell a story.

Q: I'm fascinated by your Broken Body/Enduring Spirit sculpture series. You make a powerful statement about learning to connect with your body that also challenges our cultural ideals of productivity. Can you tell me about your inspiration for these sculptures and the process of creating them?

A: My inspiration behind these sculptures was seeing the painted body casts of artist Frida Kahlo. Kahlo wore plaster corsets for most of her life because her spine was too weak to support itself. She transformed her painful body casts by painting them with personal images, collages, mirrors. I have a deep appreciation for the alchemy of pain into art, because I believe that's how many creatives survive and carry forward through great hardship. This inspired me to turn plaster moulds of my body into expressive pieces of art - to help communicate the hardship of existing inside it.

The process of body casting was quite straightforward. My spouse had to plaster wrap my upper body twice, and we had to figure out ways to position myself so I could be well supported as they dried. I wanted one cast to have a very flowing ethereal look, and chose to use the combination of an acrylic pour and gold leaf foil. With the other cast, I wanted to create the feeling of being trapped inside and worn down. I chose to use a crackle paste and corset-like stitches down the front. I also strung LED lights along the inside of this cast to symbolize one's spirit being trapped inside.

"Broken Body/Enduring Spirit" sculpture series by Christina Baltais

Q: As someone with multiple chronic illnesses, I find much of your work very relatable. Have you found that your art creates a bridge between people living with chronic illness? Any fun stories of how you've connected with others through your art?

A: I'm happy to hear, it means we're not alone in this experience. The only thing worse than going through a difficult time, is feeling like you're the only one going through it. Art definitely creates bridges between those living with chronic illness just for this reason. I know for me, sometimes I haven't fully digested the layers of what I'm going through. If I see a post that really resonates, whether it be writing or art, Im like "ah ha, that's it!" It helps you figure out the root of a feeling you haven't been able to articulate yet. There's healing there too, because it's validation for something you're going through. Validation is so important for those living with ME/CFS, because many of us carry medical trauma from disbelieving physicians, friends, and family members.

My most recent fun connection that I had was from a puzzle makeup look I created for #MillionsMissing this year (#MillionMissing is the annual global protest for myalgic encephalomyelitis). The makeup art was inspired by the book The Puzzle Solver, that tells the story of Ron Davis (director of Stanfords Genome Technology Center) and his family's ongoing battle with their son Whitney Dafoe's severe ME/CFS. I shared it on Twitter, and it reached Tracie White (the author), Janet Dafoe (Whitney's mom) and Whitney. To connect with them on Twitter was a really special moment, because it was a confirmation that my art can have an impact that reaches far beyond the tiny world of my bed.

Q: What's your ultimate goal in sharing your ME/CFS story with others?

A: My ultimate goal is to be seen. I want others to know what it is that I am going through, and the challenges those with ME/CFS face. Our community continues to go through so much, and we need healthy allies and compassion more now than ever. Another goal to sharing my story is to bring healing, comfort, and a sense of community to our experiences. I want to normalize and create discussion around the difficult and challenging struggles we face, both within our bodies, and with the outside world because of them. With cases of long haulers on the rise, there will be some who do not recover, and will go on to develop ME/CFS. Building a stronger unity between each other now will contribute to a stronger foundation for all of our advocacy efforts down the road.

Learn more about Christina's artwork and advocacy - and find out how you can purchase her work - at wordsasmedicine.com.