Christopher Ryan is an international conceptual fine arts photographer, model, and curator. His works have been exhibited throughout the United States and Thailand. Christopher has a passion for travel and has conducted his unique work on four continents. As a model Christopher has worked in photography, painting, body art, and sculpture. The modeling work has also been done on four continents. Christopher partners with galleries, organizations, and venues to produce exhibitions featuring his own works as well as curating and producing group exhibitions.
Visit the exhibitions page for a complete list of upcoming, current, and past exhibitions in which Mr. Ryan has participated in some capacity.
ARTIST BIO
Christopher Ryan (b. Mobile, AL, 1968) is an international conceptual portrait photographer, and former owner of Arabi Visual Arts (studio & gallery). He started capturing the world around him at the age of 10 with a $1 yard-sale camera. His first time to study photography in an academic setting was not until 2015 at San Diego City College. His works are known for their emotional impact that transports viewers to remote villages around the world and present a wide array of ethnicities, religions, socio-economic levels, and lifestyles.
After studying photography at SDCC, Chris dedicated the next five years to multiple self-funded photography projects which spanned four continents. These ambitious projects required careful planning, additional crew, complex transportation, and sometimes foreign government permission. Some of the titles of the series are: Youth & Urban Decay, Youthful Ambition, Teens with Tattoos, Bizarre Portraits, Focus on Feet, and Nudes in the Landscape.
In addition to the recent works described above, Chris has produced self-portraits for nearly 30 years, long before “selfies” were popular. He has also modeled for other artists & photographers for the same length of time, including many of the world’s top-ranked bodypainters.
His works has been exhibited in Thailand and the United States and he has given presentations to school children in Thailand, Colombia, Honduras, India, and the United States.
Christopher’s works are influenced by an unusual childhood which was spent working in the family’s traveling reptile show and vacationing at nudist resorts throughout the south.
After living in Thailand for four years, Christopher returned to New Orleans in 2019 with his loving husband Sinvacha Chanthala “Jiepfy”, a Buddhist ladyboy from Laos, and perpetual muse. In 2021 Christopher founded Arabi Visual Arts, a creative center in the Arabi Arts District which offers curated exhibitions, studio rentals, drawing groups, and other opportunities for the creative community.
Chris serves on the board of the ASMP Gulf South Chapter and is an active member of the New Orleans Photo Alliance, PPA, Florida Museum of Photographic Arts, and the Da Vinci Art Alliance in Philadelphia. His “Nudes in the Landscape” series is featured on The Model Society.