It’s time for our Featured Artist refresh!! This week’s feature is WCN team member, Chris Lagesten (aka Big Daddy Def ).
This Friday you can catch Chris painting live at the Welland Canada Day festivities being held at Merrit Park.
Chris Lagesten is a Welland-based artist with about 30 years of experience in the art world under his belt. Originally a graffiti and street artist, Chris has made a name for himself both in the local art scene and internationally in various genres of art. Also known as Big Daddy Def to many in the scene, Chris has won multiple awards including the Welland Arts & Culture Award for Visual Arts twice, once solo and once as part of The Black Lantern Experience, the art collective he helped found. A quick Google search will bring up tons of articles on the projects Chris has been involved with over the years. Locally, Chris made a splash when he was Chair for Artfest Welland, an annual arts and culture festival that ran for 6 yrs, before moving on to make waves with the creation of the BLX art collective. During the BLX years, Chris organized multiple art shows, workshops, events, and managed a retail gallery/studio. Chris’s public art pieces can be seen throughout Welland as part of the Canoe Art Project, The Welland Bell Box Murals Project, at the Downtown Community Garden, and the infamous Welland Mural at the corner of East Main & Hellems. Recently Chris has started diving into the world of photography with a focus on interesting portraits aimed at showing the subject’s true self. Currently, Chris has teamed up with local creatives for the Welland Creatives Network. Chris can be found on almost all major social media where he is always open to chatting about art and sharing his stories.
About the Welland Creatives Network:
