FLOW STATE ON CANVAS
From snow lines to saltwater soul – Christina Lynn McGrath paints the rhythm of life.
At the meeting point of grit and grace is Christina – artist, surfer, snowboarder, ultra- runner, and high-performance coach. Now based in Ti Point with sweeping views across Omaha Bay, Christina doesn’t just create art; she channels it, letting it move through her like ocean swell or alpine wind.
Her journey began with movement – snowboarding static peaks, surfing dynamic swells. “With snow, you are the rhythm. With surfing, the ocean is the music – you have to tune in and ride it. I wanted to capture that. To freeze a feeling and pour it onto canvas.”
Christina paints with her hands using fluid mediums – alcohol inks, resin, and acrylics – on wood, canvas, surfboards, skate decks, and large-scale furniture. “The bigger, the better,” she says. “It’s a dance. A pour. A pulse. I’m not thinking – I’m feeling. That’s when the magic happens.”
Her pieces are layered with texture, movement, and soul. Some are designed to be viewed from above or below – abstract landscapes that shift with the viewer. “It’s not the art that changes, it’s you. The beauty is in the perspective – the connection.”
With multiple exhibitions across the Coromandel under her belt and collectors from New Zealand to London and the US, Christina’s art speaks to surf and art enthusiasts alike. “When someone meets a piece and it already feels like theirs – that connection is everything,” she reflects.
Her upcoming Matakana Series is inspired by coastal life – emerald headlands, navy shadows, turquoise waters, and white sand. Grounded in real moments – trail runs at Tāwharanui, horseback rides through the bush, and cold-water surfs – each work captures rhythm and energy. Newer resin pieces explore mountain-sea interplay: the masculine lines carved in snow meeting the feminine flow of ocean waves. “It’s all there, movement in every direction. That’s what I aim to paint – that moment when you’re all heart,” she says.
Beyond art, Christina co-founded Optimise Health and Business with Skye Swift, helping athletes, creatives, and leaders unlock vitality, clarity and flow through performance physiology and neuroscience. She also teaches yoga at Bali Garden in Matakana. “Art, coaching, movement – it’s all expression. It’s all connection.”
On Saturday 30 August, from 2-4pm, Christina will host Coastal Grit & Wild Light at The Farmer’s Daughter in Omaha – a soulful afternoon of art, drinks, canapés, and conversation.
“When people connect with my art, it’s like they’ve been seen. That’s the power of it. That’s what keeps me painting.”
www.ChristinaMcGrath.com | hello@ChristinaMcGrath.com