How this artist stays connected to her grandfather's surrealist legacy...using lighters

There's no very easy way to categorize Christina Kenton's sculptures — they're fantastical and range from dreamlike creatures to intricate bedroom sets, covered in tiny, hand-painted patterns. The common thread is just as unusual: the self-taught artist's sculptures are all built around lighters.

They're also informed by an important part of Kenton's past: her grandfather was a well-known Surrealist painter (one of the founders of Slovak surrealism) named Ladislav Guderna. He was originally from Czechoslovakia and, when he left, made his way through Toronto to Vancouver, where Kenton is now based. His legacy, from books to paintings to writings about his work, is vast.

Growing up in a family full of artists, particularly her grandfather, lit a fire (yes, that's a pun) in Kenton to become a prolific sculptor.

"We both created our own little world when it came to art...I want to leave behind tons of stuff too," she says in this video by Milena Salazar. "We're both always constantly creating and that's what inspires me — and that's also what I feel I inherited: his passion to always create."

See more of Christina Kenton's work at her Tumblr.

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