Christopher Lenfest Armstrong

Christopher was born May 27, 1967, in Lewisburg. From the time he was four years old, he lived on a farm in Unityville. He grew up with a little sister, a wonderful collie dog, a 3/4-acre pond for swimming and skating, an ancient Amish work horse, sheep and chickens.

Chris was captivated early on by music, listening to LPs for hours and changing the record when he was two years old. He loved TV, movies, theater, Marvel comics and visual arts, and played soccer, frisbee and club hockey.

Chris attended Hughesville schools, and in school played Oliver and Kurt von Trapp. He participated in Bloomsburg Theater productions of “A Christmas Carol” as boy Scrooge. He then attended the Taft School, acting as Danny Zucko in “Grease.” He studied painting there under Mark Potter. He graduated from Taft in 1985. Chris attended Bucknell University, sang with the Bison Chips, an acapella group, and attended A.C.I. Studio Art Centers International, Florence, Italy, an exchange program. He received his Bachelor of Arts in 1989. He then attended NYU, earning a Master of Fine Arts with concentrations in art and philosophy in 1993.

Since 2003, Chris and his family lived in Gloucester, Mass., where he became an artist “Of the Sea.” He worked on large canvas and aluminum panels, developing consummate skill in rendering light on water and waves. He taught himself surfing and was in the water year-round. He often jumped in the ocean in the morning and evening.

Chris worked on his skills with the guitar, composed and sang with close friends in Gloucester. Although he was shy about performing music publicly, it was said that he was a better musician than artist. He followed the English band, Oasis.

He practiced yoga and became a certified instructor although did not teach. He read Joseph Campbell, Thic Nhat Hanh, and was interested in the achievements of ancient civilizations, and energy coordinates on the earth.

Chris’s paintings are represented by the Morrison Gallery, Kent, Conn., the Beth Urdang Gallery, Boston, Mass., and the Henoch Gallery, NYC. His artwork is collected by the Bennington Fine Arts Museum, Geisinger Hospital, Fidelity Inc., the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

Chris’s father, prominent artist, David Armstrong, died in 1998. He is survived by his daughter Lily, his mother Georgia Armstrong, sister Katy, uncle Christopher F. (Meredith, cousin Rebecca), and aunt Mary (“Mimi”) Armstrong (her husband Alston, “Stoney”), nephews Atticus and William, aunt Jan Antonucci (Robert), cousins Jacklyn and Robyn, and brother-in-law Nick Aigner.

The family plans a memorial service in Kent, Conn., at St. Andrews Episcopal on Aug. 17, at 11 a.m., and in Gloucester next summer.

Remembrances can be sent to his daughter, Lily D. Armstrong, 57 Eastern Point Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930, and his sister, Katy Armstrong, Kent School, Box 2009, Kent, CT 06757.