A truck full of windows helped Christopher Kroehler share his view with the world.

The Shoreline-based painter, whose illustrative, graphic work is the subject of this month’s solo exhibition at Bainbridge Performing Arts, said he first began working in what would become his trademark style — oil paintings on glass — via experimentations with woodworking.

“When I first graduated from UW, [and] I studied painting, fine art, I decided to put painting aside and I started creating furniture,” he said.

Eventually he began adding some decorative painting to his creations, especially his handmade tables.

“I started dropping a piece of glass on the tabletop in the center and sometimes I would do a simple painting on the back of it,” he said. “I started taking the tops off the tables and just kind of mounting them on the wall.”

It was then, through his side job as a construction worker, that Kroehler found his perfect canvas.

“I was seeing these great old windows that we would be replacing from these craftsman-style homes just being thrown out, taken to the dump,” he remembered. “So I talked to my boss and I said, ‘Can I buy these windows from you for like two bucks each and then that will save you on the dump fee?’”

He, of course, agreed, Kroehler said, and promised to gather some up in the coming weeks.

Boy, did he ever come through.

“He pulls up with a truck with 200 windows in the back,” Kroehler laughed.

Kroehler began experimenting with new paints and techniques while working on the old windows, eventually having his work discovered by a Seattle Art Museum rep during a group show at Bumbershoot.

“That’s how I kind of started getting known for that style of painting — through that venue,” he said. “It was just gimmicky enough and just different enough that people hadn’t seen a lot of paintings on windows like that before.”

Kroehler said his theatrical and narrative style comes from many of the styles he was exposed to while growing up in Japan, as well as his love for the work by the German Expressionist painters, though it is of an admittedly lighter mood.

“My pieces aren’t deep,” he said.

“I’m not trying to come up with any kind of grand statement with these pieces. They’re fun [and] quirky.”

The imaginative titles of his pieces come mostly courtesy of his wife, Kroehler added, who is a screenwriter.

The pieces on display at BPA, the artist said, are a combination of work from several series.

“Growing up in [Japan], you’re influenced by all sorts of art and history,” he said. “I’ve never done a lot of illustration, per se. As far as the graphic quality, that’s probably just my process. I start on the back of the glass and I kind of work out a composition with black line, black paint.” From there Kroehler said he turns to the front of the piece, where he is confronted with the mirror image of the work done so far.

“The black dark outline, I love that,” he said. “And kind of subdued colors.”

Kroehler’s work at BPA will be on display through Monday, Dec. 21.

Find him on Facebook (Christopher Kroehler Art) for news of future shows.