We stopped by Katrin Fridriks workshop/studio in Paris during holidays, and got a chance to see her recent works as they were getting packed for their trip to fairs worldwide. We also got to talk with her about her plans for 2014, and the way all the successful shows, fairs and auction results are affecting her work and life. Being one of the few female artist out there that reached the level she is at, we were interested to find out more about her and her work, which she happily shared with us.
Katrin Fridriks is an Icelandic born conceptual artist that lives and works in Paris and Luxembourg. She’s been active in the art scene for about 10 years now, and numerous gallery and museum shows, art fairs, grants and big commissions are already proving her position in the contemporary art world. Although architecture was her first true love as a way to express herself, she ended up studying calligraphy which definitely influenced the characteristic style she has became known for. Her young and energetic spirit, and wide influences from Pollock, Richter to Kapoor, seem to determine her work for recognition and success. Combining the almost surreal beauty and energy of her homeland with her own energy and unique technique she developed in her workshop, she creates impressive works on canvas. These pieces are abstract and work both on the micro and macro level, but they all carry a lot of deeper meaning in them, which Katrin is very passionate about. Using her vivid and explosive works to raise awareness on different subjects, the title of these pieces usually reveal a fraction of the story. Through her ongoing series such Gene & Ethics, Stendhal syndrome, Crayons, Awareness, etc, she explores such themes such as the genetic code and human classification, the flux of information in a technology-based context, or the natural resources expressing the consequences of human activities on Earth. These subject are especially meaningful for her since she hails from such a remote place like Iceland, which is in many ways very different and untouched by the rest of the world. Therefore, she tries to express her thoughts and concerns about these subjects, by creating work that visually and conceptually relates to them. Also, as meticulous she is about each piece she creates, she is very careful about her installation and the presentation of her work. Nicely balancing her energetic splatter and calmer liquid images, as well as monochromatic and color ones, her installations regularly have a strong impact on the visitors of the fairs and gallery shows she is showing at.
Last year was a groundbreaking one for Fridriks on many levels – from setting up and starting working in her new studio space in Paris, to seeing her works reaching enviable results in auctions, along with constantly creating new work and exhibiting it at fairs and shows all over the world. And still, that all sounds like merely an intro by the sound of her plans for 2014. Carefully picking galleries she works with, events she contributes to, and building her base of institutional supporters, Katrin is starting off this year by taking part at Art Stage fair in Singapore, a solo show presentation with LTD gallery during the India Art Fair in New-Delhi, and at BRAFA fair in Bruxelles, andshowing along works by Fritz Glarner and Maurice Esteve with Hélène Bailly Gallery. She is also in a two person show together with Clemens Behr at ART14 in London, and has plans as well for big solo shows with Lazarides in London and with Circle Culture Gallery in Berlin later in the year. Finally, she is also taking part in a huge show at the Seoul Art Center Museum, exhibiting along big names such as Renoir, Monet, Picasso ,Chagall, Miro ,Dali, Degas, Rodin, Hirst, Kusama, Warhol, De Kooning, Banksy, Sam Francis, Murakami and many more.
Take a look at more photos from her studio below…
