BIO

Sue Friesz is an American, multidisciplinary artist who spent her formative years in the Midwest with a family drawn to nature and the environment. That interest only grew stronger as she developed a deeper curiosity and understanding for our natural surroundings and continued as she pursued an education in art. Friesz says:

“The first thing I notice when entering a wooded area is the quietness… how it filters out the sounds of our everyday life. One set of systems replaces another, streets and traffic give way to plants, vines, and trees. In them I find distinctive rhythms and patterns to use in my own work. It could be such things as the wind causing plants to bend their leaves all in the same direction, seedpods formed in clusters, or branches growing at the same angle. In each, the rhythms and patterns begin to surface. It is that pulse and movement that I search for.”

Over time Friesz has invented her own visual language from these observations with nature. Through her contour drawing, painting, sculpture and assemblages she creates spatial tension, balancing formal elements with patterns and rhythms from her imagination. Craftsmanship is also important. Her constructions of selected species bring the outdoors inside for the viewer to consider the beauty and importance of our natural habitat.

Sue Friesz attended Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles, California, holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Missouri, Kansas City, and a Master of Arts degree from the University of Central Missouri, Warrensburg. Her work has been shown in solo and group shows regionally and nationally and can be found in private as well as corporate collections. Friesz has won grants from the Avenue of the Arts Foundation and Public Arts Commission in Kansas City, Missouri. She also received a Fellowship from Edwin Austin Abbey Memorial Fund at the National Academy of Design New York City, New York. Friesz spent the latter part of the 1990’s living in Asunción, Paraguay; Curitiba, Brazil; and Beni Suef, Egypt. She now lives in Kansas City, Missouri where she maintains a studio.