In this Artist in Studio conversation, painter Elise Freda reflects on a lifelong relationship with art that began with her artist parents and deepened through her discovery of Abstract Expressionism. Freda takes viewers inside a practice built around experimentation, layering and what she describes as a balance between “control” and “no control.”
Moving between encaustic, oil, collage and unconventional tools such as squeegees, Freda discusses the physical process of building up and excavating her paintings, allowing traces of previous layers to remain visible. Her interest in landscape is similarly unconventional. Rather than depicting expansive vistas, she looks closely at branches, plants and other natural forms, finding what she describes as a kind of “natural calligraphy” in the landscape.
Throughout the conversation, line emerges as both a formal element and an ongoing inquiry. Freda is particularly interested in how far a painting can be reduced while retaining its emotional and visual force: how simple can the work become without becoming vacant? The Continuing Line captures an artist continually testing that boundary, using material, gesture, color and restraint to push her work toward something increasingly essential.
