Daniel Freaker
solace_formed_130x100_fullres_freakerstudio Daniel Freaker received his MFA from the Slade School of Art in London in 2000, where he explored the painterly qualities of print, video, film and photography and his paintings are reminiscent of film scenes and fragments of a broader narrative. Since studying, his work has evolved through lecturing in the U.K. and internationally. Freaker’s paintings sit between abstract and figurative spaces where the way paint is applied is equally as important as the image itself. Some details are defined where others are more suggestive and evocative. These provide a rich tapestry of interwoven processes and a textural quality to the work. There are also more unusual processes generating a sense of nostalgia about moments that are both beautiful and painful. The subjects are often individuals, couples or groups of people in order to provoke thoughts of relationships or isolation. The scenes remind us of personal experiences, where the techniques and colours bring feelings of sentiment and longing with a contemporary twist of warmth and radiance. Distortions also exaggerate the emotional significance of the moment: connection, loss, vulnerability, or loneliness… This juxtaposition between vibrance and darkness, accident and intention, order and chaos, is what makes the work memorable.
1. Hi Daniel, tell us about your background. How and when did you first start to paint?
While travelling in India with my mother when I was 6 or 7, I met a friend that introduced me to comics. And we used to sit there for hours under the mango tree and looking at Xmen and other comics. I was fascinated by the stories and adventures, but most of all by the artwork. So that gave me the bug to create my own scenes and I have been creating art all my life in many different media, especially in film, video, photography and paint. But paint seems to allow me to create with immediacy that the other forms don’t and I like that challenge of making immediate changes and marks to something.
2. Your background includes studies in print, video, film, and photography. How have these disciplines influenced your approach to painting?
I see a lot of relationships and overlap between figurative painting and lens based media. They both share an ability to present a narrative such as a scene. I love the way film makes light flicker and luminesce and I try and replicate that in my painting, with visceral patches of neon and highlights. The sense of time passing is also really important to me, and I am a very sentimental person, so I use ideas from film to give that effect of memories and nostalgia. These are ideas I borrow from directors such as Tarkovsky or Malick. I think films have had a tremendous influence on all our lives, so there is a shared language I can tap into and that helps me make connections with others.
3. What is your process like? How do you begin to work?
I often see a figure that I think tells an interesting story or that I can connect with emotionally. I will then consider the type of space that would help emphasise that experience. But the colours and textures and techniques I use within the composition are completely intuitive. I know that I will want to create a tension in the colours by using colours that will create optical effects like Op Art, but these evolve and I have no idea where things will go.
4. Your work combines elements of both abstract and figurative styles. How do you balance these two approaches in your paintings?
I think it is the need to tell a story that keeps my images on the edge of the figurative. I think it is important for the work to function in many ways. For example, if the audience moves closer to the work they can experience the sections of gestural marks and abstracted elements, but if they move back they can experience the figure in a space. So the work functions on different levels and maintains a level of interest.
5. Your paintings often depict individuals or groups of people, and aim to provoke thoughts about relationships and isolation. Can you tell us more about what draws you to these themes?
Both relationships and isolation are two faces of the same coin. They are also fundamentally human experiences, that we will all have. Moreover, they are incredibly profound and are even often experienced physically, reminding us that we are human and that we are on a journey of joy and sadness.
6. Some of your paintings include distortions or exaggerations that emphasize emotional significance. How do you decide when to use these techniques and when to present a more true-to-life image?
I wish I could engage with the emotional more, so when I am achieving this I think the work is more successful. But even when there are images that feel more restrained and structured, I hope there is an undertone there that is subtle and sensitive.
7. Describe a real-life situation that inspired you.
I’m not sure I feel inspired, but more driven to explore these themes. Like a compulsion, where I need to get things off my chest. Some of these emotions are really sad, but I think those are as important to share and engage with. Like talking about experiences can be beneficial psychologically. I think engaging with visual experiences equally valid and important.
8. You have lectured in a variety of art and design subjects over the years. How has teaching influenced your own creative process?
My title was ‘teacher’, but I always felt that I was on a journey with others and trying to give them motivation, energy and the willingness to take creative risks. The administrative stuff was always a burden, but making things with people is such a joy and help me learn along the way.
9. How has the city you are living and working in influenced you and the art you make?
Portsmouth is quite a tough place. I would describe it as salty. It has a long history of a relationship to the Navy and sailing. But it is also very poor and neglected. It allows me to live cheaply and have a decent studio and be near the sea, which has always been important to me. But it also makes me think about vulnerability a lot and that creeps into my work.
10. Finally, who or what are some of your current sources of inspiration, and how are they reflected in your recent work?
My current work is using architectural and more geometric form to explore experiences. I am fascinated by the way that a space can be created two dimensionally, with light and texture and shapes. But also how that can communicate a sense of experience in the audience.
