Anja Fredell, SE

Anja Fredell (b. 1990, Torsby) is based in Gothenburg, Sweden, where she also studied at HDK-Valand Academy (2019-2021).

Fredell is curious about what it means to feel alive and draws from emotions and the sensory, rather than the rational and logical. By asking herself, “How does life feel, and can I express it?” she aims to say something about the human experience from a sensual (carnal) perspective.

For Fredell, it’s about an inward vision that turns towards the irrational and the hidden, rather than outward. Working with textile, ceramics, and painting, she engages with these aspects of herself, giving them materiality and physical structure to make them less abstract.

Her textile pieces are tufted, using a gun-like machine that shoots yarn into a stretched cloth. The process is physically demanding and intense. The rhythm and temperament of this technique are essential, as they become embodied in the finished works.

While tufting is flexible and unbreakable, ceramics, by contrast, are hard yet fragile. Painting with pastel crayons and oil paint, on the other hand, allows Fredell to engage with pure colour without hiding in materiality, leaving her feeling both exposed and captivated.