Meredith Freeman

Meredith (b. 1989, Connecticut) is an artist currently residing in Southern California. She earned her Bachelor degrees from the University of Connecticut in 2013. Degrees earned include a BA in an Individualized Major, titled “ASL, Deaf Culture & Creative Arts Therapy,” a BFA with a concentration in Painting, and a minor in Psychology. As of May 2023, she earned her MFA in Drawing & Painting at California State University Long Beach. She has exhibited in solo and groups shows throughout Connecticut since she was in high school, and more recently has expanded into other parts of New England, the Mid-Atlantic, and California. In addition to creating art and spending time out in nature, Meredith enjoys hanging out with her friends, family, and Binx.

My recent work focuses on ecological reverence and the metaphor between personal grief and environmental grief. These nods to micro-macrocosm interplay and cyclical processes mirror the stages of grief from traumatic catalyst to eventual healing. My practice includes nature hiking, and with my artistic process, I focus particularly on the moments when internal states and external phenomenon align. This is experienced as much in the studio as in the wild. Through this lens, my works reflect experiences of self-awareness and self-care, along with embracing a radical acceptance of life, even its darkest moments.

The shaped supports embody multiple references: to spiritual portals, the conceptual meanings of specific numbers, and, symbolically, to personal memories. These imagined landscapes comprise East and West coast flora and fauna of the United States, speaking to my different homes. Scenes created confront the presence and absence of loved ones, connecting to specific griefs in the recent span of seven years. My collage work, affixed to watercolor paper, includes drawing, painting, printmaking, and recycled/upcycled materials to honor sustainability and conservation. My sources were accumulated during the span of 2022 – a year that held much grieving of an especially poignant loss in my life.

This series is a celebratory recognition of the preciousness of existence and the profound significance of loss. I hope to alchemize suffered experiences into something beautiful, meaningful, and lasting. My practice attempts to further understand the delicate balance between light and shadow and acknowledge that both are necessary aspects of nature, working in cohesive harmony.