Freya works in a still life genre. She is interested in the spaces in-between, what is left behind and the objects themselves that fill, or leave empty, the canvas. She sees still life works as an untold story, with unknown events leading up to the still life and the world straight after it.
The visual mood of the painting depends entirely on the context. Whether it’s as simple as celebrating a midnight snack or memorialising radiant joy, Freya uses the quiet form of still life to portray the full spectrum of life. She believes that colour begets memory and hopes the colours in her works instil some retrospection in the viewer. Freya often paints what she calls ‘ugly paintings’ where she creates compositions and uses colours that challenge her to confront difficult emotions.
Freya works in acrylic based paints which she mixes with an acrylic medium called gesso and this helps to create a chalky smooth finish to the paint. She uses rollers, brushes, masking tape and scalpel blades to create the clean lines she uses in her work.
Freya Stockford is a Huddersfield born painter based in Leeds, UK. After graduating from Central St Martins in 2010, she continued to train in Painting and Printmaking at Glasgow School of Art (2014). After losing her work in the fire at the GSA in 2014, she has continued her practice from her studio at Assembly House, Leeds. Freya has exhibited internationally, most recently in Miami (2018), Singapore (2024), New York, NY and Austin, TX, USA (2024).
