Francesca Calzà
Discover the talents of T.O.E. Art Market through a series of exclusive interviews with the artists featured on our platform. Together, we explore the artistic practices and research pursued by the artists who enrich our community with their unique artworks. Each week, we invite you to get to know better the challenges, languages, themes, and stories behind the works available, allowing you to connect with the creative minds that make T.O.E. Art Market a vibrant and dynamic showcase.
We are here in the company of Federica Poletti. Let's start with a few questions to get to know her better!
Francesca Calzà - Could you tell us about your artistic journey? How did you become interested in art?
Sofia Fresia - From a young age, my parents took me to museums and art exhibitions, although in my family, art was always considered a leisure activity. Despite this, during my school years, they supported me in pursuing various artistic disciplines, such as theater, painting, and music. Attending the exhibition "The Impressionists and the Snow" (Turin, 2005) drew me closer to the visual arts. However, I was unable to attend art school, so I chose to continue as a self-taught artist until painting became essential in helping me navigate a long hospital stay. Painting reignited a spark within me and made me realize that there are ways of communicating beyond words—ways that, at the time, seemed futile because no one appeared willing to take me seriously. Therefore, after earning a degree in Nursing, I decided to enroll at the Albertina Academy in Turin, convinced that, through my works, painting could be a good help to others as well.
Francesca Calzà - Which encounters, cultural references, or moments have had a significant impact on the development of your artistic research?
Sofia Fresia - I have always had a passion for figurative painting, and during my time at the Academy, I did not wish to renounce this passion. Instead, I sought to achieve a synthesis between traditional aesthetics and contemporary themes. My stylistic models of reference remain the surrealist painting of René Magritte and the metaphysical work of Giorgio de Chirico, alongside contemporary masters such as Edward Hopper, David Hockney, and Anselm Kiefer, who explore the lifestyles and issues of our era in their works. Additionally, artists like Lorraine Shemesh, Cameron Rudd, Leah Giberson, and Andrew Bennett continuously incorporate visual references to swimming pools and water in their work, interpreting surrealist themes through a contemporary lens.
Francesca Calzà - Are there any recurring themes in your work? What drives you to explore these subjects?
Sofia Fresia - Yes, there are recurring themes and elements in my work. My practice stems from a desire to critically observe and reinterpret contemporary society, particularly the new challenges and responsibilities faced by young people today within the so-called "society of well-being". In my more recent works, I blend visual cues from my experiences as a competitive swimmer and hiker, with the aim of expressing, on the one hand, the individual’s experience within this "performance society", and on the other, raising awareness of the environmental crisis, which affects the entire global community. I address these topics because they resonate deeply with my personal experience and that of my peers. I believe that fostering greater sensitivity towards young people can positively impact society as a whole.
Francesca Calzà - How do your cultural roots and personal experiences influence your artistic practice? Could you provide some examples?
Sofia Fresia - My art is intrinsically linked to my personal experiences. It is no coincidence that I often depict myself in my paintings. My work began from a desire to create a personal visual language, bringing together elements that best define me and have remained constant over time: swimming and the mountains. The "Pools" series consists of works that combine references to my background as a swimmer and hiker within paintings that aim to offer a subjective interpretation of a situation or problem suggested to me by contemporary life—particularly regarding themes of personal growth and the climate crisis. For example, I can refer to one of my latest works, "A Ride on the Carousel" (2024), a triptych in which I sought to convey the alternating emotions one experiences when approaching major life changes or decisions. These are dark-toned canvases marked by a playful composition, encapsulating the range of emotions that accompany life's most significant choices.
Francesca Calzà - Could you share some details about your creative process?
Sofia Fresia - The creative process begins with an internal or external stimulus that sparks my desire to understand, to learn more, to engage in dialogue. I start by reflecting, and when the moment is right, I identify an initial visual element around which I build the entire composition. This element usually comes from the archive in which I collect everything that strikes me for various reasons: photographs of places, landscapes, details, or people; notes with phrases or words; quick sketches in my sketchbook, or personal reflections. Given my passion for swimming and the mountains, many of the references I use revolve around these two areas. When I feel the combination of visual elements and the work’s intent is satisfactory both aesthetically and in terms of meaning, I begin working on the new canvas.
Francesca Calzà - How does a work come to life? Do you always start with a predefined idea?
Sofia Fresia - Generally, the most time-consuming and delicate phase, which can sometimes take weeks, is the creation of the initial sketch. I modify and adapt it until I feel I have achieved the desired outcome in terms of composition, color palette, and concept. Once I am satisfied with the sketch, I proceed to the canvas, and with few exceptions, I remain quite faithful to the initial idea. However, I recall a specific instance involving a painting from my final year at the Academy, which I created during the lockdown. The sketch had been approved by the professor months earlier, but when faced with the blank canvas in such an unusual and dramatic situation as the early months of the pandemic, I felt I would not be able to proceed with the original conception of the work. Therefore, I chose to drastically modify the canvas during the process to align it with my feelings at the time, which overshadowed all other thoughts.
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