This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Arts & Entertainment

Workhouse Artist of the Week: Diane S. Frykman

'Ebb Tide' in Building W-4 through April 3

Diane Frykman loves the ocean. That love is reflected in Ebb Tide, her current show at the Workhouse Arts Center. The oil paintings in the exhibit are described as quiet and reflective, recounting the tidal pools along the coast of Cape Elizabeth, Maine. “There’s a long history of us going up there,” she said of her family visits the last 55 years. 

Frykman said that some of her paintings were created at the time of the Gulf oil spill, which had an influence on her work. “I wasn’t thinking about it at the time I was painting, but afterward I realized I used a lot of browns, which to me referred to the oil spill,” she said. “I often realize an influence after I paint,” she said. “It’s at the back of my mind, not overt.”

She says the paintings in this show are more transparent than much of her other work. “It makes me think of our oceans disappearing,” she said. She spoke of the recent approval for another deep well to be dug off the coast of Texas, of the safety of our oceans and the creatures that live in them. “We need to take care,” she said.

Find out what's happening in Lortonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Ebb Tide features paintings that are linear, abstract and gestural. “People who view them say that they remind them of a specific place they’ve been,” she said. “The paintings have a universal appeal to people who love the ocean,” she said. 

Frykman intentionally limited the colors in her Ebb Tide paintings to umbers, blues and greens, saying that the use of fewer colors creates a more cohesive work. “I wanted more emotion and feeling in these paintings,” she said. “By not having to think about mixing color I was able to focus on design,” she said. She said a limited palette also enables her to paint a little faster.

Find out what's happening in Lortonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

When Frykman moved with her husband to Atlanta, she could not find a teaching job, so she decided to take art classes. Everywhere she traveled with her husband, she studied art. In 1986, she earned a degree in illustration from Northern Virginia Community College in Annandale. While teaching in the Fairfax County Public Schools, she took classes at Virginia Commonwealth University. After five years, she earned a degree in interdisciplinary studies, focused on sculpture and oil painting. She also studied with Sara Linda Poly  and Diane Tessler.

When asked why she chose oil painting over other techniques, she said, “I like the richer look of oil.” 

In addition, she likes their longer drying time, which provides more time to work on a painting. “I usually have four or five paintings going at a time,” said Frykman. By the time I’m finished with work on number five, number one is dry enough for me to go over areas,” she said. Frykman paints from photographs she takes and en plein air – outdoors. 

Frykman is now retired from her 20 years of full-time teaching art in public schools, 13 of them in Fairfax County. “You can’t really do your own art when you’re working full-time in a job as demanding as teaching elementary school,” she said. Frykman never imagined that one day she would actually be able to work full-time as an artist. “It’s a wonderful experience, a dream come true,” she said.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?