Between Surrealism, Memory and the Female Gaze – An Interview With Sanna Fried
Between Surrealism, Memory and the Female Gaze – An Interview With Sanna Fried text Elsa Chagot photography Sandra Myhrberg In her paintings, Sanna Fried moves between worlds; the commercial imagery of her former fashion career, the emotional intensity of female surrealism, and the lived realities of women who stand outside narratives. Speaking with Odalisque Magazine, she reflects on returning to fine art, the women who shaped her visual language, and the ongoing project that challenges the ways society interprets female autonomy and desire. Elsa Chagot: You began your career in fashion before fully turning to painting. How has that background shaped the way you approach art today? Sanna Fried: Although painting has always been my deepest passion, and I went to a foundation art school, Nyckelviken, in Stockholm, at 23 my focus shifted towards fashion. Unexperienced, barely speaking English, but with a determination, I moved to New York City to fulfill my dream to work as a fashion editor. Suddenly a formative decade had gone by, working with clients such as Vogue, Vera Wang, Cartier, and Missoni but I felt something was missing me- the art! The beginning of the pandemic became a turning point for me and I felt the call to return to fine art. I spent the first part of the pandemic on a beach in Costa Rica where I spent my time studying art and practicing, painting oil on canvas but also murals. In my search for what is my artistic voice I found inspiration in the female surrealist movement and artists like Remedios Varo, Dorothea Tanning and Leonor Fini together with masters of expressional portraiture like Mary Cassatt, John Singer Sargent and Diego Rivera. The inspiration I found in the history of art began to intertwine with my greatest influences from fashion photography. I’m deeply inspired by Paolo Roversi’s portraits- how a single image can hold an entire story, and by Richard Avedon’s In the American West– where he in portraits reveals the soul of his subjects using no more context than a white backdrop. Like Warhol, my years in the commercial industry eventually led me back to the path of creating fine art, now deeply influenced by the language of commercial visual storytelling, and fashion photography. This foundation continues to impact my painting, inform my compositions and my curiosity in challenging what an image can be. EC: You cite artists like Remedios Varo, Dorothea Tanning, and Leonor Fini as influences. What draws you to these female surrealists? SF: In the later part of the pandemic I moved to Mexico City and ended up being Mexico bound for about 2 years. There, an entirely new visual world opened up to me — shaped by Mexico’s centuries-old cultural heritage and its long traditions of visual and artisanal arts, and reflected so clearly in the city’s many museums and cultural institutions. One of the first things I noticed was Mexico’s tradition of honoring female craftsmanship. Because of this, female contemporary artists have, in a very organic way, been given the spotlight they deserve. Discovering women artists who are barely mentioned in European and American art books — yet in Mexico are considered part of the country’s most important contemporary heritage — was extremely liberating for me. The women you mention were the ones who spoke to me the most: female artists working during modernism, going their own way. Using the bold colors of fauvism, blending rich detail with surreal elements, and bringing forward their most personal thoughts and emotions without censorship or fear — through their art. art Sanna Fried My own art has always been about not trying to satisfy the audience, but instead addressing the subjects that matter to me — and mental health is one of the most important among them. These women all had roots in Europe, yet each of them found her artistic identity through Latin America. I relate to that. I’m a woman from Europe, a context where female artists have always been, and still are, underrepresented. Finding my own artistic voice in Mexico, I discovered in these women not only new inspiration, but also a new sense of confidence as an artist. EC: You’ve drawn interest from both the fashion industry and female surrealists. What happens internally when those two worlds meet; the commercial and the surreal, the stylized and the raw? SF: For me, those two worlds meet very naturally. Fashion taught me to think in images — how a single frame can communicate mood, narrative, and identity with clarity and intention. Female surrealism, on the other hand, opened the door to everything that doesn’t need to be explained: symbolism, intuition, and the emotional layers beneath the surface. So internally it’s not a clash, it’s a dialogue. Fashion and commercial brings structure, composition, and a trained eye for detail; surrealism brings freedom and experimentation. One part of me builds the image carefully- the other part pushes me to let go a bit and let something unexpected in, or sometimes even something uncomfortable. In that overlap my work starts to feel honest to me and I find the balance between control and instinct. EC: I’ve heard artists describe their works as their children. What’s your personal take on that idea when it’s applied to your own art? SF: I can relate to that idea. My paintings do feel like my children in many ways. Creating a painting is a slow process where you give something of yourself in order to bring something new into the world. There’s care, time, frustration, joy- and then a moment when the work no longer belongs to you, but has a life of its own. EC: You lead community workshops combining art and hospitality. Can you tell us more about that and its effect? SF: I started to shape my creative workshops during the first half of the pandemic, when I was living between Costa Rica and Tulum- two places with strong spiritual communities. I needed to find a way to support myself, and
