Dirk Freder is a self-taught artist from Germany who, from an early age, had the passion to convert what he saw in nature into pictures as realistic as possible. Mostly he paints animals in all their diversity and beauty, but also portraits of people—the appeal is always to bring something to life on the painting surface.
Splash Around, acrylic on board, 20 x 28"
“The motifs arise from the spontaneous moment when observing animals in nature or zoos where, as an ambitious photographer, I create all references myself,” explains Freder. “With portraits, I also like to let the model act spontaneously and then pick out the most interesting one from the results.”
He paints in pastel, acrylic and oil, and is always interested in testing and refining new techniques to perfectly reproduce the detailed textures and rich colors of nature.
Close Encounter, acrylic on panel, 8 x 8"
“Over the years I have experimented with different techniques and materials like pastels, acrylic and oil, each having its own strengths and weaknesses,” says the artist. “Lately I’ve been using airbrush a lot, as it allows me to create very fine nuances, gradients and glazes. I consistently use it freehand to achieve a painterly rather than overly technical look. I also add some subtleties with colored pencils. Not to work in more detail—which I can do just as well with a fine-detail airbrush gun—but to have quick and intuitive access to a large color palette without the need for time-consuming mixing.”
Oh What Fun, acrylic on aluminum panel, 20 x 30"
Freder won the American Art Collector Editor’s Choice Award for his piece Oh What Fun in the International Guild of Realism’s 18th annual Juried Exhibition in 2024. —
Want to See More?
dirk.freder@gmx.de
www.freder-art.de
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