Maria Friberg
Most of Maria Friberg’s work revolves around themes of power, masculinity and man’s relationship to nature. In her images, she creates ambiguous tableaus that challenge preconceived notions about identity, gender and social hierarchies. Her most recent pieces look both outwards, to the challenges in contemporary society, and inwards, to a meditative state of mind. In these photographs and videos, the isolation and solitude of the individuals reflect issues in society at large. The men in her images are signs for men, trying to find their place in times of turmoil.
Born: 1966 in Malmö, Sweden
Lives and works: in Stockholm, Sweden
At first glance, Maria Friberg’s works appear to be stagings of fictitious and dreamlike worlds. At the same time, she uses photography – a medium that is closely associated with reality and that is used as a tool in the socially oriented documentary genre. Maria Friberg’s work is characterized by precisely that: a great interest in societal issues and a desire to depict phenomena of contemporary life. Her work tells stories about modern man in a world where the power of nature and culture is difficult to master and where we often are defined by consumption, seduced by endless possibilities, and allowed to retain the illusion of power. In her latest works she addresses these issues from a child’s perspective. It is also through a child that Friberg addresses the influence of technology on our lives and the paradox of loneliness and isolation that arises within a context and a community.
At first glance, Maria Friberg’s works appear to be stagings of fictitious and dreamlike worlds. At the same time, she uses photography – a medium that is closely associated with reality and that is used as a tool in the socially oriented documentary genre. Maria Friberg’s work is characterized by precisely that: a great interest in societal issues and a desire to depict phenomena of contemporary life. Her work tells stories about modern man in a world where the power of nature and culture is difficult to master and where we often are defined by consumption, seduced by endless possibilities, and allowed to retain the illusion of power. In her latest works she addresses these issues from a child’s perspective. It is also through a child that Friberg addresses the influence of technology on our lives and the paradox of loneliness and isolation that arises within a context and a community.
At first glance, Maria Friberg’s works appear to be stagings of fictitious and dreamlike worlds. At the same time, she uses photography – a medium that is closely associated with reality and that is used as a tool in the socially oriented documentary genre. Maria Friberg’s work is characterized by pre- cisely that: a great interest in societal issues and a desire to depict phenomena of contemporary life. Her work tells stories about modern man in a world where the power of nature and culture is difficult to master and where we often are defined by consumption, seduced by endless possibilities, and allowed to retain the illusion of power. In her latest works she addresses these issues from a child’s perspective. It is also through a child that Friberg addresses the influence of technology on our lives and the paradox of loneliness and isolation that arises within a context and a community.