“Perhaps I am first and foremost a painter, but painting for me is not limited to a technique or a material. When I make installations or sculptures, even when I draw, painting is the very foundation.”
The art of Mattias Frisk do often rely on a conceptual fundament that upholds a fictional, mythical world which blends with the contemporal one. Frisk work in a lot of different techniques and materials: from traditional oil on canvas, gouache, pen on paper, collage, assemblage, installation, sculpture and photos to digital media.
Mattias Frisk was born and raised in the small town of Skänninge in Sweden. He is active as an artist, illustrator and musician but has previously also worked with graphic design. Frisk’s artistic path started with a strong interest in heavy metal album art but quickly developed towards abstract and symbolic painting. After studies in art science and visual communication at Linköping University, Frisk’s art became increasingly conceptually oriented but still with a strong anchoring in the visual arts. During a shorter period he worked with sound works and published a number of recordings as “M.Frisk”.
As an illustrator, Mattias Frisk has mainly worked with album covers and merchandise for artists all over the world such as the Norwegian black metal band IMMORTAL, the Swedish rock bands GHOST and YEAR OF THE GOAT as well as a number of bands on the international metal scene such as PALLBEARER, BELL WITCH, KRYPTOS , DEAD CONGREGATION, VAMPIRE, REVEL IN FLESH, HORRENDOUS, KRYPTS, SVARTIDAUDI and DEAD SOUL.
Mattias Frisk is also one of the artists involved in the trading card game hit SORCERY: CONTESTED REALM which was launched in 2023.
Visual art and illustration both have the image, the picture or the vison in common. The difference is perhaps mainly in the purpose. Illustration is usually a job, something the artist is commissioned to do for someone else.
The illustration is more closely intertwined with the linguistically comprehensible; image and meaning are often connected and create a broadened understanding, emotion or explanation for information, story or packaging. Visual art can be completely open, free and independent, and is seldom commissioned, or at least the client rarely has a say in the execution.
Exhibitions
2023 Kulturhuset Finspång, Separatutställning, Finspång
2020 SAAB Art Gallery, Separatutsällning, Linköping
2017 Saving Christmas, Mattias Frisk, Dan Seagrave och Kristian Wåhlin, Norrköping
2017 Huskvarna Metal Fest, Mattias Frisk, Kristian Wåhlin, Christine Linde, Huskvarna
2017 Under samma tak, jurybedömd samlingsutställning, Östergötlands museum, Linköping
2017 Död & Undergång, Östergötlands Museum, Linköping
2017 Mjölby Porslinsrävsmuseum, Stinsen Söderköping
2016 Mjölby Porslinsrävsmuseum, Malmslätts Bibliotek
2016 Mjölby Porslinsrävsmuseum, Mantorps Bibliotek
2015 Heavy Days in Doomtown, Köpenhamn
2014 Rock and Art Festival, Husqvarna
2014 Metropol, Hultsfred
2014 Pop-Up Åtvidaberg, utställning och workshop
2014 Mjölby Porslinsrävsmuseum , Östergötlands museum, utställning och föreläsning
2014 Mjölby Porslinsrävsmuseum , Mjölby Bibliotek, utställning och föreläsning
2013 Estetisk Rensning 2, grupputställning, Ordo Vulpes Vulpes, Mjölby
2012 I skrivande stund, Norrköpings konstmuseum (Examensutställning KSM MKG)
2012 Temporär Kenotaf, Jr Konsthallen, Linköping
2012 Minnesmässa för Utdöda Fåglar, Motala Konsthall
2011 Utdöda Fåglar, separatutställning Galleri Kraftverk, Mjölby
2011 Mjölby Porslinsrävsmuseum i samarbete med Vadstena Stadsmuseum
2010 Informationsskylt, Kulturnatten, Norrköping (Masterprogram i konstnärlig gestaltning)
2010 Estetisk Rensning, grupputställning, Ordo Vulpes Vulpes, Mjölby
2002 Mattias Frisk & Martin Frid, grupputställning, Ordo Vulpes Vulpes, Mjölby
Scholarships
2012 Mjölby Kulturstipendium
2011 Regionförbundet Östsams Kulturstöd för projektet Minnessten över Utdöda Fåglar
1999 Liljesonska stiftelsen, Motala
Education
2007-2012 Linköpings Universitet och Högskolan på Gotland.
Filosofie Masterexamen i Konstnärligt Gestaltande
Examensarbete: Uttryck & innehåll i teori och praktik, Utdöda fåglar
Filosofie Magisterexamen i Konstvetenskap och visuell kommunikation
D-uppsats: Bilden av den andra bilden: – en undersökning i manligt och kvinnligt uttryck med den abstrakta expressionismen som studieobjekt
Filosofie kandidatexamen i Konstvetenskap och visuell kommunikation
C-Uppsats: En Studie i Rött: Hur beskrivs, uppfattas och kopplas färg samman med innehåll i Mark Rothkos abstrakta målningar?
1998-2000 Bild och formlinjen på Lunnevads folkhögskola
1994-1997 Estetiska programmet, Kungshögaskolan, Mjölby