2019-08-01_25_Beautiful_Homes

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RunwayGalleryartistBelindaFrikhtellsusaboutherlifelongloveofdrawing,

and explains how her French roots influence her timeless works

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NEXTMONTH

LookoutforourSeptember

issue,wherewecheckoutthe

workofnewRunway Gallery

member Grazie.

fRom Left to RiGht:

Daphné (Guinness)

;LayLa

;snake Dress after Gucci

, aLL BeLinda fRikh at Runway GaLLeRy

A

ftermovingtoLondonin
1996,soonafterfinishing
herstudies,Belinda’s
intentionwastostayfor
threemonths.Instead,shestayed
for 21 years.‘I wasinstantlydrawnto
thecity’sbuzz,itsculturalheritage
andcosmopolitanfeel,’shesays.
Despitehertimeinthecapital,it is
France,herhomecountry,thathashad
thestrongestinfluenceonherdrawing.
‘I’venamedmostofmyladiesI drawafter
Frenchheroines.I can’tpinpointtheexact
timewhenI startedtodraw,because,for
aslongI canremember,I wasdrawing–
alwaysdrawing– totheexasperationof
myparents.I woulddrawoneverything:
cerealboxes,books,officialdocuments
andlettersfromschoolcomplainingabout
mealwaysdrawing.Then,muchlater
on,I wenttostudyatL’ÉcoleSupérieure
d’ArtinAnnecy,thentheÉcole d’Arts
Appliqués in Lyon,’ she says.

ThefocusofBelinda’sworkis,

invariably,womankind:glamorous,

uncompromisingandbeautiful.

‘WhenI visualisethefemaleform,

I seea differentcodeofbeauty:a wit,

a composure,a certainmannerism,a

uniqueimperfection,a smouldering

look,a trailblazingattitude.I find

theseattributesinfemalecharacters

inliterature,instrongcinematicfemale

leadsandinhistoricalheroines.’

Herhand-drawnpiecesarea fusionof

theculturalreferencesshehascollected.

ShetakesinspirationfromtheTwenties,

aswellasfromK limt,andshesitesBiba’s

BarbaraHulanickiasanothermajor

influenceonherwork.‘Myeyesare

mainlydrawntothepast,’sheconfesses.

Owninga pieceofartis aseasyasclickinga

buttonwithnewonlineventureRunwayGallery.

Showcasingcontemporary,fashion-focusedworks

fromcelebratedartists,runway-gallery.comenables

you to snap up original prints for your home.

25bHauGuSt 2019| 69