Jake Walker: When did you first pick up oil paint?
Emily Ferretti: Apart from dabbling with oil in high school, I first picked up oil paint properly in my first semester at Tafe (visual arts course).
We got tought about acrylics first which i didn't really enjoy because i found it had a limited range in colour, but then moved onto oil. I loved its luminosity and the fact that i could go from very fluid and thin to thick all on the same picture. I found it dynamic and perfect for creating the nuances and subtlties that i was attracted to.
JW: Sporting themes often feature in you work, could you tell me why?
EF: I am attracted to sporting scenes and objects firstly because i played alot of sport as a kid and my dream was to run at the olympics. I did heaps of different sports and was always facinated by the equipment and the stadiums. I happen to own heaps of sporting gear and because if the nature of my pictures they happen to make there way into the images or become the subjects themselves. I am also very interested in the motif of the sports net, I find the net abstracts an image and i enjoy this element in a very formal way.
JW: Cool, Did you win as a Kid, could you run faster than the others?
EF: Yea i would either come first or second in races at my local little atheletics club. There was rivalry between me and another girl, one week id win the next she would. I would train alot with my dad in our big paddocks. He mowed me a 100m track for sprints and i would run the boundary of the paddocks for the longer distances. After a while the pressure got to me as i was a bit of a nervous kid so i decided to move on. I still love to run though. I like the idea of training which is why i also love the discipline of painting because you are constantly working at it and evolving.
JW: I have always been slightly jealous of athletes, mainly because sport is quantifiable, you win or you loose. There is very little subjectivity, in most sports you know where you stand, If you jump the furthest you win, other peoples opinions of how good you looked in the air don't mean a thing, unless of course your a gymnast.
How do you cope with nerves whilst painting, knowing that somewhere down the line opinions of what your doing will be formed?
EF: I know what you mean. I love the fact that in sport there is a clear winner. Id say that this fact is one of the most frustrating thing about art for me. Art prizes for example i have trouble believing in, because there are so many factors. You can try as hard as you like but in the end its subjective. I suppose i cope with this by believing in the work and not compromise. I am not conscious of that art world/ audience at all whilst actually painting which is good, its more after wards that thoughts creep in. If i am ultimately happy with the work and think i have progressed then thats all i can do really.
JW: What are your plans for future works?
EF: At the moment i have a few new painting ideas that i am cultivating. I want to place more emphases on the abstracted elements in my practice and continue pushing form. I plan to expand my drawing practice and keep on playing with collage and maybe dabble with other mediums. As always ill just start working and see where it takes me.
JW: I look forward to seeing more abstraction, thanks for the insight.
Emily's Blog
Emily is represented by Sophie Gannon Gallery