Maureen Fritchen, Racine
2022-23 RAM Artist Fellowship Award Recipient
Born in Chicago, Maureen Fritchen currently lives and works in Racine, where she has had a studio at the 16th Street Studios for the past 15 years. Fritchen took a self-directed approach to art scholarship, focusing on painting at various institutions including the American Academy of Art in Chicago, Illinois; the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater; and Boise State University, Idaho. She regularly shows in regional juried, invitational, and biennial exhibitions such as the Wisconsin Artists Biennial at the Museum of Wisconsin Art, West Bend, and the Midwestern Biennial at the Rockford Art Museum, Illinois. Most recently, beginning in 2022 and extending into 2023, her work was featured in the Museum of Wisconsin Art’s exhibition Magical Wilderness.
Fritchen’s community art activism has spanned the last 25 years, earning her the Volunteer of the Year Award for Art and Culture from the Volunteer Center of Racine County, Inc. She was founder and co-chair for ArtSite and Get Behind the Arts Studio Tour and the chairperson for the 16th Street Studios annual open house. Fritchen served on the Racine Arts Council board as the gallery chair and on the University of Wisconsin–Parkside Arts and Humanities Advisory Board. She is currently involved with ArtRoot, a Racine organization building arts infrastructure and community connections.
Artist Statement
See Foam
The impact of consumerism on our environment is ever present in my art. Exploring industrial waste material as my principal medium has drastically changed my approach. Currently, my focus is on repurposing polyethylene foam, a material used in packaging that is not biodegradable and is a threat to our planet. In contrast, the biomorphic forms created are beautiful and sensuous. They are as alluring as they are disturbing.
Play is vital to my process; it allows me the freedom to fail. Materials that come my way also play an important role because they can dictate form and lead me to surprising outcomes. Both have influenced my current interests and for the first time in my career, I’m exploring 3-D forms.
Maureen Fritchen, Racine
2022-23 RAM Artist Fellowship Award Recipient
Photography: Camela Langendorf, Varitay Studios
Born in Chicago, Maureen Fritchen currently lives and works in Racine, where she has had a studio at the 16th Street Studios for the past 15 years. Fritchen took a self-directed approach to art scholarship, focusing on painting at various institutions including the American Academy of Art in Chicago, Illinois; the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater; and Boise State University, Idaho. She regularly shows in regional juried, invitational, and biennial exhibitions such as the Wisconsin Artists Biennial at the Museum of Wisconsin Art, West Bend, and the Midwestern Biennial at the Rockford Art Museum, Illinois. Most recently, beginning in 2022 and extending into 2023, her work was featured in the Museum of Wisconsin Art’s exhibition Magical Wilderness.
Fritchen’s community art activism has spanned the last 25 years, earning her the Volunteer of the Year Award for Art and Culture from the Volunteer Center of Racine County, Inc. She was founder and co-chair for ArtSite and Get Behind the Arts Studio Tour and the chairperson for the 16th Street Studios annual open house. Fritchen served on the Racine Arts Council board as the gallery chair and on the University of Wisconsin–Parkside Arts and Humanities Advisory Board. She is currently involved with ArtRoot, a Racine organization building arts infrastructure and community connections.
Artist Statement
See Foam
The impact of consumerism on our environment is ever present in my art. Exploring industrial waste material as my principal medium has drastically changed my approach. Currently, my focus is on repurposing polyethylene foam, a material used in packaging that is not biodegradable and is a threat to our planet. In contrast, the biomorphic forms created are beautiful and sensuous. They are as alluring as they are disturbing.
Play is vital to my process; it allows me the freedom to fail. Materials that come my way also play an important role because they can dictate form and lead me to surprising outcomes. Both have influenced my current interests and for the first time in my career, I’m exploring 3-D forms.
Interview with the Artist, January 2023
Would you please describe your work–what materials you use; what subject matters you explore?
I use unconventional materials in my art, such as polyethylene foam, expired blood vials, glass test tubes, and plastic tubing. This approach has challenged me to explore sculpture for the first time in my career. Currently, my focus is on biomorphic forms that are familiar, but not reproduced species. The material is really my subject. It is how I explore repurposing waste destined for the landfill into art in a way that captures people’s attention to the harm we are doing to our ecosystems and to our own health.
How often are you in your studio? Do you work outside of your studio much or at all?
I’ve had a studio at the 16th Street Studios in the Racine Business Center for 15 years now. My best days in the studio are the ones of discovery. Discovery of a new idea, form, or procedure for me to explore. I am in the studio about four days a week, but only about half the work is done in the studio. Most of my foam cutting, as well as research, reading, and the business side of art, is done at home.
What inspires you most these days? But also what do you go to bed thinking about most nights?
Flora inspires my forms, particularly mushrooms, sea anemones, and ocean plants. Often I go to bed thinking about what did, or didn’t get done in the studio, how things are progressing, or how to rework a problem piece.
What does it mean to you to get recognition as a RAM Fellowship Artist?
Being awarded a RAM Artist Fellowship is an honor for me. Artists lead a pretty solitary practice and at times we question the direction we are heading. The fellowship validates the work I’m doing and is a huge confidence builder. More importantly, it presents the opportunity to maximize the audience to spread the message that I am expressing through my art: that all of us need to do more to reduce waste and our impact on the environment.
Sample of Work
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