Through Thy Lens

Cornrows, braids or an afro underneath a colorful head wrap, sported by ebony black or brown women against a most vivid background – that’s only a quick description of Ornella Frère’s art. Her craft and carefully-picked palette of colors have resulted in a series of portraits which serve as a gentle reminder of the diversity of femininity.  Here is her story ..

• Who is Ornella Frere ? How would you describe yourself in a few words ?

Ornella (yes, I talk about myself using the third person…) is basically the mixture of two cultures: African and European (Cameroon, Belgium, and France). In the last 23 years, I have lived in Africa, Europe, and North America; and I hope this is not the end. As you could have guessed, I love travelling, but I also enjoy meeting new people full of incredible experiences and even more chilling on the side of the beach with my little music. Introvert? Extrtovert? It all depends on the context… Basically, I’m just me… Ornella 🙂

•  On a scale from 1-10 how would you rate your interest in visual art / drawing ?

I would say, 10. I love drawing, I love pictures, architecture… Everything about art is just cool, free, and subjective. I love the fact that something might please me, while another might hate it. Art is just everywhere; just look at the diversity of people around the world – we are all different and we all represent some kind of art.

• How did your interest in visual art/drawing develop ?

I grew up in Cameroun with mainly my parents at home. My sisters did not live with us, so at a young age I started developing my imaginary skills.I would create people out of paper, clothes, and even draw all my heroes from the Mangas channel (yep, I am a Mangas fan..). I would say that is how it all started. Then, it is important to mention the fact that my dad was an architect and a fan of African sculptures. I grew up going around with him observing the different types of sculptures that exist around Cameroon… I loved it… And for those reasons, I am a loyal servant of art.

• Would you mind sharing a particular moment when your passion for visual art has impacted your life ?

There are no particular moments… Art is just present all day long whether I see it or not… It is something that follows my moods. I have had different periods in my art where I tried different things, and throughout the process it has always impacted me. When I feel bad, I can spend 12 hours drawing non stop. Art is just always present and it always impacts me (for the good or bad).

• Do you think the places where you’ve lived have impacted your art in any way ?

I don’t know if it is more of the places or the people… Geography plays a role, some of the women I draw definetely do not come from the same countries; some are clearly African, others are European and a few are Asian… Geography, just as human beings represent diversity to me; and that is basically what I want to show in all my drawings. Although quite similar, I like little details that make you recognize the difference in origin. Lastly, I believe geography impacted my art because it definetely impacted me as a person… For example, before moving to the US, I liked tattoos but had no specific desire to have one. When I got there, my art changed as I started to incorporate tattoos on the ladies I drew, little by little, the interconnection between the tattoo art and myself became so deep that I decided to get tattooed. We change so much on a daily basis, but with changes in geography, the evolution is even more intense; thus resulting on my art.

• If there was a particular emotion/ feeling that you wish your drawings would spark in the people who see them , what would it be ?

Honestly, I do not believe my art is deep enough to provide emotions… My drawings (and few pictures) are just a representation of the world; mainly a representation of women. I just hope that they represent diversity.

• What inspires you ?

The beauty of human beings, the diversity (yes again, I really like this word), and life… as easy and gloomy as it may seem. At some point in my life, I drew other things, more depressing, but all in all, all that inspires me is evolution and life.

• What are your other interests in life ?

My other interest is sport in general. Tennis has been for long (and probably forever) my favorite sport of all times. I enjoy the game, the fun, the competition, the frustration and everything about it. I started running and as crazy as it may seem, it is one of the most relaxing moments of the day. When you run, you can completely tune out and engage in a real conversation with yourself… You are alone, your music in your ears… time just flies (unless you have a huge hill to climb…)

• What’s next for you? any projects or ideas you would like to share ?

Life is next! Enjoy every moment!

• What advise would you give my readers ?

First I would encourage them to keep reading your work because what you do is great… Not everybody takes some time for little people who just enjoy drawing or taking pictures on their free time. Second, LIVE LOVE LAUGH, that’s all we got to do on this Earth. Enjoy and F*** those who don’t like you… Ain’t got time for that!

Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. You can follow up with Ornella’s work on her instagram