Statement
Dynamic abstractions of the body are integral to my practice as a figurative painter. In my gestalt figurations, I use color to describe the energy and sensation I experience within the body. Reverberations of frustration, grief, and reverie lead my practice and are implemented into my forms. Thematically, I am interested in studying the complexity of transformation and time limitations. Time and transformation go hand in hand, as bodies cannot resist either. I find myself inspired by artists such as Maria Lassnig’s Body Awareness techniques and the surrealist idea of automatism. A sense of catharsis arises from depicting the suppressed and formidable.
My process uses research into the figure through photography to create studies and drawings. Once my canvases are stretched and prepped, I allow my intuition and judgment to guide my decisions. Allowing my whole body to be involved with painting informs my choices on canvas. I use transparent and thick paint to create shifting senses of depth and material texture. Exploring gesture and paint surfaces to suggest movements or life forces under the skin imbues a sense of restlessness within my work. Through suggestions of form, I aim to investigate deep parts of the psyche that we often attempt to hide.
Biography
Ferrell Crawley is based in Brooklyn, NY, but comes from the Southern U.S., specifically Georgia (b. 2003) and the Florida Panhandle. Considering time as an enemy and a friend is at the root of Crawley’s practice. She contemplates ends and beginnings and what it means to feel the limitations of the ever-ticking clock. Confusingly seductive, anxiety-inducing, and jubilant, time never stops to allow us to form an opinion. It lures us with the promise of more, yet with no guarantee. The act of painting allows her to engage with time physically and emotionally. Paint displays the relationship between the brain and body during the limited conversation the act allows. Crawley received her BFA in Painting from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, in 2025, with a distinctive award for excellence and academic achievement.