The three Cape Town-based artists featured in our Autumn issue each create work inspired and influenced by the city’s people and places. With a combination of mediums, these artists tell the stories of a city and their relationship with it.
Gary Frier was born and bred in Cape Town and qualified as a graphic designer from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. He worked in various design industries before beginning to create his own personal art. Gary has exhibited his work both locally and abroad, including spaces in Kenya and the Netherlands.
Besides his work as an artist, Gary also teaches Art at The Observatory Neighbourhood Afterschool Programme, an NGO that provides educational and cultural programmes for youth at risk; and in the occupational therapy department at Valkenburg Psychiatric Hospital.
Gary creates painted portraits, and he makes use of vivid colours, as well as an interesting combination of references to contemporary and historical Africa. He finds his inspiration in many forms of media and describes the process of creating art as an opportunity to reflect on his place in the world, a means of learning to interpret his interactions with his surroundings, and of finding ways to document that relationship.
Gary’s work can be found at StateoftheART Gallery in Buitenkant Street, Cape Town.