“Sundsten populates her paintings with animal/human hybrids--a pregnant woman with the head of a deer, a neatly coifed woman with the body of some kind of tree-dwelling beast--that seem to posit a new mythology, perhaps a human psychology driven by our most animalistic traits. Rendering these creatures with near-photographic precision suggests that they might possibly exist, or that the difference between existing in art and existing in flesh is minimal.” Emily Hall, The Stranger, 09/25/2003

Often mislabeled as a Surrealist, Sundsten provides the viewer with a plausible alternative reality. Her marriage of the human and animal forms is a formal exploration into the ethereal realm of the reality of the dreamscape. These pairings inform the aesthetics of artists who translate these forms into designs for graphic novels, skateboards, t-shirts and CD covers. To put it simply, what Sundsten paints will appear in popular culture. The power of her imagery is so strong that the individual pieces have the ability to stop time for the viewer. Her work would be a exciting follow up to the recent shows at the Frye.

Francesca Sundsten received her MFA from Stanford University in 1990 and her BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1987. Her work is in the collections of the Microsoft Corporation and the Tacoma Art Museum and featured in the publications Artweek, New Art Examiner, and Artists of the West Coast. She is represented by the Davidson Galleries in Seattle.

Giving an exhibition of Sundsten’s work would place the Frye Art Museum in the forefront of institutions recognizing the emergence of Northwest Magical Realism as a serious artistic and aesthetic movement in Seattle. While other institutions sleep, the Frye can stake out new territory and audience in recognizing this trend.