Alexandra Franz - In Situ
May 8 - June 13, 2026
Artist Statement
In representational painting and drawing, everything arises from a primordial act: seeing. This action, so mundane and prosaic, is the paradoxical existence of two opposite mindsets. When gazing at something, we either experience it as a nonobjective knowledge, or we identify it as a mental image—something constructed in the mind. This fascination with phenomenology, metaphysics, and cognitive processing has become the philosophical and conceptual foundation for my paintings. Mainly through my figurative painting, but also through my portraits and floral paintings, the act of painting becomes a study of my time and existence with these subjects, and the paintings themselves capture the idea that the ‘seer’ and the ‘seen’ are made of the same mental matter. Capturing the essence of life itself, these figures and flowers embody the ephemerality and mortality of life, memory, and emotion, and each painting is not a picture to look at, but as a picture to see according to. Additionally, each painting does not provide answers, but rather prompts contemplation, consideration, emotion, and reflection in the viewers. This becomes an ongoing loop of perception—the subject interpreting me, me interpreting the subject, the painting merging these two perceptions, and the viewer perceiving this dual perception. Formally, I also explore the idea that color, light, and depth are made visible to us through abstract internal equivalents, which I translate externally through paint. Therefore, these paintings are not aiming to replicate the actuality of the subject, but to embody my internal cognition and perception of the form, and my presence in the same space as them. Each painting is, instead, the image which my mental perception constructs, making it as much a representation of my own mind and thought as one of the figures or flowers themselves.
May 8 - June 13, 2026
Artist Statement
In representational painting and drawing, everything arises from a primordial act: seeing. This action, so mundane and prosaic, is the paradoxical existence of two opposite mindsets. When gazing at something, we either experience it as a nonobjective knowledge, or we identify it as a mental image—something constructed in the mind. This fascination with phenomenology, metaphysics, and cognitive processing has become the philosophical and conceptual foundation for my paintings. Mainly through my figurative painting, but also through my portraits and floral paintings, the act of painting becomes a study of my time and existence with these subjects, and the paintings themselves capture the idea that the ‘seer’ and the ‘seen’ are made of the same mental matter. Capturing the essence of life itself, these figures and flowers embody the ephemerality and mortality of life, memory, and emotion, and each painting is not a picture to look at, but as a picture to see according to. Additionally, each painting does not provide answers, but rather prompts contemplation, consideration, emotion, and reflection in the viewers. This becomes an ongoing loop of perception—the subject interpreting me, me interpreting the subject, the painting merging these two perceptions, and the viewer perceiving this dual perception. Formally, I also explore the idea that color, light, and depth are made visible to us through abstract internal equivalents, which I translate externally through paint. Therefore, these paintings are not aiming to replicate the actuality of the subject, but to embody my internal cognition and perception of the form, and my presence in the same space as them. Each painting is, instead, the image which my mental perception constructs, making it as much a representation of my own mind and thought as one of the figures or flowers themselves.
Artist Bio
Alexandra Franz is a recent graduate from the University of Cincinnati, where she majored in Art History, minored in Fine Arts, and received a certificate in Museum Studies. Her fine arts education has mostly taken place outside academia and has been complementary to her Art History major. She has taken classes and workshops at Manifest Drawing Center for many years, has served as an Open Figure Moderator at Manifest since 2023, has exhibited multiple works in nationally competitive professional-level exhibitions, was invited to attend an 18-day artist residency in southern Italy in 2023, and is an Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation 2024 Grantee.
Alexandra Franz is a recent graduate from the University of Cincinnati, where she majored in Art History, minored in Fine Arts, and received a certificate in Museum Studies. Her fine arts education has mostly taken place outside academia and has been complementary to her Art History major. She has taken classes and workshops at Manifest Drawing Center for many years, has served as an Open Figure Moderator at Manifest since 2023, has exhibited multiple works in nationally competitive professional-level exhibitions, was invited to attend an 18-day artist residency in southern Italy in 2023, and is an Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation 2024 Grantee.
Inventory
- Andromeda, oil on panel, 8 x 10”, $800
- Odysseus, oil on panel, 7.5 x 5.25”, $975
- Tatiana, oil on panel, 8 x 10”, NFS
- Daryl, oil on panel, 10 x 8”, $950
- Apollo, oil on panel, 10 x 10”, $1,300
- Zach, oil on panel, 10 x 10”, $1,300
- Prometheus, oil on panel, 10 x 8”, $975
- Sophie, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, $1,200
- Lydia, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, $1,200
- Melissa, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, $975
- Sophia, oil on shellacked museum board, 12 x 10”, $1,600
- Self Portrait, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, NFS
- Ive, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, $975
- Vivian, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, $1,200
- Pink Lilies, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, NFS
- Nicole, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, $975
- Echinacea, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, NFS
- Sophia’s Back, oil on shellacked museum board, 12 x 10”, $1,050
- Wilted Flowers, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, NFS
- Woody, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, $975
- White Lilies, oil on panel, 6 x 6”, NFS
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Buckham Gallery is funded by the following organizations:
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Generous support is provided by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the Michigan Arts and Culture Council, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Community Foundation of Greater Flint.
This program is sponsored by the Greater Flint Arts Council Share Art Genesee Grant Program made possible by the Genesee County Arts Education and Cultural Millage funds. Your tax dollars are at work!
This program is sponsored by the Greater Flint Arts Council Share Art Genesee Grant Program made possible by the Genesee County Arts Education and Cultural Millage funds. Your tax dollars are at work!
