Judith Friebert

TO PURCHASE JUDITH's ARTWORK, CONTACT HER DIRECTLY AT: jmfriebert1@hotmail.com or 508-579-3759

Please tell Judith that you saw her beautiful work on The Gallery of Wisconsin Art website! Thank You!

For many years I have focused on depicting small, family dairy farms. As a child I accompanied my parents, Milwaukee artists Joseph and Betsy Ritz Friebert, on sketching trips to the countryside. Dairy farms were plentiful in those days, and we often chose to stop at them, entranced by the beauty of the animals, the rustic old barns and the gentle, rolling hills. The farmers were always welcoming, pleased to have their land admired in this way. Happily, I drew the scenery alongside my mother and father.

Later, as a mature artist, I pursued a variety of imagery and materials. Having moved to rural Massachusetts, I encountered some lovely dairy farms not far from my home and I began to explore the subject again.  Returning to my native state in 2018, I found similar pastoral subjects to portray, although not nearly as many as before: in the current era of corporate dairy farming, small farms struggle to survive. 

I aim to capture not the picturesque, but, rather, essential elements of a working farm: the animals and the land that supports them. I find cows particularly interesting, challenged by their ever-changing shapes and how their forms interact with each other. I work on site, and not from photographs. Pastel and charcoal are my preferred mediums, because they allow for an immediacy, applied freely to paper, and are easily portable. I work outside in the fields in the warm months, and refine and finish the drawings in my studio. 

My respect for farmers comes from a belief in the dignity of labor, gleaned from my parents and my Socialist grandfather. My art is informed by the importance of these small farms to society and by a hope that they can be revived. I am indebted to the farmers who generously allow me to wander over their land to create the works. I give back as best I can through advocacy, friendship, and art. 

My dairy-farm pastels were recently exhibited in one-person shows at St. John’s on the Lake in Milwaukee, sponsored by the Museum of Wisconsin Art, and at the Cedarburg Art Museum. Both museums have examples of my work in their permanent collections, as do the Milwaukee Art Museum and the University of Wisconsin Union collection.  I have Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Fine Arts from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.