Edda Renouf studied in Germany and France before graduating from Columbia University in New York. She has lived and worked in New York and Paris since 1972. Her approach is linked to postminimalism, and more specifically to the work of Agnes Martin. Her works, mostly painting and drawings, are designed as meditative compositions meant to call into question and reveal the true material dimension of the picture: the canvas, frame, linen, and paint are treated as mediums in the artist’s aesthetic reflection. In order to achieve this, she uses various formal processes, such as covering up the weave of the canvas or incising it with straight, sharp lines before painting, or sometimes sanding, the surface. This process can be seen in the series Untitled from Clusters (1976), in which blurred geometric shapes are used to highlight the inherent material aspect of the picture.

In turn, acrylic paint, oil pastels and coloured chalks bring out the light and strength in the painting, as in Desert Sound, III (1987). “Breaking away from the traditional approach to linen and paper, which are usually used as grounds on which to paint an image, my working process reveals and uncovers the organic life and abstract energy within the materials”, she explains. Beyond this formal approach, her artistic exploration also finds inspiration in the recurring themes of the universe, nature, time, music, and sound. The four classic elements – air, earth, fire, and water – fuel this pursuit of harmony between her formal method and the materials she uses. In the artist’s own words: “Materials speak to me and unexpected things happen”.