Sasha Ferré says: “I am concerned with our relationship to the natural world. I feel the ecological crisis calls for new stories and new imaginaries.

“My practice is an investigation into those relationships that shape us (humans and more-than-humans such as plants, animals, microbes, fungi). Considering that painting can become a space to celebrate aliveness as awareness of the many relations upon which we depend to be alive.”

She adds: “The current show at Unit London feels to me like the outcome of several years of intensive practice and research. I feel the work is now at a point where it should be. A year ago, I was preparing a solo show in Tokyo. The show took place in summer 2022 during the pandemic, so I could not go. This was very challenging but it ended up being a great experience, one that allowed me to meet incredible people, such as [this week’s champion] Mariane Ibrahim.”

Ever since their first encounter, Mariane Ibrahim, who founded her namesake gallery in 2012, has been an avid collector and champion of Ferré’s paintings. She was therefore the natural choice to shine a spotlight on her work this week.

Ibrahim says: “Sasha Ferré’s work is an amalgamation of illusory and abstract landscapes. When I first encountered her paintings, I felt a sense of otherworldly energy, presented in a rich colour palette filled with energy stemming from gestural strokes and vegetal forms. Her ability to use colour to subject an amount of improvisation is interesting and draws viewers into her world. It is refreshing to see work that feels as if a form will grow off the canvas at any moment.”

In a process comparable to jazz music, Ferré allows abstraction to unfold uninhibited and encourages viewers to form their own interpretations of her artworks. While working on ‘Morphogenesis’, Ferré also became increasingly aware of the environmental damage that is caused from the solvents in oil painting. Wanting to be part of the solution, she now uses oil sticks instead, using her fingers to blend the creamy viscous material onto each canvas.

You can see the result at Unit London gallery until May 20.