Chris Froeter’s work begins with a deep respect for light and shadow—not simply as visual elements, but as carriers of meaning. He is drawn to the tension between illumination and obscurity, where feeling often resides before it finds language.

The figure remains at the center of his work. Each painting starts with observation, but it develops through a slower, more personal exchange. Likeness matters, yet what matters more is whether the painting suggests an inner life—something felt rather than declared.

Light reveals structure and gesture. Darkness softens, deepens, and surrounds. Together they create a field where vulnerability can exist without spectacle. In that mingling, the painting becomes less about description and more about presence.

BACKGROUND

Chris studied fine art painting and printmaking at Southern Illinois University. He has a BFA in design from Northern Illinois University. In Chicago, Chris has run a branding firm, Conjure, for more than 25 years. 

I’m grateful to have studied under two instructors who changed how I think about image-making, Herb Fink and James Alexander, from the disciplined technical aspect to an emotional understanding of what the viewer feels and reads from the work. A special thank you to Kay Zivkovich, who I worked for at The Craft Shop, a part-time job I had on campus at SIU. She single-handedly, with great compassion and a take-no-bullshit approach, set my life on course with art.

My work follows both additive and subtractive methods on linen or a metal plate. These contrary actions of moving pigment to find light and shadow are of one mind and enduring.

EXHIBITIONS

2026
Seen Portrait Group Show 909 Davis, Evanston

Neighbors Group Show Viva Gallery, Viroqua, Wisconsin

2025
Visit Evanston Printmaking Group Show 909 Davis, Evanston

This Place, These Faces Group Show Viva Gallery, Viroqua, Wisconsin

2024
Portraits with Impact Group Show Grove Gallery, Evanston

2023
I See You Group Show 1100 Florence, Evanston

2021
Voices: On Loan to Studio 5

2020
Voices: The Saw Room at Alley Gallery

2016
Smashed Ink—Monotype, Evanston Art Center

1989
While We Wait: Surplus Gallery, Carbondale, Illinois

1984
Group Painting Show: Kishwaukee College, Malta, Illinois

1982
Solo Show: Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois