Alumni Feature: Franka Matthes Thompson

Art World Immersion

Franka Matthes Thompson ‘18 is currently in her sophomore year at Norwich University of the Arts in England. She is studying Fine Art, and she works in the media of sculpture, video, and performance. After graduating high school with an IB diploma, she took a gap year, during which she interned for artist and activist Gregg Bordowitz. Franka helped with editing, transcription, and translation for his video projects. Working with Mr. Bordowitz, who is also a university professor of art and a social justice activist, was a  formative experience for her. For Franka, “Gregg’s work combining AIDS activism with documentary filmmaking and art has been a great inspiration to me. During my internship, I was also able to gain an understanding of the inner workings of the art world and what it takes to be a working and teaching artist.”

After graduating high school with an IB diploma, Franka took a gap year, during which she interned for artist and activist Gregg Bordowitz. She says that she was “able to gain an understanding of the inner workings of the art world and what it takes to be a working and teaching artist.”

Now at Norwich University, in Franka’s own artwork, she is “interested in impermanent methods of making sculpture that [she] documented through a variety of media like drawing, text, photo, and video.” In her program, much of the learning is self-directed, and, besides weekly lectures, critiques and elective workshops, she spends her time in the studio independently researching and working on her art. “I have really enjoyed this style of study, and by the end of my first year I have developed a great interest in blurring the lines between sculpture and architecture, particularly with the concept of “axiomatic structure” introduced by Rosalind Krauss in the seminal essay, “Sculpture in the Expanded Field.” She has also shown her work in a gallery in her first group show at Bluey Bluey Gallery in Norwich. “I am very excited to keep working on new concepts going into my second year and beyond.” 

Recently, Franka worked with young language learners at ISB Summer. “I have really loved coming back to spend some time at ISB this summer and quickly feeling at home at ISB again!” Franka speaks English, French, Spanish, and German, and her own language journey continues as she is currently learning Yiddish — and “enjoying getting to know a whole new alphabet!”