Artist statement

Fabric tells intimate stories about our bodies at work, particularly female bodies, in the ways it reacts to movement, perspiration, sunlight and distress. To me, fabric imprinted by labor is a critical matrix to compare the relentless demands of capitalist production with our basic human needs. I’m particularly interested in studying its transformative power: it may restrict our bodies and how people see us, or it can set us free in movement and in spirit. And while it protects our naked bodies, its social signifiers have the potential to expose us. I use symbolic imagery that recalls natural environments, ancestors and poetry. I re-use old growth redwood that has been reclaimed from barns and old buildings in California for my sculptural work. The overuse of this natural resource is a sliver of cause for global warming and by reusing this natural resource I hope to show the beauty in the trees that have been lost. While combining woodworking and fabric manipulation, I examine the way these two resources that surround us in our everyday lives have more significance than one might think.

CONTACT

manfredibella@gmail.com. instagram:@bella.bitmap

EDUCATION

2018 B.A. Art Practice and Minor in Journalism, UC Berkeley

SOLO SHOWS

Sew Your Echo, Staircase, San Francisco, CA 2023

RESIDENCIES

Time Change Generator Textile Residency, Cleveland, Ohio 2022

AZ West Work Trade Residency, Joshua Tree, CA 2021

Upper Market Gallery Studio Residency, San Francisco, CA 2021

Workshop Residence Residency, San Francisco, CA 2019

GROUP SHOWS

Retrospective, Staircase booth at the San Francisco Art Fair, San Francisco, CA 2024

Chair+, 1599dT, San Francisco, CA 2024

Re(context)iles, Jane Gallerie x Upper Market Gallery, San Francisco, CA 2023

Within & Without, The Great Highway Gallery, San Francisco, CA 2022

Graphite Stew, Upper Market Gallery, San Francisco, CA 2022

Proof: 28 Years of Printmaking at UC Berkeley, Worth Ryder Gallery (WRAG), Berkeley, CA

The Mariposa School, Mariposa Kids, 2018

Put this on Your CV, WRAG, UC Berkeley 2018

Carpet Matches Drapes, WRAG, UC Berkeley 2017

Authority, WRAG, UC Berkeley 2017

Possible Titles, WRAG, UC Berkeley, 2017

Seize The Means, WRAG, UC Berkeley 2016

TALKS

Art Practice After Graduation, UC Berkeley Art Practice, Senior Thesis Class, 2022

INTERNSHIPS/APPRENTICESHIPS

Live in Programs Internship, Headlands Center for the Arts, Sausalito, CA 2018

Worth Ryder Art Gallery Internship, UC Berkeley 2018

Paulson Fontaine Printmaking Studio Internship, Berkeley, CA 2016-2017

Arts Foundation Gallery Internship, Santa Barbara, CA 2014

Topas Custom Upholstery Apprenticeship, Ojai, CA 2012-2014

FASHION SHOWS & POP UPS

Snowstorm: a runway and clothing pop up, Oakland, CA 2022

Upper Market Gallery Pop Up, San Francisco, CA June 2022

Workshop Residence x Isabella Manfredi Pop up, San Francisco, CA 2019

AWARDS

Emerging Artist Grant awarded by The San Francisco Artist/s Foundation 2018-2019

Excellence in Printmaking, UC Berkeley Department of Art Practice 2018

Lauren Krikorian Award for undergraduates awarded by UC Berkeley Art Practice 2018

Honors Thesis Studio Program, UC Berkeley 2018