Maria Friberg (b. 1966, Malmö, Sweden) lives and works in Stockholm, Sweden. Most of Friberg's work revolves about themes of power, masculinity and man’s relationship to nature. In Friberg's images, she creates ambiguous tableaus that challenge preconceived notions about identity, gender and social hierarchies. Her most recent pieces look both outwards, to the challenges in contemporary society, and inwards, to a meditative state of mind. In these photographs and videos, the isolation and solitude of the individuals reflect issues in society at large. The men in Friberg's images are signs for men, trying to find their place in times of turmoil.
Friberg has exhibited at the Modern Museum, Stockholm, Sweden; Galica Arte Contemporanea, Milan, Italy; Arndt & Partner, Berlin, Germany; Yvonne Lambert, Paris, France; Statements at Art Basel, Switzerland (with Galleri Charlotte Lund); and at the Armory Photography Show, New York (with Conner Contemporary Art). In 2001 her first solo exhibitions in the United States were held at the Plains Art Museum, Fargo, ND and the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, Santa Barbara, CA. Her works are featured in the permanent collections of the Modern Museum, Stockholm and the Malmo Museum, Malmo, Sweden, as well as in the corporate collections of Goldman Sachs, London, England; DG Bank, Frankfurt, Germany, and in the private collections of Mario Testino, London, England; Martin Margulies, Miami, FL; and Anthony Podesta, Washington, DC.