In one of these series of works, black fills the upper part of the picture, with vertical streaks of color below. These were created using several brushes simultaneously and appear as if they are pouring out of the black. In another series of paintings, Frize laid the canvas flat and let several colors blend into each other to create color streaks and a delicate marble look, like an oil film on water.
When asked what he enjoys most about painting, Bernard Frize once said, “If I succeed in inventing a small mechanism, an engine that runs by itself. One that no longer needs me.” Frize’s conceptual painting, which has also been described as “peinture automatique,” is based on conditions that initiate processes that make the production of painting visible on a canvas. He likes to work in series, often several at once, in order to test and explore the possible outcomes of his decisions. The possible variations are multifaceted, their effect sensuous and impressive, the use of color seductive.