Today we’d like to introduce you to Hope Olson.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I have always had a deep affinity for art and design. As a child, I loved to draw pictures, design floors plans of homes, and pore over art and architecture books while sitting on the floor at the local library, looking at the pictures and rarely reading any words. In 5th grade, our class took a test to reveal our strongest learning style, and I scored highest in the visual/spatial learning category. It was no surprise to me. I had already declared I knew I wanted to be an artist one day. However, my related interests in the architecture and design field, in tandem with murmurs of the starving artist type probably taking root in my subconscious, led me to graduate college with an interior design degree. I was working as an intern with a residential design firm, feeling unsatisfied with my observations of the day-to-day tasks and projects of an interior designer, and I ached to paint again. When the internship finished, I create a plan to begin painting professionally, and I have been working as an artist since 2014.
Please tell us about your art.
I paint scenes that celebrate home and habitat, using unique color combinations and abstracted perspectives. The works are created in acrylic paints on wood panel, using multiple layers of casually-applied marks and blocks of color. My still life and landscape paintings explore the universal, human desire for a sense of belonging, as I’ve always been most-fascinated by the great lengths people go to in crafting or discovering a place they can call home. The subjects, style, and color play seen in my art are inspired by my long-held affection for interior decorating, historic architecture, English country villages, and early 20th century art. I want viewers of my art to feel a sense of peace and playfulness (with a tinge of nostalgia) when they look at my work, perhaps thinking back to a memory of sitting around the family dinner table or traveling to the town where their grandmother grew up.
Do you have any advice for other artists? Any lessons you wished you learned earlier?
My biggest piece of advice for other artists who are early in their career is to develop a recognizable style and stay consistent with it as much as possible. I visually experimented quite a bit for the first couple of years working as an artist, as I wanted to explore many different ideas of subject matter and style. Unfortunately, I was jumping around a lot, never creating more than a couple paintings that shared a likeness. It wasn’t until I forced myself to paint 15 similar works that I had any good traction. This decision, in essence, created a sort of “brand” for my artwork, and my marketing became easier once I began working in series. An excited audience who knew what they could expect seeing from me was beginning to develop, and people and collectors were expressing a deeper connection with the art.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
Current and past work can be seen on my website: www.hopeolson.com. Some original paintings are for sale directly through my website, and some original paintings are on view and available for purchase at Button Gallery in Douglas, Michigan, and Fuller Art House in Sylvania, Ohio. There are also prints available for sale on my website.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.hopeolson.com
- Email: hopeolsonstudio@gmail.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/hope_olson_
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/hopeolsonart
Image Credit:
Hope Olson, Lindsey Peterson, Erin Drews
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