3.5″x5.5″; postcard, inkjet print, fixative; 2019. Courtesy of the artist.
FROM KOLAJ 30
Gisele Olson’s Artist Portfolio
Jackson Hole, Wyoming, USA
Olson comes at collage from studying English literature. While working on her Masters, a professor invited her to submit a creative project in lieu of a typical paper. “I made what would become the first in a group of seven stitch-collaged paper dolls that reflect/critique the historically nocuous influence of western medicine and psychoanalysis on women and their minds/bodies,” recalled Olson. While cultural critique remains a cornerstone of her work, she has since moved on to working with vintage postcards.
A portfolio of Olson’s work appears in Kolaj 30. To see the complete Artist Portfolio, SUBSCRIBE to Kolaj Magazine or Get a Copy of the Issue.
3.5″x5.5″; postcards, fixative; 2019. Courtesy of the artist.
There is a rich vein to be found in the similarities and connections between language, literature, narrative, and collage…especially as regards the postcards, which are by their nature objects of and for written communication.
A portfolio of Olson’s work appears in Kolaj 30. To see the complete Artist Portfolio, SUBSCRIBE to Kolaj Magazine or Get a Copy of the Issue.
Gisele Olson holds a BA and a MA in English. She is a recipient of a Wyoming Arts Council Professional Development Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for her postcard collage series “This America”, the subject of her second solo show, opening in June 2021. Her first solo show, “Things to Do in Jackson Hole”, was presented at the Pink Garter Theatre in Jackson Hole, Wyoming in September 2019. Her work is held in private collections across the United States as well as in the permanent collection of MERZ Gallery in Sanquhar, Scotland, as part of Schwitters’ Army. Olson lives and works as an artist and writer in western Wyoming. Learn more on Instagram @giseleolson.