Monday Post 3-30-09
Kristian Olson
After studying design at the University of California at Los Angeles, and an eight year career as a freelance graphic designer, Olson has returned to his first love. With only four years under his belt as a professional artist his work has been accepted into the Communication Arts Illustration Annual twice (America's largest illustration competition), Canada's Applied Arts Photography and Illustration Annual, and 3x3's illustration annual. He has also been featured as a spotlight artist in MacUser, Computer Arts, and Taxi Design. In 2006 he was chosen as the cover artist for The Graphic Artists' Guild's Directory of Illustration #23.
Alongside Olson's intricate style of illustration he has also developed a mixed media technique for his personal and experimental work, which he is now showing in galleries. Combining elaborately designed digital artwork, giclée printing, and acrylic paint he creates otherworldly entities and structures that beg for exploration.
I was searching around for fine artists that had a comic book style, or used comic elements in their work - mostly I was hoping to find someone whose images extended beyond the borders outside the context of comics. I ran across Kristian Olson's name and looked him up, and was immediately taken in by the ornate detail and vivid colors. Though his images tend to be confined by an outer rectangular border, there are often other borders within that the main image reaches beyond. His best stuff is the sickly funny (or amusingly sick) work. Before I realized that it was some sort of publication, the image that says BE HAPPY NOW at the bottom made me laugh out loud. There's people marching into some sort of factory with a mouth filled with huge chomping teeth. BE HAPPY NOW! I just can't get enough of it. The ejaculating tank also caught me giggling. I think his sense of humor is the part of his work I most relate to and am inspired by. The four images I picked were the four that I found the funniest in his portfolio. None of them feature anything that is overall "happy".
Website:
http://www.kristianolson.com/
Gallery:
www.hivegallery.com
Interview:
http://thelittlechimpsociety.com/theape/lcs-interview-kristian-olson/
After studying design at the University of California at Los Angeles, and an eight year career as a freelance graphic designer, Olson has returned to his first love. With only four years under his belt as a professional artist his work has been accepted into the Communication Arts Illustration Annual twice (America's largest illustration competition), Canada's Applied Arts Photography and Illustration Annual, and 3x3's illustration annual. He has also been featured as a spotlight artist in MacUser, Computer Arts, and Taxi Design. In 2006 he was chosen as the cover artist for The Graphic Artists' Guild's Directory of Illustration #23.
Alongside Olson's intricate style of illustration he has also developed a mixed media technique for his personal and experimental work, which he is now showing in galleries. Combining elaborately designed digital artwork, giclée printing, and acrylic paint he creates otherworldly entities and structures that beg for exploration.
I was searching around for fine artists that had a comic book style, or used comic elements in their work - mostly I was hoping to find someone whose images extended beyond the borders outside the context of comics. I ran across Kristian Olson's name and looked him up, and was immediately taken in by the ornate detail and vivid colors. Though his images tend to be confined by an outer rectangular border, there are often other borders within that the main image reaches beyond. His best stuff is the sickly funny (or amusingly sick) work. Before I realized that it was some sort of publication, the image that says BE HAPPY NOW at the bottom made me laugh out loud. There's people marching into some sort of factory with a mouth filled with huge chomping teeth. BE HAPPY NOW! I just can't get enough of it. The ejaculating tank also caught me giggling. I think his sense of humor is the part of his work I most relate to and am inspired by. The four images I picked were the four that I found the funniest in his portfolio. None of them feature anything that is overall "happy".
Website:
http://www.kristianolson.com/
Gallery:
www.hivegallery.com
Interview:
http://thelittlechimpsociety.com/theape/lcs-interview-kristian-olson/
Labels: Monday
posted by Megan Wagner at
12:30 PM
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