"Royal Jelly"

"Royal Jelly" © 2010 Doris Olsen, Acrylic on canvas, 24" x 36"

My latest painting!  Just finished this Friday morning. It has been a slow progression, but what a beauty.  She surprised me in all her glory when everything was said and done.  I was amazed that she came shining through since the mind warfare was tough while forging through this painting.  But like all paintings, you have to push through the doubt and keep on laying down paint, until the end when the vision finally arrives in it's fullness.

This is my third jellyfish painting I have done since July 2009.  This one is the Queen Jelly, hence the title "Royal Jelly" for she is bigger, bolder and much more ornate, if that could be possible.  At this very moment she is gracing her presents at the Petersburg Public Library in participation of the Share a Vision Program that hosts an artist's creation for one month and then moves to the City's finance office for another month of viewing.  If you are in town, please stop by and check her out, she will be hanging around til December 15th, 2010.

Art & Risk

"Brittle Star" © 2010 Doris Olsen, Acrylic on wood panel, 12" x 12"

There exists a constant theme in our lives.  And we wage war with this theme every day.  It is the battle to risk versus play it safe.  In my life this theme has played itself out over and over again in the arena of producing a work of creativity.  And I always come to the conclusion that risk is necessary in all aspects of life, including art.  This excerpt (below) sums it up beautifully :

Being open to risk (and thus failure) is crucial. We can only truly learn and develop when we push ourselves outside of our comfort zones. According to choreographer Twyla Tharp, "If you only do what you know and do it very, very well, chances are that you won't fail. You'll just stagnate, and your work will get less and less interesting, and that's failure by erosion.” For Tharp, inventor James Dyson, and innumerable others, failure is a badge of accomplishment because it means that you took a risk, that you tried something new.  Link to article: The top 5 qualities of a productive creative and how to identify them.

"Chambered Nautilus"

"Chambered Nautilus" © 2010 Doris Olsen, Acrylic on wood panel, 18" x 18"

Journey into the Unknown

"Seahorse" © 2009 Doris Olsen, Acrylic on wood panel, 18" x 24"

"Man can learn nothing except by going from the known to the unknown." - Claude Bernard

Painting is about taking a journey into the unknown. You never know what you will discover about yourself along the way that helps produce the destination (end result). The prerequisite is an open heart that is willing to gain growth regardless of the results. Painting, like all other works of art is truly a journey of faith.

"Octopi"

"Octopi" © 2010 Doris Olsen, Acrylic on canvas, 36" x 36"

One of the art show favorites...

Art Show Peeks

Radio Interview

The local radio station KFSK interviews Doris Olsen: PETERSBURG, AK (2010-08-06) A local woman opens up a show of her acrylic paintings from the past seven years today at the Clausen Museum in Petersburg. Doris Olsen says she painted in high school and has since been producing works off and on, in between work and raising her son Rowan. This is Olsen’s first show in Petersburg. Her collection includes several abstract paintings, and several more that depict sea creatures. Joe Viechnicki spoke with Olsen this week about some of her work. You can listen to it here: http://kfsk.org/modules/local_news/media/audio/06dolsenweb.mp3