Works on Paper
Mixed Media + Collage
This is my latest body of work. I’ll get back to you when I discover it’s meaning.
Mixed media including colored pencil, wax pastel, acrylic, graphite, ink and collage.
Mosaic
Found Items, Vintage Jewelry, Handmade Beads
My mosaic work began years ago when I inherited an old tv that my parents were going to throw away. I used it for awhile, but then decided to cover it in jewels (screen and all). This opened a doorway to mosaic work on other unconventional items such as animal skulls, old instruments, and thrifted items like wall candle sconces. This work continues to evolve as I learn new techniques and materials, as well as find ways to develop the work to take on bigger and deeper meanings.
INsider art
Mixed Media Series on Paper
Coming from a play on the term “Outsider Art”, this series was created during a time when I needed to get something from the inside, out onto the page. Working nightly during the cold winter months of 2022-2023, I lifted the typical restrictions of choosing color schemes, planning layouts or choosing subjects, therefore allowing myself to be free and create whatever came out onto the page. The result is a deeply personal and emotional selection of images, relating to grief and emotional turmoil. This body of work has been foundational, as it created the visual language that I have pulled from for all my work since.
Datura: Dreams of other planets
Watercolor + Ink on Paper
Working with opaque watercolor for the first time, my brush naturally made these nebula and cloud shapes as I explored shape and color on paper. I then worked with ink to accent some details. The result is this series of paintings reminiscent of other planets or the places you see in dreams.
The Illustration Project
Digital Illustration
In 2023, I embarked on a journey to teach myself the digital illustration program, Procreate. I sketched in Procreate every day for a year, learning its tools and capabilities. Pulling inspiration from drawing challenges on Instagram (such as Folktale Week), children’s book illustrations, and playful fabric patterns, I learned to make placement illustrations as well as seamless repeating patterns. I also learned how to scan art out of a sketchbook and vectorize it to bring that “real world” look into the digital space. This process taught me how to connect the digital world and the physical world of art, something which I still use occasionally in my art practice, and frequently in my graphic design work.
Sketchbook
Little Things I Like
My sketchbook practice is a place where I explore with new tools, new subjects, and just get the scribbles out before starting a bigger piece. Sometimes this practice produces something I really like and want to share, even though it might not fit into any other category. So here is my sketchbook collection, little things I like that came out of scribbles and play.
All images and work shown here ©Whitney Olson, 2026.
This activity is made possible, in part, by the Five Wings Arts Council Individual Artist Grant Award with funding from the McKnight Foundation.
