The Embrace – Karen Olson

Waterfall Arts to host Season Kickoff with an exhibition opening, related workshops and an artist talk on Belfast trail with artist Karen Olson.

(BELFAST) On Friday evening, June 3, Waterfall Arts will open its doors to celebrate the launch of the new solo exhibition from artist Karen Olson: The Embrace: Forest Bathing, Interconnectedness, and Interpersonal Relationships.

Karen Olson, who lives in Hope, Maine, is a lens-based artist working at the intersection of human emotion and the natural world. In her figurative and nature-inspired work, Karen uses concept-based projects to explore the human/nature connection and its role in fostering mental health and communication. Karen seeks an open dialog with subjects such as grief, trauma, empathy, and forest bathing. She illustrates these multi-sensory experiences with two- and three-dimensional works.

On the night of the exhibition opening, the community art center is also hosting its season kickoff from 5pm to 8pm, with a wide array of activities for folks of all ages to enjoy, including an immersive All Ages Art Happening, Stories Aglow: A Night of Shadow Puppet Theatre, on the front lawn. All four community studios (printmaking, ceramics, photography darkroom, and glassblowing) will be open with artists and demonstrations, and the Life Drawing group will have a pop-up exhibit and live model for drop-in figure drawing. Coastal Mountains Land Trust will unveil their new partnership with Waterfall Arts, “Art Gone WILD,” and Belfast Community Radio will open its production studios for tours and broadcasting. Uproot Pie Company will be selling wood-fired pizzas and Marshall Wharf Brewing Company will provide the beer for the event. The event is free and all are welcome.

In addition to the exhibition, artist Karen Olson is teaching two workshops: Creative Editing for Photography on June 9th ($55-$75) and Paper Sculpture Techniques on June 16th ($105-$150). In Creative Editing for Photography, participants will learn to edit using Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. In the Paper Sculpture Techniques workshop, participants will use Japanese and Korean papers and techniques to achieve ethereal sculptural forms.

Both workshops offerings, like many of Waterfall Arts programs, are made accessible and as affordable as possible using flexible pricing structure. Scholarships are also available. More information and registration for the workshops can be found on the Waterfall Arts website.

On June 18 at 10 a.m. at the Head of the Tide Trail in Belfast, Waterfall Arts and Coastal Mountains Land Trust partner for an Artist Talk with artist Karen Olson. Olson will share her experiences and processes behind her exhibition “The Embrace.” She will speak about how she interacts with the forest, engaging all the senses, allowing herself to become fully immersed and part of the conversation. Karen will offer prompts to express your own experience creatively and artistically. The event is free and all ages are welcome.

To learn more about artist Karen Olson, visit her website at karenolsonphotography.com. For more information about Coastal Mountains Land Trust and the Head of Tide Trail, visit coastalmountains.org.

Launched in 2000, Waterfall Arts is a community arts center that offers resources to arts enthusiasts of all ages and abilities. We welcome the public to engage in the arts through classes, exhibitions, art events, performances, public art projects, open studios (in clay, glass, print, and darkroom photography) and more. For more information, visit waterfallarts.org, call 207-338-2222 , or contact Chris Battaglia at chris@waterfallarts.org.

Artist Statement:

I stand quietly in the midst of the trees, examining their texture, following the vein-like branches reaching upward and out. I imagine the network of communication and support beneath the surface and feel the effects of this far reaching community. They/we are interconnected.

In these years we have lost much in the way of human connectedness. Each decision to do so has been fraught with fear. As we imagine the days going forward can this human-nature relationship help us? Do the trees have something to teach? This work is an exploration of interconnectedness. It is a deep, intimate conversation, an embrace.

About the Artist:

Karen Olson is a lens-based artist working at the intersection of human emotion and the natural world. In her figurative and nature-inspired work, Karen uses concept-based projects to explore the human-nature connection and its role in fostering mental health and communication. Karen seeks an open dialog with subjects such as grief, trauma, empathy, and forest bathing. She illustrates these multi-sensory experiences with two and three-dimensional works. Click here to view photos from the exhibit.

Photos:

Photo: “Secret Fragrance” by Karen Olson, to be exhibited alongside a selection of other photographs, sculptural works, and video installations at Waterfall Arts in a solo exhibition.

Photo: “Self-portrait of Hope,” by Karen Olson.

Photo: Collage of images and paper sculpture by artist Karen Olson, among the works exhibiting at Waterfall Arts in the summer exhibition The Embrace.