| Art as Life, Trees as Art,
An interview with Alis Olsen Art & the Divine | by Dawn Vogel We see them every day, enjoy them, climb them, draw them and lean against them, but do we really stop to listen to them? Trees are everywhere. Big ones, small ones, old ones, young ones, leaves of green and crimson red, leaves of gold and forest bed. Maples, birch, oaks and palms, apple, orange, short and tall. Granted, there are those who live more daily intertwined with trees. More likely, aside from spring where by nature our eyes are upon them as their beauty captures our awareness, most of us do not make trees a daily part of our conversation and attention. Art making is one means to make the unseen seen, and to bring attention to that which we may know and forgot, may need a reminder of or simply never looked at in the first place. Alis Olsen is a local artist who knowingly and unknowingly is playing a role "to draw" (pun intended) on the beauty and wisdom of trees, with an added punch of "political commentary." "People are always painting trees, why not frame the tree itself?" remarked Alis Olsen with a characteristic smile on her face as we talked about her art in a recent interview. "Why not and thank you for reminding me?" (I thought with a smile) is a question and answer I found after viewing her series of framed and bundled tree branches, trunks, twigs and intricately arranged piles of forest beauty. A further question for me after viewing the clear inspiration towards nature and trees in her art was, where does this inspiration come from and why is one person so drawn to trees while another to shoes, flowers, landscapes, faces, places or a host of other subjects depicted by the visual arts? (I recently met another artist who paints, sculpts, draws and designs shoes, shoes and more shoes.) And, why create this art in this first place? What role does this divine play in all of this? And, in Alis's case how can art making make an important social, political or environmental statement? Touching on many of these questions, Alis and I met recently in her St. Paul studio and journeyed through her story to find some answers. In some ways more questions were generated than answers, yet another step of understanding the role of Art and Divine was revealed through the eyes of Alis Olsen. Alis, what is your primary art form? Alis Olsen: I am a photographer and environmental sculptor. I work outside when I can, creating installations in response to a particular site in nature. The work may draw attention to what is already there or comment on cultural or historical aspects of the site. In the studio, I work with mostly natural materials combined with manufactured objects. I am very interested in our relationship with nature. I feel that our culture is very separated from nature and so we don't think twice about exploiting its resources. Some of my work has a definite political message, but I try to do it in a subtle way and sometimes with humor -- for example, "Protective Coloration" (a tree trunk with roots painted in camouflage paint). I thought -- you paint clothing to look like trees , not trees to look like clothing. No logger is gonna find that tree. You have also done a series of installations, could you talk about them? What motivates you to do them? Alis: I first started doing outdoor installations in 1986 when my husband and I bought land in Wisconsin. The first one I did was to lay down strips of white paper in the middle of a grassy road to look like center highway markers. It's called "FREEWAY," an obvious play on words. I think a lot about how we relate to nature and sometimes make a piece that illustrates what I've been thinking about. Working with the earth is a tremendous "high" -- like connecting with what is really basic and true. How long have you been creating art? Alis: I started out with photography, took a photo class in 1972. I grew up in the '40s. I had no idea a woman could be an artist. When I went to school in the '50s and '60s, women were expected to be a nurse or a teacher. So I became a teacher. I also wanted to be a housewife and mother. So I taught school for a while, and then I couldn't wait to be home with my babies, but then I found I needed more and went back to teaching. When my kids got older, I started doing photography. In 1983, I got my master's degree in fine arts. Could you describe the thought behind some of your other pieces? Alis: "Windfall" -- One day after a windy night I found dozens of small curved twigs that had fallen from the oak tree. They were so amazing -- so many of them, just alike -- I wanted to honor them in some way so I created a small altar and covered it with gold leaf. "Bardo" -- The word in Zen Buddhism is about transition from one life state to another . I love the idea of being rooted in the earth but reaching for the sky. "Though I walk" -- For a long time I've been painting these landscapes that go from deep in the earth to the sky. I did the first one after a friend died. This is the backdrop for the stick I found which in this piece is a stand-in for the human form. About finding the right way out of darkness. "Dream" -- Again, I've used the "progressive" backdrop -- here going from a burned out forest to a hopeful sky. What does spirituality mean to you? Alis: It means finding what connects us all -- what's really deep and true. Spirituality is really about looking for the answers to those big questions: "What's it all about? What am I here for?" Could you talk a bit about your art? It strikes me as a combination of humor, beauty, irony, wit and profound thought. Alis: I like humor a lot. I'm of Danish descent and the Danes are good at poking gentle fun at themselves. Humor can soften my political messages and make them easier to take. The "beautiful" pieces are to remind people about really seeing the beauty in nature. Irony is so prevalent in our culture and sometimes it gets tiresome, but it can be really effective in getting a message across, as in the camouflage tree piece. As for "profound thought," one of my first teachers told us that artists make art about what they think about. And I always have. What is the point of art making? Alis: Because it's wonderful for the art maker to connect with the authentic part of self. It's bringing something into being that hadn't been there before -- showing people a little different way to look at the world. Much of my work is very conceptual. Hopefully, if you "get it" it will make you think. It appears that you think a lot about trees. Could you describe some of the thoughts that you have about them? What are you trying to say to the viewer? Alis: When I'm working, I certainly don't think about whether I'm trying to say something to viewers, but after it's completed I guess the work is saying, "Look! Look at the wonder of nature! Connect with it so that you'll feel it personally when a forest is cut down or a stream is polluted!" Aldo Leopold (an early environmentalist) said, "We can be ethical only in relation to something we can see, feel, understand, love, or otherwise have faith in." In closing, what wisdom do you think trees have for us? Alis: I guess it's about patience and endurance and about longevity and what really matters in the long run, and that good things happen and so do bad things (like sunshine and wind storms). And life goes on. Is there anything else you would like readers to know about you? Alis: I have taught environmental art classes in state parks in the past and hope to teach some again. I have a dandy slide talk on environmental artwork done all over the world. I can be reached at (651) 269-1087 for studio visits or to talk about workshops or projects. Tree, glorious tree, arms heavenward, roots deep into the earth. ground us in your sturdy presence. Home for little creatures safely nesting in your embrace, they jump playfully from branch to branch, watched over by you. Tiny twigs dancing into everyday patterns on the ground, overlooked by everyday passers by. Watch as they turn to gold with our eyes upon them. Listen closely for their whispers. Leaves blowing in the wind, buds bursting new life, lovers of spring smile with long-awaited anticipation of rebirth. Long-lived master, rings upon your trunk Oxygen rich lifeblood for all, reveal your aged wisdom to us. -- Dawn Vogel (Inspired by Alis) Dawn Vogel is a documentary, portrait and fine art photographer, writer, educator and owner of Luminous Concepts Photography. She specializes in creating words and images that reflect and celebrate the personalities, stories, and moments of day-to-day life; increase awareness, respect and understanding of the world and its people; heal and build community; empower self and creative expression. To celebrate yourself and your family in pictures, contact her at (612) 724-3810 or DawnV@mindspring.com. Copyright © 2003 Dawn Vogel |
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