News of the world streams through our psyches. How does this steady barrage affect me? Insomnia is usually a nuisance when I work or travel elsewhere- but is now ever-present. Quarantine Dreams emerged while painting into the earliest morning hours and references imagery begun while working on “The Moving Cultures Project” in Tibet. The steps one must climb to get where they are going have become a running motif for me, particularly personal and relevant during times of loss, anxiety and adaptation.
Quarantine Dream #7, 2020
Ink, gouache, watercolor, wax on rag paper
12 x 9 inches
Framed
Quarantine Dream #14, 2020
Ink, gouache, watercolor, wax on rag paper
16 x 12 inches
Framed
Applying layers of ink washes on glossy and sometimes translucent paper, Amie Oliver creates compositions conveying movement, time and earthly elements. She allows her marks to be affected by the humidity and looseness of her hand on water-resistant paper, where ink can flow or disappear.
Amie Oliver received her BA from Mississippi State University and MFA from Bowling Green State University. She completed post grad course work at Tyler School of Art of Temple University and at the Visual Studies Workshop through the State University of New York, where she studied with acclaimed Book Artist Keith Smith. Oliver previously taught in VCUarts’ MIS Degree and Studio Arts Foundation Program and served as Associate Professor at Longwood College and Mississippi State University. She is currently a teacher at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond and serves on the Board of Directors of 1708 Gallery. Her work is included in the permanent collections of the Try-Me Collection, Capital One, the Medical College of Virginia of Virginia Commonwealth University, all, Richmond, VA; the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, Washington, D.C.; and the Oberpfalzer Kunstlerhaus, Schwandorf, Germany, to name a few.