Ola Volo is an artist originally from Kazakhstan who now lives in Canada. Her work is inspired by her upbringing and from the folk stories she heard growing up. Moving from east to west she creates paintings and murals that allow her to bridge both worlds.
Sassiness and Spirit
Painting her first mural in Brighton it features a Harley Quinn inspired figure who embodies the spirit and sassiness of Brighton itself. Invited to the city by Enter Gallery, she also released her first ever UK print. Not bad for an artist whose first visit to the UK had only been a few months earlier.
Ola Volo Inspiring Interview
East to West
Ola makes the connection of a bridge when describing her art. A bridge from both east to west not only in culture but also in terms of language. Art she says is a way to communicate and to tell a story without needing any particular words. “I take inspiration in the patterns and colours and characters and I try to bridge all those together in my work and bring it to today’s world”.
Inspiring Women
Many of her works also include strong empowered female characters. Taking inspiration from the women around her and the women that inspire her personally. The idea is for these women to take up space particularly when painted onto a wall. She wants passers by to feel the confidence of the character and to really start to engage with her story. “I want people to walk away with a sense of confidence and empowerment. A sense that they know this woman or they’ve known this character from somewhere before”.
Painting on the Street
Ola credits starting to paint on the street as a key moment in her artistic development. Here she could move out of the studio and into an environment that was altogether freer. A place where the art itself was more accessible and where she in turn could interact with the people around her. Watching her work in Brighton it’s clear that this very immediacy to the people who would ultimately end up living with her work was a real source of energy.
Energy
“I think the minute I got to create work that’s public, it made me realise how close it was to my personality. I get energised by people so I think being in the studio a lot, it drains me sometimes. So when I create work outside, it feels right”.
Ola Volo was interviewed on 5 April 2023 on Trafalgar Lane in Brighton where she was painting a mural. She was visiting the city ahead of her first ever UK print launch, exclusively with Enter Gallery.
Very nice work 👌