The Ohio Artist Registry (OAR) is an exciting opportunity for artists to share their work, connect with the creative community, and establish an online presence—all on a free, virtual platform! The OAR encourages artists working in all art forms, throughout Ohio and beyond, to create a profile, which allows them to better promote themselves and their work. Being listed in the OAR provides artists with new opportunities to share their work with clients, galleries, patrons, and audiences. A listing in the OAR does not confer an endorsement, approval, or verification by the Ohio Arts Council.
For more information, contact Kathy Signorino, artist programs director, at kathy.signorino@oac.ohio.gov or 614-728-6140.
2024 Ohio Artist Registry Juried Exhibition
Karen Ollis
Photographic Artist Karen Ollis PhotoBio
Located near Cleveland, Ohio, Karen provides photography for advertising agencies, corporations, design firms, educational institutions, magazines and small businesses. In the process of a career spanning decades, Karen has received numerous awards, honors and recognition from the Addys, ASMP, CSCA, Communicating Arts, Fuji Films, Graphis, and PDN.
As a fine art photographer Karen has also participated in numerous group exhibitions and had her own solo exhibitions. Her photography is included into Permanent Contemporary Arts Collections of The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Smithsonian, Cooper Hewitt National Museum of Design. Karen has also published several books
Artist Statement
FLOW is the current on going Collection of Photographic works by Karen Ollis
For photographic artist Karen Ollis, FLOW is an on going mediative study of Water she finds while enjoying time in Nature. Karen an avid hiker explores in such areas as the Cleveland MetroParks System and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. This collection of photographs features intimate vignettes of woodland waterways found in Northeast Ohio.
Karen explains what lead her to creating FLOW. “As a professional photographer there are times when walking in Nature is the best stress reducer, and is something I have enjoyed since childhood. Invariably much of the subject matter for my fine art photography is Nature based. I seem to have a kinship with water as it is instantly soothing to me because its very meditative, almost hypnotic. I find the subtle nuances I see in the designs created by Nature to be genius especially in water found in the woodland tributaries.”
Elaborating further Karen says, “We experience any natural element through our senses which develop perceptions of time and dimension. To me, Water is a living energy in constant motion ~ the forms are ever changing never to happen exactly the same way again. The endless interaction with its environment and all the elements become a never ending wheel, a revolving source of inspiration. As well, Water is central to all living things so when I am attuning to the energy of Water, I am becoming aligned with living in the present moment… the Flow of the life force within ourselves and possibly all living things. Our bodies are made up 60% water and the surface of the Earth is 70%, so it only makes sense to me that Water as an element is a guide to beneficial rhythms essential to holistic balance.”
Creating FLOW within the constructs of photography requires varying quantities of time and perspective to capture what Water is revealing in a current, reflection and season. Karens photographic collection encourages the viewer to actively engage expanding their awareness of the freshwater tributaries around them. She believes that with reverence, a deeper relationship can be developed and the natural process of Alchemy better understood.
Karen reminds us, “It is important that we appreciate our available freshwater resources as other regions experience scarcity. Nature is constantly changing so what you see today, might not be there tomorrow. One way to show gratitude is to fortify our waterways by keeping them clean. Practical solutions are often the most effective by eliminating garbage, along with the usage of chemicals and plastics. Other supportive methods are donating time and money to ecologically based organizations and volunteering at local Park systems. Whatever one does, I hope it is moving with the Flow.”
Please view the FINE ART page on Karen’s website for more depth Artist Statement, Creative Process, and BIO https://www.ollisphoto.net/fineartflow
