
Zazz represents the community as connected individuals with harmony and love. This piece is part of a body of work that explored positive and optimistic shapes and forms that evoke joyful emotions. These works consisted of soft, playful, bumpy and lumpy shapes that resonated a figurative and abstract nature. I wanted to design a distinctly happy and engaging series that would remind me of youthful exuberance and convey and reconnect the viewer to a carefree time.
This piece is created with painted and oxidized steel. Zazz is available in desktop to monumental scale in many colors and materials.
Other works in this colorful collection include: Ivy, Orchid, Zillium, Cactus, Happy Road, Horsey, Family Ride and Streets.
Over his nearly 40-year artistic practice, resorts, hospitals, universities and courthouses across the country have commissioned him for works of art. Olsen works in the media of marble (his first love), painting, stainless steel, wood, onyx, granite, and cast bronze to create pieces that vary widely in scale. Much of his work, however, is influenced by nature, particularly within the Midwest landscape. This link is derived from his childhood years spent growing up in Illinois and continues to this day. Olsen says he is enchanted by organic shapes and expresses this interest within his work.
This spacious, grassy area houses the Brenke Fish Ladder in the historic Old Town Neighborhood
Fritz Olsen traded his studio on Goose Island in Chicago for the rural countryside of Sawyer, Michigan. He works in a beautifully restored 1930s Azalea nursery just off the shores of Lake Michigan.
American artist Fritz Olsen, a graduate of Eastern Illinois University, is a nationally recognized sculptor who began his artistic journey on industrial Goose Island in 1985. It was here that he began creating original sculptures for both public and private installations. Over his nearly 40-year artistic practice, resorts, hospitals, universities, and courthouses across the country have commissioned him for works of art. Olsen works in the media of marble (his first love), painting, stainless steel, wood, onyx, granite, and cast bronze to create pieces that vary widely in scale.
Much of his work, however, is influenced by nature, particularly within the Midwest landscape. This link is derived from his childhood years spent growing up in Illinois and continues to this day. Olsen says he is enchanted by organic shapes and expresses this interest within his work. Pulling forms from nature, such as flower petals, stems, and blossoms, he simplifies and replicates their physical attributes within the stone to make beautifully flowing abstract creations. The curves presented in many of his sculptures seem to reference anatomy as well, matching the curves often seen in the female form, allowing his work to leak a seductive appeal.