You may see the figure of a person posed in the midst of shape, colour, and motion. You may see a face emerging from the conglomerate of forms, or you may see multiple figures whirling through the painting, side by side. These brightly coloured phantasmagoria by Olga Mun are illustrative and fable-like. The naïve tracing effect of her outlines is in fact part of a sophisticated handling of line, used to create these expressive medleys.
Like American artist Romare Bearden, who looked to epic literature for inspiration, Mun has a musical approach to tone. The artist uses watercolours that are at once vivid and slightly translucent; the colours she selects are part of a tightly wound coalition, varying from piece to piece.
Mun’s paintings have the same feeling of spontaneity as the paragon of German Expressionism, Franz Marc, who stated that: “I try to intensify my sensitivity for the organic rhythm of all things; I seek panthesitc empathy with the vibration and flow of nature.” In Mun’s body of work, the forces of history and of nature are brought into fantastic array, in an aesthetic both lush and daring. Olga was selected for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2023.