All of Olivia's work is for sale. If you see something you love, please contact her.
South West Rock Pools
Whale sharks
After my first trip to swim with Whale sharks in 2012 I have not stopped making art about them.
I have collaborated with Brad Norman, a global leader in whale shark research. His Ecocean photo identification library has become the basis of my latest installations and paintings. I have used phosphorescent paint so the spots on the whale shark paintings glow once they are in darkness, evocative of the eerie experience of swimming in the deep blue with whale sharks. Likewise my ephemeral installations take on a new life when the solar LED lighting comes into play after dusk.
CORPORATE commissions , gift to Chevron 3m x 2m slumped glass
A huge 3 metres wide x 2 metres tall ( 3 x 1 m panels 10mm thickness) on toughened slumped glass this piece was commissioned by an international company as a gift for Chevron to commemorate the Wheatstone Project off the Western Australian Coast. The slumped glass has an incredibly watery appearance with its textured undulating bubbling surface quality and depth. The slumped glass is very evocative of the ocean and adds to the unique quality of the whale shark painting on glass. 35 small maquettes on clear toughened glass were presented to key stakeholders as a unique and substantial momento gift. See sample s below:
A large scale corporate gift specially commissioned for Chevron 2015 . Slumped Glass 3 metres by 2 metres.
Chevron gift
3 metres wide 2 metres tall my whale shark painting onto slumped glass has a beautiful underwater feeling. Commissioned by an international company to commemorate the Wheatstone Project Completion .
Reconciliation
I have been working with Kerry Stack for several years on collaborative art works, mainly large scale installations so far. We describe ourselves as reconciliation in action as we learn from each other.
Kaya Wanjoo, Noongar Boodjar by Kerry Stack and Olivia Samec (Copy)
Kaya Wanja Noongar Boodjar- Kerry Stack and Olivia Samec
Kerry Stack and Olivia Samec - small section of a 30 metre long mural using Balga resin and ochre - Fremantle Western Australia. This mural recognises and pays respect to the thousands of generations of Noongar people who inhabited South Fremantle, making their way to the beach from inland and vice versa, until recent times and colonisation.
Kerry is a Noongar Artist with family, country and cultural connections in the Wadjuk, Bindjareb, Yued, Wilman, Wardandi and Ballardong areas. Olivia is an Australian Artist with European heritage- Kerry and Olivia have successfully collaborated on several two way cultural learning projects. We are reconciliation in action as we learn from each other and then translate this into artworks. Both explore our Western Australian nature & our relationship with it.
Sculpture/ Installation
My practice is multifaceted. I use a wide variety of materials depending on what I am trying to express, and the location the works will be placed in. I am excited by the infinite possibilities available when working in sculpture and installation, there are no boundaries to materials, scale or site. My works have been selected to exhibit at Sculptures by the Sea, Castaways Sculpture Awards and Sculpture @ Bathers. The large audience exposure and meeting with other artists from across WA, Australia and the world, that come from being part of these large exhibitions is great fun .My sculptural works are often an extension of my painting and prints. I like the physical nature of working with Sculpture and installation, the challenges they bring and the teamwork involved. My partner James Moe is integral to the logistics and practical nature of my works as well as any multimedia and graphics components. Jamie assists to turn my ideas into reality. He has become increasingly involved in the conceptual and aesthetic part of the process.
Whale Shark A-001 Stumpy, 10 x 6 x .15 metres, plastic, coloured water, solar power,Sculptures by the Sea 2014, Olivia Samec and James Moe
There is a direct correlations between my paintings and the three D installation. At dusk the solar powered light begin to glow, Cottesloe Beach. In earlier paintings of whale sharks I incorporated phosphorscent paint so that the paintings spots are luminous in the dark.
My installation was around the same 10metre length as Stumpy the whale shark.
Whale Shark A-001 Stumpy 2013, 300 x 400x 15 cm. plastic, coloured water , solar lighting, QR code, Castaways Sculpture Awards
This was an experimental piece which mapped the movement and intensity of the sun through the reflections and refracted blue light captured on the sand. Solar powered lights glowed from underground as the sun went down. The sand and the environment were an integral part of the sculpture installation. The installation also mapped the spots of Stumpy the whale shark, and depicted his unique " fingerprint". A QR code took the viewer to the Ecocean photo identification site on a mobile device and another took the viewer to a time-lapse film capturing the installation in its constant state of flux over a 24 hr period . Castaways Sculpture Award promotes sculpture made from recycled materials. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBPuX6wG_ck&feature=youtu.be
Whale Shark A-001 Stumpy, 10 x 6 x .15 metres, plastic, coloured water, solar power,Sculptures by the Sea 2014, Olivia Samec and James Moe
The installation reacts with the changing environment, in a constant state of flux it also maps the movement and intensity of the sun. The environment is an integral part of the piece. Whale sharks are known as "stars of the sea" and this installation glows at night from thousands of solar powered lights buried beneath. This 3 D work was preceded by two years painting and studying whale sharks after several field trips to Ningaloo Exmouth Western Australia where was inspired after swimming with the whale sharks .
This ephemeral installation developed further in scale and complexity from the first Whale Shark A-001 Stumpy, based on the specific and unique "fingerprint " of a real whale shark. Developed in consultation with marine biologist Brad Norman, with a QR link to the Ecocean photo identification library, this piece is a celebration of the creative science that is working to conserve whale sharks.
Whale Shark A-001 Stumpy, 10 x 6 x .15 metres, plastic, coloured water, solar power,Sculptures by the Sea 2014, Olivia Samec and James Moe
Refracted blue light is something I find transfixing. Just as the phenomena of visiting the Blue Grotto on the Island Capri in Italy was a deep and lasting sensory experience , for me it is matched by swimming with the whale sharks at Ningaloo. I hope my installation evokes a similar sensory experience for visitors,
The unique identification spots of Stumpy the first whale shark recorded in the Ecocean photo identification library , reveal themselves more fully at night, just as they glow under the ocean. Made using recycled materials, Perth Arena contributed thousands of plastic lids from just one Avici concert!
Kaleidoscope, 3 towers each 300 cm 65 x 15 cm, total footprint 6 m x 3 m , wood, mirrastar double sided semitransparent mirror glass, pvc. Sculptures by the Sea 2010
The Kaleidoscope louvre project is strongly influenced by my fathers distinctive geometric angular architecture. I wanted to create a sculpture that interacted with the environment and that children would interact with.
Kaleidoscope, 3 towers each 300 c 65 x 15 cm, total footprint 6 m x 3 m , wood, mirrastar double sided semitransparent mirror glass, pvc. Sculptures by the Sea 2010
These sculptures were influenced equally by my fathers architecture and from the art of East Arnhem Land where I lived for four years. The Aboriginal mimi and totem poles in Arhmen Land worked well in clusters and for this kaleidoscope project I wanted a minimum of three towers.
Kaleidoscope, wood , mirror , aluminium. South Beach, Fremantle 2010
I like the interplay with nature and that the kaleidoscopic effect allows people to see old things in new contexts.
I set out to create a piece specifically that children would want to and could interact with, but at the same time appeal to all ages.
Birth of Venus
Shown at the inaugural Sculpture@Bathers this piece is part of the ongoing works in the Venus Project, that examine the sexual politics throughout the ages, women's changing role. Women's position in the politics of birth was the initial catalyst for these works. Women are very often invisible in public art in Perth and particularly Fremantle , my home town. I wanted to create a piece that portrays women as strong and vulnerable at the same time. The pregnant woman is a play on words from Botticelli's Birth of Venus which this piece references. Smaller ephemeral installations were placed in the rocks around the Round house where the emancipated Venus was surrounded by domestic tools such as mixing spoons, pegs and other objects such as fruit, flowers and shells, associated with beauty and fertility. I wanted to honour "women's work" through the ages, even though it may not be our first choice these days, and thank god we are no longer locked into domestics as singularly as previously.
The Venus series,45 x 35 x 20 cm, perspex, acetate, wood
These works commenting on sexual politics through the ages. Historical female icons are referenced in states of emancipation, juxtaposed with domestic items.
Topiary . 40 x 40 cm Embossed aluminium
Birth of Venus
2.6m x 0.6m x 0.6m made from recycled materials including steel anchor, bicycle frame, mirror, draw handles, cut down kaleidoscope sculpture
Exhibited at Castaways Sculpture Awards which feature recycled sculptures, this sculpture was evocative of a cubist pregnant being. All part of the Venus Project which aims to explore sexual politics throughout time and challenge some of the politics of birth.
Birth of Venus maquette
This is a maquette for a planned 2 metre tall life size piece. It has been selected to exhibit at Sculptures by the Sea. We are seeking sponsorship to be able to produce the enlarged version in glass or acrylic.
The piece references powerful female icons Venus de Mil and Botticelli's Birth of Venus through to the modern Australian woman. The piece highlights the emancipation of women and changing role through the ages, while honouring the role of mother. It is hoped this piece will create debate arounf sexual politics and the politics of birthing. It will also fill a hole where female images are hugely underrepresented. If you would like to support the ccreation of this piece please contact the artist.
Melville Sculpture Award, :Awarded Highly Commended -"Infinity" by Olivia Samec and Frontier 3D
Highly Commended -"Infinity" by Olivia Samec and Frontier 3DInfinity - Olivia Samec and Frontier 3D
Awarded Highly Commended for my painting ‘ Ernst Samec, Architect , Migrant , Survivor
Kacheloven
Collaboration with Bridget Norton
Sculpture by the Sea 2015, First fully submerged underwater installation: " Sanctuary"
I have worked collaboratively with husband James Moe to create a dive trail of mermaids to entice people to look beneath the surface. Titled, "SANCTUARY" to celebrate that Australia has the largest network of marine Sanctuaries in the world!! Thanks to this #CottesloeBeach has pristine waters with abundant sea life. We have designed our mermaids to entice people to engage with nature; to look, discover and protect. This exciting project is happening because of generous support. A million thanks to sponsors; Plexiglass from Plastral, Arup Engineering- Lewis Macdonald, The Mostyn Family Trust through Sculpture by the Sea Director David Handley, Alcoa through Sculpture by the Sea Director David Handley. And also thanks to Indianic Dive Services- Mic Gray for installation and Artcom , Meg, Tim , Mark, Jason and Team for fabulous fabrication and Kate at Early Works for graphics wizardry.
SANCTUARY
SANCTUARY , Plexiglass, acrylic and digital print. 170 x 60 x 54 cm
Located at Cottesloe Beach 7-22 March 2015.
Sculpture by the Sea 2015
"Sanctuary" by Olivia Samec and James Moe, photograph by Geoff Fisher for Post newspaper
Look beneath the surface, edition 1/ 8 by Olivia Samec & Bridget Norton 20x 20 x 4 cm solid glass
These soild glass pieces are like holding a piece of the ocean in your hands. Each is unique and capture the colours, and qualities of the sea. On sale at Sculptures Inside as part of Sculpture by the Sea Cottesloe , Western Australia. They work as a stand alone piece , or as a group.
Whale shark/ look beneath the surface/ sanctuary
Initially designed to represent the experience of swimming with the whale sharks at Ningaloo.
Perth International Arts Festival - PIAF
I painted through until after midnight while acclaimed New York cellist Michael Goldshlager played the Bach suites . A homage to my Austrian Heritage that painting references Gustav Klimt’s Tree of Life.
Tree of Life
Inspired by Gustav Klimt and a homage to my Austrian heritage.
with accliamed sello soloist Michael Goldshlager at PIAF 2015
Fire
Fire
Fire has played a central role in my life and is a theme I continue to gravitate towards. On a personal level I find fire grounding and deeply comforting. Paradoxically fire has wrought such terror and destruction in recent years around the with global warming. Australia’s continent and culture have been shaped by fire for tens of thousands of years. as a nation we need to learn from our First Nation Aboriginal people and their land management practices which were practiced for tens of thousands of years pre colonisation.
underwater
Desert
Remembering Tjirkarli
oil on canvas- 138 x119 cm -jarrah frame
Ngaanjatjarra Lands
archival quality Giclee print on stretched canvas - 100 x 80 cm