Gena Ollendeick

I have always found inspiration in old discarded objects, nature, and vintage black and white family snap shots. The beauty and mystery inherent in old and forgotten objects offers me the opportunity to transform the ordinary into something new.

A curious child, I spent hours outside my parents Northeast Iowa home in the woods and prairies exploring and finding all kinds of interesting “junk”. Later, this curiosity lead me to a profession in visual arts instruction and then to the wonder of Paraguay, South America (as a Peace Corps Volunteer with my husband) and finally back to the beautiful limestone bluffs and rivers of my childhood. My studio and home are in the small Northeast Iowa town of my childhood, a very special place where I work and live with my husband, daughter, and 2 cats.

In the early stages of each piece, I begin by creating a collage surface on which to work. This is either on the books’ cover surface (after the hand binding process is complete) or the collage backing. I begin by assembling the 3- dimensional elements of each composition working to create the main elements of the story I am trying to tell. Then, sketches are created working out the details that help to create the overall themes of the composition. After the 3-deminsional elements are assembled then a collage surface is created as the background to unify the story and complete the composition. Old black and white images, post cards, pages from old books, and vintage metals and children’s games are used to establish the feeling of each piece. For me each of my assemblages on the books’ cover surface is a story of the little things we need to be gently reminded of each day. I use these ideas and build the themes of my work around those core values that I hold deeply within my being. Then fine leather is stretched to cover the book and closures and end pages are added. The final work is a functional blank book or album but is very much also designed as a sculptural art object.

My goal is to create a new story from the objects and images I alter and assemble, playing with the feelings that coexist between the natural, physical, and imaginary worlds.


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Cresco, IA 52136