Plane Space
102 Charles Street, between Bleecker and Hudson, 917-606-1268
Greenwich Village
October 10 - November 18, 2007
Reception: Wednesday, October 10, 6 - 8 PM
Web Site
This most recent body of work, comprised of 15 paintings and 3 watercolors, is a return to earlier subjects: bus shelter and gas pumps. In addition, there is a group of works that depict the glowing orange ball of the Union 76 gas station. Working from his own photographs, which he has taken at night, Olsen captures these objects when they are illuminated artificially causing his palette to reflect the harsh and cold lighting of fluorescence. Stripping the image of all but these objects, the shelters and pumps glow amidst the enveloping blackness that surrounds them. The title of the exhibition, Empty Cities, is poignant, for all the objects depicted are man made; however, without any human presence, these objects can be read as post-apocalyptic urban relics.