Erwin Olaf

Dutch photographer Erwin Olaf delivers a velvet-gloved emotional impact with his highly stylized mode of image making. His work offers a blend of mid-century modern and noir aesthetics seen through a contemporary, fashion-inflected lens. The ambience of the series presented in this volumethe first time these three bodies of work have been presented as a wholeis truly enigmatic and enticing. Olaf seduces the viewer via a mannered, restrained palette that is replete with faded avocado greens, golden-hued oranges, and subtle lilacs. Each richly colored and sleekly composed image offers a sly reinterpretation of Norman Rockwell-like iconography and characters, manifesting a nostalgia that both burlesques and wryly celebrates America of the 1950s and 60s. As a whole, the material investigates what critic Jonathan Turner defines as Olafs recent fascination with the visual representation of such emotions of loss, loneliness, and quiet despair.