Sigurdur Olafsson

I was born in Iceland, where I live and work.

Although abstract in nature, my work is often inspired by the colors, rhythms, and seasons of the Icelandic landscape.

I work mainly with acrylics on canvas. I use large brushes and spatulas, trowels, and other unconventional tools, such as big custom-made squeegees and scrapers.

My paintings are multi-layered, and through an accumulation of spontaneous, reactive gestures, I let the paintings almost create themselves. The process is intuitive, but my knowledge of the physical properties of paint and how it behaves under different conditions is also brought into play.

I love old hand-made things that have a history and a soul. Abandoned farmhouses, ghost towns, and other forsaken human relics fascinate me. I like the feelings they evoke and the poignant stories they tell. Weathered layers of peeling paint, rusted metal, and crumbling concrete have a strange visual quality that I find interesting.

With my art, I try to induce similar feelings in the viewer's mind. I am exploring something that I can only describe as the boundary between order and chaos. I think in that elusive and mysterious area, I will find the secrets of creativity itself or at least continued inspira...

The Icelandic College of Art and Crafts
The University of Iceland

2021 London Art Biennale / Chelsea Old Town Hall, King’s Road - London, United Kingdom
2020 Disrupting the Stillness / Visionary Projects / New York, United States
2020 Annual Watercolor Society of Iceland exhibition / Mosfellsbaer Art Hall - Mosfellsbaer, Iceland
2020 Abstractions / The Cultural Center of Cape Cod - South Yarmouth, MA, United States
Works in public and private collections in various countries of Europe, Asia, and the Americas.