Threaded abstract art by multidisciplinary artist Olga Ermol

Falling in love with art in early age, Olga Ermol has taken her creative journey from studying Graphic Design, Interior and Product Design to sculpture before becoming a multidisciplinary visual artist. Here we chat with Olga about expressing her creativity through her bold and colourful geometric threaded abstract art inspired by 20th century modern architecture and design.

Can you tell us your backstory and how you got into the art world?

I have begun painting at the age of 9, when by accident I stumbled into a small art studio inside a Soviet music school in Kiev, Ukraine, where I grew up. My guitar lessons didn’t pick up but the art teacher who would then become a close friend instilled a love for art.

Setting off for university in the UK I went for a more “practical” degree in Graphic Design, yet always coming back to oil painting. Having studied Graphic Design and later Interior and Product Design in Milan it was always a kind of a personal mission to marry my two passions: living space and art.

Having predominantly used oil paints throughout my creative career, upon moving to Florence in 2015, I ventured into a three dimensional art form –  sculpture, taking classes at one of the oldest sculpting studios in Europe, Galleria Romanelli where afterwards my works have been exhibited.

Throughout this journey I always had an inner determination of making visual art my sole focus, but never felt that I was quite there yet, as if some pieces of the puzzle were still missing. The feeling continued until I began creating abstract art using thread on canvas.

Having started the threaded-abstract art direction in 2020, my work has thus far been commissioned across the world, including Los Angeles, New York and London. From my two recent exhibitions in Florence, majority of the pieces have been sold and I am continuously working on developing new body of works.

What influences your work?

My studies in Milan opened a world of 20th century modern architecture and design which resonated with me in form, colour and the ability to merge art with architecture, creating liveable art unit. I suppose my shape and colour choices come from an unconscious influence of that design era which I have great nostalgia for.

In the recent years, I have visited Morocco and Mexico several times which rekindled my adoration for ethnic techniques and aesthetics, and right before the pandemic began, I made a fresh canvas, stocked up on thread and began creating my first thread on canvas piece, having no clue where the journey would lead. I instantly fell in love with this improvised technique and the beautiful effect it creates, having a raw patch of colour gain volume, complexity, and detail.

The abstract subjects are born organically. Having been leading a high intensity life with a continuous influx of experiences, emotions, and an insatiable passion for life, I find balance and beauty of then patiently and diligently expressing this bouquet visually with the use of thread.

How would you describe your signature style and technique?

I would say the thread on canvas art pieces combine notes of a reinvisioned 20th century modern design with and undertone of an ethnic influence. I like to think of my style as bold, loud, and bare, just like the memories of my personal experiences. The eye-catching perspective of a single thread in alternating bright and dark colours can create a symbolism of the unexpected fluctuations and turbulence of life. Always interchanging between strong and soft, loud, and subtle, dark and bright in dynamism.

Are there any exhibitions or events you are planning? 

I am currently working on a series of works inspired by the Italian architect Gio Ponti, which will be exhibited at JHA Porcelain (@jhaporcelain) studio in Florence mid-March.

What is the best advice you received as an artist?

My art teacher always used to say, “I can see you thinking, turn off your mind, it is getting in the way”. I still think of this phrase frequently when I begin focusing too much on the end result or a client or a viewer I would like to please. It often blocks the creative process. I think it is important to create artwork for “yourself” in the first place, then the rest falls into place.

Olga Ermol details:

For more information please visit Olga Ermol’s website.

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