AMY OLIVER
I am a UK based self-taught conceptual artist and experimental photographer. My artwork is drawn upon narratives from a feminist perspective based on my own experiences of being a woman. My intention is to keep issues considered stigma visible through artwork by creating subtle, relatable pieces portraying both the frangible and durable elements of our existence; expressing vulnerability and instability but also alluding to the fundamental core strength within. I enjoy responding to both reference and materials in unconventional ways, pushing their and my boundaries.
I often use mannequins in my work - their anonymity and uniformity enable me to tackle subjects such as gender-based violence and women’s health on a human but impersonal level. Female mannequins generally conform to male gaze idealism and using them to create work disrupting that cliché is an important element of my practice.
My work has been exhibited throughout the UK and in Europe, Japan and USA, and in June-July 2019 I had my first solo show, Still Life, at The Jam Factory, Oxford. In October 2018 I co-curated (In)visible at Espacio Gallery, London, a group exhibition which coincided with World Mental Health Day and brought together 43 international, emerging and accomplished artists. I am founder and curator of The House of Smalls, which began as a dollhouse project in 2020 and moved into its first gallery space in Chipping Campden in February 2023 before relocating permanently to Edinburgh in the summer of 2024.
Most of my work is available as unique handmade transfer prints (300gsm A6-A3) or limited edition aluminium and acrylic prints (all sizes).
CURATED SHOWS
The House of Smalls, Edinburgh
HIDDEN
The Time of Her Life IV
Moral Fibre
The House of Smalls, Chipping Campden
Between The Lines
We Are The Witches
In Memory Of
DOLL
The Time of Her Life III
SCAR
Walk The Line
The Dollhouse at The House of Smalls
HIDDEN
The Time of Her Life IV
Moral Fibre
Between The Lines
We Are The Witches
In Memory Of
DOLL
The Time of Her Life III
SCAR
Walk The Line
The Time of Her Life II (Fronteer Independent Art Fair)
Shadow (Fronteer Independent Art Fair)
CONFINED
It's My Life
A Winter's Tale
Mirror Mirror on the Wall
Vintage Castle Eaton
This Volatile State
The Time of Her Life (co-curated with Catherine Oliver)
The Portrait Within
Facing It
'(In)visible' by Atramental (co-curated with Jenni Bea), Espacio Gallery, London
PREVIOUS SHOWS/EVENTS (full CV available upon request)
Open Art Special by ArtNumber23, Rome
Monochrome 2 by Glasgow Gallery of Photography, Glasgow
The Fronteer Open 2022, by Fronteer Art, Exchange Place Studios, Sheffield
Motion by PH21 Gallery, Experimental Center of Photography, Rome (Honourable mention)
Broadway Arts Festival Open Art Competition Finalist 2022, Broadway Museum & Art Gallery, Broadway, Worcs
Get Out of Your Skull, travelling art project by 10Dence Gallery, Belgium, France & The Netherlands
The Absurd by FUBAR Collective, The Crypt, Euston, London
#43Artists by Cultivate (online)
Emergent Vision by Uncovered Collective at Copeland Road, London
Vienna Calling II 'All You Need is Love' by Atelier Cool Pool & ArtCan at Galerie Art Pool, Vienna, Austria
The Art Hunt by Sweet 'Art, East London
You Can't Paint That! by Smash The Narrative at NDSM Fuse, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Trenton 2020 'AAN 2020 Virtual Selects Exhibition', New Jersey, US (online)
Art All Night Trenton 2020' New Jersey, US (online)
The Resilient Self by The Artists' Pool at Espacio Gallery, London
Depiction - the human form at Heseltine Gallery, Truro School, Truro
Chapter I by ArtNumber23, Thissio, Athens, Greece
Peerfest 2019'by Mind, West Bromwich Albion FC, Birmingham
Sheroes-Revoluciones by Lon-Art, Ugly Duck, London
The Death of Art by Sweet 'Art, The Stash Gallery, Vout-O-Reenee’s, London
Still Life (solo show), The Jam Factory, Boiler Room Gallery, Oxford
Uncertainty & The Unknown by City Arts Nottingham & the Institute of Mental Health, IMH, Nottingham
Dancing with Demons, DWD Events (charity fundraiser for Mind), Create Centre, Bristol
Portraits Without Faces by PH21 Gallery, Budapest, Hungary
Have a H'Art by Sweet 'Art (fundraising event), The Stash Gallery, Vout-O-Reenee’s, London
Twitter Art Exhibit (postcard fundraiser for Mind), Out of The Blue Drill Hall, Edinburgh
FLUX Exhibition, The National Army Museum, Chelsea, London
Nostalgia by Artnumber23, Misc. Art Center, Timisoara, Romania/TOON, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Ich Will (Rammstein themed club night) by 8 Music Group, Nightclub Kolis, London
Unspoken by Sweet 'Art, The Stash Gallery, Vout-O-Reenee’s, London
Illuminate Herstory exhibition, St Catherine's College, University of Oxford
Pink by Clouds Art Coffee, Suginami, Tokyo
Intent by Cultivate at BMST Space, London
TRIBE17 by Chrom-Art, The Bargehouse, Oxo Wharf Tower, London
Art Event by Nasty Women UK, Stour Space, London
FemFest by Sweet 'Art in partnership with Ugly Duck, London
Mental Health Charity Fundraising Auction by Chilli Studios at Holy Biscuit Gallery, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
Stimulus by Artnumber23, Greenhouse, Berlin/Municipal Art Gallery of Piraeus, Athens/Menier Gallery, London
At This Point In Time by WITP, Scottish Arts Club, Edinburgh
Gluttony by Nude Tin Can Gallery, St Albans, Herts
East Kent Artists' Open House weekends, Margate, Kent
Humans by Made In.. Art Gallery, Venice, Italy
The Nude by Candid Arts Trust, Islington, London
Breakfast in Beirut by Artiki Eventi, Treviso, Italy