Yorkshire-based artist Olivia Beau has spent a lifetime walking by the coast and immersing herself in the countryside of dales and these contrasting landscapes have sparked an exciting new creative journey. the is clearly on an exciting journey of experimentation and discovery.
She divides her time between her home near Ilkley and her parents’ pop-up space in Filey, where she grew up, a happy balance between the moors and the coast - the best of both worlds.
Now in her early forties, life has led her to explore several professional paths. As an experienced life coach, mentor and author, Olivia understands the importance of self-awareness and striving to maintain a healthy life/work balance.
'The days I feel most alive, they all have a common thread… I’m creating something,' she says.
In January 2021, at the start of the second lockdown, Olivia decided to turn the isolation to her advantage and redecorate her home. She found the whole process very rewarding, and upon completion began looking for statement pieces to hang in her fresh home.
Serendipity knocked on her door one afternoon, when her daughter was crafting a pair of clay earrings. Inspired, Olivia reached for the acrylics and began to paint. Raw, spontaneous, free – she had no idea why or how, but could already imagine it on her walls.
Olivia hadn’t dabbled in anything ‘arty’ since her late teens, so this sudden creative urge really took her by surprise. She decided to lean into it, and bought herself some large canvases with a view to decorating her home, or perhaps even trying to sell at a new open doors pop-up which her parents were organising in Filey.
It didn’t take long for Olivia's passion to flourish. Her paintings tumbled out. Her 'Sand and Sea' works sold at the pop-up almost instantly, boosting her confidence and her understanding of their relatability for coast lovers. Having grown up in Filey, many of her canvases reflect the coast. They are abstract and intuitive, born of thousands of walks along the beach, layers of childhood memories and a kaleidoscope of associations, textures and patterns. By incorporating names and vintage maps of favourite places, towns, landmarks and bays, she confers personal meaning to her paintings, inevitably reaching those who remember similar moments or recall a certain sense of place. The same is true of her multimedia paintings based on Ilkley and the Dales, rich in colour, markings and movement. They’re sensory, tactile, imaginary but familiar.
Boasting 11 successful pop-ups, exhibitions in Ilkley and Filey as well as a number of private commissions in just over two years, she is enjoying what she hopes will be a long, creative journey in Yorkshire and beyond.
For more information about Olivia Beau’s artwork, Filey pop-ups and exhibitions, please visit her website at www.oliviabeaustudio.com.
