f. 1978, Agata Oleksiak, Poland. Now living in NYC
Stitch after stitch, OLEK's artwork emerges in crochet that both clarifies and conceals objects. On the global art map, she is called the crochet queen. No one has used the craft of crochet in the way she has in expressing life's big questions. - Crochet becomes a metaphor for the structures of family, society and the world. No connection is stronger than its weakest thread. If a stitch is missing in the work, everything can be torn up and come to nothing, says the artist. OLEK always works with the starting point being the place where the artwork is to be displayed. On her first visit to Avesta, she settled on the simple farmhouse Stubbsveden in Avesta's bisentpark. Here, the kitchen and chambers contain the most necessary things for everyday life, and at the same time traces of a woman's care for home comfort: curtains, flowers, a crocheted lampshade. When OLEK wanted to recreate the old farmhouse for Avesta Art, women from Avesta joined in a crochet workshop that brought life and color to the ironworks' rusting house for several weeks. The women were newly arrived from Syria and Ukraine – happy to be part of OLEK’s artistic creation, marked by the fact that they themselves have been forced to leave their homes and countries due to war and political unrest. –What is a home, asks the artist and seeks answers deeper than in objects: Moods, feelings, memories, a few belongings of very special significance. –My art examines what is and what happens in our lives. I want to add color, energy and surprises that make people move, to look up and think for themselves. The installation in Avesta shows a home where something has happened. An attack – an explosion – has created devastation in the cozy. –The Syrian women showed me photos and films from their destroyed homes and cities. Of course they want to return, but now it is not possible. Their reality confirms that none of us can take anything for granted. Terror, war, earthquakes or other natural disasters can force us to flee. Illness and the death of loved ones can forever change our living conditions. The challenges are universal. Crocheting gives a special dimension to OLEK's artistic work. The technique is old, known all over the world and mainly practiced by women. With a small hook, yarn loop is joined to yarn loop in works that grow into warm blankets, sweaters and mittens, into beautiful lace, collars, fun decorations and much, much more. The choice to crochet becomes in itself a vindication for women's everyday and often overlooked work. There is also something bold and unpredictable in the crossing of boundaries between folk crochet and professional artistry. OLEK is the stage name of Agata Oleksiak. She was born in 1978 in Poland, educated at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan, and has lived in New York for many years. She has made artwork and conducted workshops around the world. OLEK is passionately committed to women's rights, freedom of expression and the equal value of people. The installation In the Blink of an Eye is now on display for the second year at Avesta Art. In 2016, OLEK and his team also crocheted one of the city's villas in pink yarn. Photographs of Avesta's pink house were spread around the world and published in highly regarded newspapers.
