Olek + SML

by See-ming Lee
Olek + SML

1. Olek + SML

Olek “petting” her crocheted “guest” at her art installation currently on display at Elements — a shopping mall in Hong Kong. Olek + Crocheted “Pet” / SML.20121109.7D.15996
Olek “petting” her crocheted “guest” at her art installation currently on display at Elements — a shopping mall in Hong Kong. Olek + Crocheted “Pet” / SML.20121109.7D.15996

2. Olek, 2009, 100% Acrylic Art Guards.

100% Acrylic Art Guards by Olek / Dumbo Arts Center: Art Under the Bridge Festival 2009 / 20090926.10D.54773.P1.L1 / SML
100% Acrylic Art Guards by Olek / Dumbo Arts Center: Art Under the Bridge Festival 2009 / 20090926.10D.54773.P1.L1 / SML

Olek, 2009, 100% Acrylic Art Guards. Dumbo Arts Center: Art Under the Bridge Festival 2009. I met Olek originally at the Dumbo Art Festival in 2009. When I lived in New York, I liked to visit artist studios to chat with artists and learn about their art. Hearing them talk about their work helped me understand their intentions better, as sometimes the artist’s statements tend not to be very human.

3. Olek, 2009, 100% Acrylic Art Guards

100% Acrylic Art Guards by Olek / Dumbo Arts Center: Art Under the Bridge Festival 2009 / SML.20090926.10D.54531.P1.L1
100% Acrylic Art Guards by Olek / Dumbo Arts Center: Art Under the Bridge Festival 2009 / SML.20090926.10D.54531.P1.L1

Olek, 2009, 100% Acrylic Art Guards. Dumbo Arts Center: Art Under the Bridge Festival 2009

4. Olek, 2009, Thank You for Your Visit, Have a Nice Day.

Thank You for Your Visit, Have a Nice Day (Wearable Sculpture) by Agata Olek / Art in Odd Places 2009: SIGN, New York City / 20091010.10D.55189.P1.L1.C23 / SML
Thank You for Your Visit, Have a Nice Day (Wearable Sculpture) by Agata Olek / Art in Odd Places 2009: SIGN, New York City / 20091010.10D.55189.P1.L1.C23 / SML

Olek, 2009, Thank You for Your Visit, Have a Nice Day. I took some photos at the festival, and then Olek told me about their new art and asked if I wanted to tag along. I love crazy things, so of course I said yes.

5. Olek, 2009, Thank You for Your Visit, Have a Nice Day.

Thank You for Your Visit, Have a Nice Day (Wearable Sculpture) by Olek / Art in Odd Places 2009: SIGN, New York City / 20091010.10D.55207.P1.L1 / SML
Thank You for Your Visit, Have a Nice Day (Wearable Sculpture) by Olek / Art in Odd Places 2009: SIGN, New York City / 20091010.10D.55207.P1.L1 / SML

Olek, 2009, Thank You for Your Visit, Have a Nice Day. Art in Odd Places 2009: SIGN, New York City

6. Olek, 2010, ABC No Rio’s Ides of March

Olek / ABC No Rio’s Ides of March: The Seventh Biennial Building-Wide Exhibition / 20100319.7D.04721.P1 / SML
Olek / ABC No Rio’s Ides of March: The Seventh Biennial Building-Wide Exhibition / 20100319.7D.04721.P1 / SML

Olek, 2010, ABC No Rio’s Ides of March: The Seventh Biennial Building-Wide Exhibition. In 2010, Olek was part of a show in East Village and invited me over. There, I saw them with a bike covered in crochet right outside the building. The whole event was crazy and exciting. /

7. Olek, 2012, Happiness is an inside job.

“Happiness is an inside job” by Olek / pano-003-SML.20121218.7D.19808-SML.20121218.7D.19821
“Happiness is an inside job” by Olek / pano-003-SML.20121218.7D.19808-SML.20121218.7D.19821

Olek, 2012, Happiness is an inside job. When I moved to Hong Kong in 2012, I thought I wouldn’t meet my New York friends again. But Olek messaged me out of nowhere. Coinciding with the winter holidays, they were asked by Elements to create a custom installation. Elements is a huge shopping and entertainment complex at the basement of the tallest building in Hong Kong.

8. Olek, 2012, You Can’t Fool.

Olek, 2012, You Can’t Fool.
Olek, 2012, You Can’t Fool.

Olek, 2012, You Can’t Fool. During their stay, Olek asked me to take photos of a piece they made about the US Election. We did the photo shoot in the Hyatt hotel room they were staying in, and I edited all the photos into a stop-frame animation, just in time to post online before Election Day.

9. After 2012

After 2012, I took a long break from social media, so I didn’t know what Olek was doing for a while. But I recently thought of them and sent a message. They asked if I’d be interested in collaborating on something that meant a lot of them. Of course I said “yes” — to be continued…

10. To be continued…

Olek / ABC No Rio’s Ides of March: The Seventh Biennial Building-Wide Exhibition / 20100319.7D.04722.P1.L1.C45 / SML
Olek / ABC No Rio’s Ides of March: The Seventh Biennial Building-Wide Exhibition / 20100319.7D.04722.P1.L1.C45 / SML