Jeff Olson is a Seattle-based artist whose creative journey spans more than three decades of dedicated studio practice, art education, and deep engagement with the materials that shape visual expression. With over 30 years of exhibition history and 25 years as a professional in the art materials world, Olson is as much a painter and maker as he is a translator between artists and the tools they use to create.
Raised in Eastern Washington and born in Moscow, Idaho in 1965, Olson's roots in the Pacific Northwest run deep. He earned both his BFA (1988) and MFA (1992) from Washington State University, laying the groundwork for a lifelong exploration of image-making across a range of media and methods.
Today, Olson serves as the Art Education Director for Royal Talens North America, where he merges his passion for materials with his gift for teaching. His role takes him across the U.S. and Canada, engaging with university programs, art organizations, and professional events to share insights into the composition, history, and expressive potential of artists’ tools.
Olson’s studio work reflects a fascination with the interplay of technique and material, often shaped by his travels to artistic and cultural centers across Europe, North Africa, and the Americas. He has lived in cities across the country ranging from Honolulu to Chicago, and travels spanning Morocco to the Netherlands, his creative worldview is as expansive as his résumé.
Whether behind the easel or in front of a classroom, Jeff Olson brings a rare combination of technical mastery, historical insight, and artistic curiosity to everything he does.