Meet Olga Diem | artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Olga Diem and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Olga, what do you attribute your success to?
I explored different mediums of art.
From pencil drawing to photography and 3d modelling, I tried many ways of visual storytelling. Eventually, I arrived at the synergy of digital and traditional methods, which is signature to my art style. I use photo collages to create references (or 3d modeling), from which I paint my composition digitally in Procreate, then I print an outline of my project on watercolor paper and finish my work with paint while referencing digital guides that I created.
This is why I believe it is critical to be open-minded about new approaches to art and to explore new creative possibilities.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My art is my lifelong journey that began as a coping mechanism for a stressful life at home; it helped me to focus on what I’m doing, not what is happening around me. Teachers recognized my abilities early on, yet I didn’t get any training before I was 23, after moving to the USA, where I started to study traditional drawing techniques at various art studios in NYC.
I wanted to become a fantasy illustrator to honor another thing that helped carry me through my early years: mythology and storytelling. For me, it wasn’t enough to become good at drawing to achieve this, so I took online mentorship classes at Schoolism and CGMA Academy for a fraction of the price of traditional college. I studied with art legends like Craig Mullins, Nathan Fowkes, Marco Bucci, Terryl Whitlatch and others. I was fully dedicated to those classes, and my skills grew swiftly.
Yet, despite having such incredible mentors and potential, I struggled to find my artistic voice; I was a victim of my insecurity and perfectionism during my studies. One piece of advice that I was getting was to go outside and sketch to loosen up. I tried doing it on my iPad, yet the glare from the sun made it impossible, so I took on watercolor paints, as they were a traditional pick for outdoor painting. At first, it caused me a lot of frustration, and my sketches were terrible. Eventually, I started making watercolor art gifts for my friends and family and got better at it, but I still saw my future as a digital fantasy illustrator. But I also started to enjoy watercolors more and more, they were a perfect antidote to my desire for perfection, a physical, fluid-based medium that flows with water and mixes with the pigment and is almost impossible to correct, the only thing that you can do if you fail is to start over. I was hovering in indecision, about which medium works best for me, until the world completely changed, Russia invaded my homeland, and I knew that they would use propaganda to dehumanize Ukrainians so the world forgets and abandons them to this horror. I felt the best way I could help was by creating a profound pro-Ukrainian art, and that watercolor fits this task best. I started doing this on day 1 of the invasion. Pretty soon, I no longer struggled with a search for artistic voice; my art began to shine, and all of my skills worked in synergy for one purpose – to assist my people. Eventually, some pieces were sold at auctions for Ukraine; now, as I’ve done a series of paintings, I’m launching a print shop, proceeds from which will also be donated.
My art is no longer about me or my story; it’s about my desire for a better world, a morale boost to those who fight and resist; there is no more room for insecurities or perfectionism; the message of hope and support must be shared now.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Over the years, I’ve built a standard NYC itinerary where the walk starts from DUMBO, then goes over the Brooklyn Bridge, Downtown, and ends in the 9/11 memorial on the first day; next days, I would explore High line park and Middtown, Metropolitan museum of art (could spend an entire week there), Natural history museum, Guggenheim and MOMA, Central and Riverside parks. I would take them to the Korean BBG in Williamsburg, Dim Sum dumplings in Chinatown, as well as a burgershop near Bryant Park.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My husband deserves the most recognition for supporting me along my creative journey despite my insecurities and doubts. He financed my art studies, learned to appreciate art himself by visiting museums, and is now the only one who can give me valuable feedback that doesn’t hurt my ego yet addresses the weak points of my work.

Website: https://www.olgadiem.art/

Instagram: olga_diem

Twitter: Time to leave it

Other: I’m most active on BlueSky @olgadiem.bsky.social, where I also share my photography, which I consider supplemental to my art.