Olivia Steele in an American artist who works with signage, specialising in Neon installations, road signs and marquee signs. She has done installations in retail spaces, weddings, bars, even at the iconic Burning Man festival. This artist is the perfect inspiration for my current project.
She uses text and light to create beautiful, thoughtful pieces. Her work can sometimes be really personal, but presented in such an attention-seeking fashion like neon, her messages hit harder than the standard signs we are used to seeing.
Olivia Steele, Neon works
Olivia's neon work is beautiful and personal. I particularly like the use of just a few neon words within the scrawled diary entry. It feels really intimate and special.
Olivia Steele, Road signs
These signs are eye catching and thought provoking. Our eye is trained to look out for road signs as a safety precaution, however these pieces replace your standard text with thoughtful quotes. I can only imagine how I would feel if I spotted one of these signs driving down the road -
'You are exactly where you need to be'
- could be so empowering and inspiring if you were in a bad state of mind.
Olivia Steele, Marquee series
These marquee signs are often installed within already existing signage such as cinemas and theatres. Where you would expect a show announcement or screening times you are seeing deeply personal messages that feel intimate, almost like we shouldn't be seeing them.
This artist has inspired me so much! I am so drawn to the simplicity yet nuance of using ordinary signage to traditions to break rules and boundaries within this space. Her work is clearly made to a beautifully high standard, with a high budget. I am so drawn to these types of signs but I am limited due to cost barriers, especially with neon which is expensive and requires highly skilled training.
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